COMMENT
A matter of trust
Captain Michael Howorth asks if the superyacht industry is doing enough for crew welfare and how as senior crew we should behave?
only as a member of my crew approached. That word was Capp- tain? It was said in much the same way as my children used to say, Dadd-eey? when they wanted another ice-cream.
W
I have often joked that the job of Master aboard a superyacht was somewhat similar to that of a father whose unruly family of 20 or so half grown-up children still lived with them. Using the Capp-tain? word in that tone of voice, always meant they either wanted something or needed me to do something for them.
In my time as Captain, I have been asked to help new crew set up bank accounts because they have never earned money beforehand. I have been asked to witness documents they have brought before me for signatures, and I have had to mop up more than my fair share of tears shed by crew jilted by a partner.
In many ways, I should have been flattered that they thought of me as being their father figure and as such was trusted. However, there was one scenario that
hen I was in command of a superyacht, many moons ago, I used to dread hearing one particular word. I only ever heard that word when I was alone, and I heard it
enough for crew welfare and how as senior crew we should behave?
course, I had to investigate, interviewing both sides and making sure I had the full story and not just half the truth. It turned out that yes, the engineer fancied the girl, but she had no desire to reciprocate. He refused to take no for an answer and, while there was no evidence of physical interaction, it was very clear to me that he was making her life hell and that I had to take action. Very fortunately, from my point of view, we were ending a very long ocean crossing and I was able to keep the two well separated until I landed him ashore and reported the matter to the management company explaining why he had been fired.
It was because my deckie trusted me as his Captain that the matter was sorted out so quickly and now that I look back on it, I can see how important that element of trust in the Captain is.
In many ways, I should have been flattered that they thought of me as being their father figure and as such was trusted
happened back then, and by all accounts is happening much more frequently on board yachts, that I seek to mention now.
One occasion when I heard the Capp-tain? word, was when it preceded a report made by a deckhand that an engineer onboard our yacht was sexually harassing a stewardess and, despite the plucky girl fending off the overly amorous attentions of the engineer, she was having a tough time of it. My deckie hinted that he thought the girl might become so distressed, she might even jump over the side. I was upset and angry at the same time. Upset for the girl’s predicament and angry with myself for not noticing it myself and stamping on the situation sooner. Needless to say, I was angry with the engineer as well. First of
I mentioned this because, just recently, I had an opportunity to sit in on an online webinar run by the PYA concerning flag states and welfare. Listening to crew members who signed in to attend the webinar to ask questions of flag states I was struck by the fact that almost all of them came from girls on board being somewhat harassed by the advances of the captain. In other words, the very person that they would need to go to
and complain about was in fact the perpetrator of the deed. Quite clearly in those instances, the captain had betrayed the trust of his crew, and that must be one of the greatest sins, a captain can ever commit. Captains are, by definition, leaders. They are the person that ultimately you look up to when the shit hits the fan, they are the person that you follow in a crisis, knowing that ultimately, he has your best interests at heart.
So, for the captain to betray this trust, is nothing short of scandalous. Captains who cannot control their romantic feelings need to ship-out and leave the industry because once you have lost the trust of your crew you have no right to wear four stripes of gold on your sleeve.
ONBOARD | SUMMER 2023 | 9
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