NEW SHIPBOARD TECHNOLOGY AND TRAINING PROVISIONS FOR SEAFARERS

Makers' updates and company circulars provide another source of information for seafarers concerning shipboard equipment and new technology. In this research eight percent of seafarers were not aware, at all. of any company circulars or makers' updates being circulated to sea-staff in their current/most recent company. In relation to the responses to tins question, seafarer nationality played a particularly significant role.

Having encountered a problem with the operation of a piece of equipment the overwhelming majority of respondents would consult a manual. Additionally, around a half of all respondents would consult colleagues. Department, ship type, seafarer age and nationality, were all found to influence the responses offered to tins question. In relation to the main engine maneuvering system engineers were very confident about their knowledge and understanding with 83% self-rating their knowledge of this equipment as 'excellent'. Engineers were less confident about their knowledge of oily water separators however with only 40% claiming 'excellent' knowledge of tins equipment. Overall engineers were least confident about high voltage equipment and 37% of engineers self-rated their knowledge of this equipment as 'basic' or even 'zero'. Navigation officers were markedly more confident about their understanding of AIS and GPS than they were about their understanding of ARPA, GMDSS, and ECDIS. ECDIS was the equipment which officers were least confident about overall, with 9% self-rating their understanding of ECDIS as 'zero1 and a further 21% suggesting it was basic.

Respondents were more confident about ARPA than they were about GMDSS with four percent self-rating their knowledge of ARPA as basic compared with 13% self-rating their knowledge of GMDSS as 'basic'. Although only a quarter of seafarers had an input into the identification of their training needs, almost half of respondents were expected to pay towards their training. Nationality, ship type, department, and age, all impacted upon the responses of seafarers to this question. In relation to compensation for lost leave almost half our respondents stated that it was not usual for them to be compensated for leave time lost as a result of required training in relation to new shipboard technology...