Activism special: be a voice for maritime professionals

To get better pay and conditions for our members, Nautilus needs to tackle 'sea blindness' among politicians and the public. Rob Coston and Deborah McPherson highlight ways that members can make their voices heard

Join the Nautilus Champions?

Nautilus International launched its Champions scheme ahead of European Maritime Day in May 2020. Since then, dozens of members across the national branches have taken part.

Our Champions act as a public face for seafarers and help to bring the concerns of our members to the attention of the public. They have appeared at live events and in local, national and international news outlets since 2020, sharing their expert opinions on issues such as P&O Ferries and the grounding of Ever Given.

If you would like to find out more about becoming a Nautilus Champion please contact campaigns@nautilusint.org. We need members from all sectors, both at sea and onshore, across all ages, and from our branches in the UK, Netherlands and Switzerland.

Promote careers at sea

Zeebenen in de Klas, Careers at Sea Ambassadors and Inspiring the Future

Nautilus's branch in the Netherlands had enjoyed a successful relationship with a scheme called Zeebenen in de Klas (sea legs in the classroom), promoting careers in maritime to students. Nautilus members can find out more about the scheme at: www.svon.nu/zeebenen-in-de-klas.

In 2008, Nautilus helped the UK Merchant Navy Training Board (MNTB) to set up Careers at Sea Ambassadors – one of the first UK schemes to see serving seafarers go into schools and youth groups to talk about maritime careers. Last year, the MNTB scheme – around 100 ambassadors – was transferred into Maritime UK's new Inspiring the Future programme. Inspiring the Future offers a specialist online platform for coordination of events and can analyse data to best understand outreach and areas where more work can be done.

Maritime UK recruits people from all corners of the sector as volunteers to support young people, who learn by interacting with employees as part of their education. Ambassadors can range from newly qualified deck) and engineering officers through to masters, chief engineers and shore-based professionals.

They tell students all about what it is like to be in the Merchant Navy, the training programmes, entry requirements and the kind of lifestyle that's in store with a career at sea.

Over 1,000 schools and colleges in the UK already use the Inspiring the Future platform, with 55,000 young people having been spoken to by ambassadors from multiple sectors including maritime.

Schools register and set up a profile and events, and a software programme does the matching to the industry ambassadors. Find out more about how to become an ambassador at www.inspiringthefuture.org/campaigns/maritime

Maritime Roadshows for Girls

Volunteers are also welcome in the Maritime UK revived roadshows for girls, being held throughout 2023. These will be hosted on site in various locations, such as ports, and will include vessel visits to show how the maritime industry works. Activities are planned such as programming an autonomous vessel, and looking at loading vessels and stability.

Industry maritime professionals are needed for sponsoring or taking part at the speed-networking events, and talking to college students during the industry hub events.

Volunteers are also welcome in the Maritime UK revived roadshows for girls, being held throughout 2023. These will be hosted on site in various locations, such as ports, and will include vessel visits to show how the maritime industry works. Activities are planned such as programming an autonomous vessel, and looking at loading vessels and stability.

Industry maritime professionals are needed for sponsoring or taking part at the speed-networking events, and talking to college students during the industry hub events. Find out more and register your interest in the roadshows.

Protest and campaign

Nautilus engages in protests for our own members, in solidarity with other union organisations such as the TUC, and to support the campaigns of other bodies of which Nautilus is a part, such as the ITF.

Attendance is publicised on our social media channels in advance. Recently the Union has been represented by members and staff at protests against P&O Ferries management and at TUC marches against the governnment's anti-strike legislation.

There are other forms of activism that members can get involved with too. The Union visits events held by industry and government bodies, where it is essential that the voice of seafarers is heard.

For example, the Union is currently ramping up its Just Transition campaigning. This work began at COP26, where member Allan Dickson told a Maritime Skills Commission event that the existing seafarer workforce must be brought along during the transition to net zero, and that the next generation of maritime professionals must be properly prepared during their cadetships. Opportunities to discuss the Union's position and outreach are ongoing (recent discussions took place on 4 April at the P&T Forum), and members who would also like to help the Union get the message out can get in touch via campaigns@nautilusint.org