Automatic translation
Many Ukrainian seafarers, who have more than one fulfilled contract behind them, have never gone on a voyage under the Ukrainian flag. This is connected not only with the "special" situation in the Ukrainian fleet, but also with the desire of the ship owner to register their ships under flags of convenience, greatly simplifying the procedure for registration and further operation of ships. However, the question arises - do the shipowners pay attention to what flag the ship on which the seafarer was working, applying for a job in their company? What does the flag mean First of all, let's figure out what the flag under which the ship goes to sea means. The national flag, in fact, indicates which state this ship is under the protection of. That is, when passing a voyage in international waters, the legal norms applied in the maritime legislation of the flag state will operate on board this vessel. In addition, the flag brings a significant income to the treasury of this state in the amount of the registration fee. Surprisingly, it is a fact - today, judging by the flags, states such as Panama and Liberia have more fleets than conventional Germany or England. This, of course, does not mean that all ships flying these flags belong to these states, Why is the Ukrainian flag so unpopular, and what is the reason for the skepticism of individual shipowners regarding the seafarers who worked under our national banner? The first and, probably, for shipowners, the most inconvenient moment is the extremely complex hierarchy of services and authorities in Ukrainian ports. In fact, the Ukrainian legal apparatus is left with a Soviet regulatory legacy that in no way simplifies the procedures for entering Ukrainian ports and working with coastal services. From all this emerges the second point - the bureaucratic nature of the maritime administration and the unwillingness (or impossibility) to follow the norms of international maritime law. The third point, which already relates directly to seafarers, is a gradual decline in the level of training and professionalism of Ukrainian seafarers. And working under the Ukrainian flag in the eyes of shipowners may also mean insufficient knowledge of the English language, which has always been an indicator of a high level. Yes, we do not want to say that now every Ukrainian seafarer has the above problems, however, in the maritime community, information about seafarers who showed themselves from the non-professional side spreads quickly and therefore, in the future, many shipowners, seeing a Ukrainian passport, can start measuring all Ukrainian seafarers " one size fits all ". This trend is present, although it has not yet taken on an alarming scale. however, in the maritime community, information about seafarers who have shown themselves from a non-professional side is spreading quickly and therefore, in the future, many shipowners, seeing a Ukrainian passport, can begin to measure all Ukrainian seafarers "one size fits all". This trend is present, although it has not yet taken on an alarming scale. however, in the maritime community, information about seafarers who have shown themselves from a non-professional side is spreading quickly and therefore, in the future, many shipowners, seeing a Ukrainian passport, can begin to measure all Ukrainian seafarers "one size fits all". This trend is present, although it has not yet taken on an alarming scale. Positive moments However, let's not forget about the positive aspects. In the international community, Ukraine continues to be a “maritime state”. The choice in favor of our seafarers on the part of ship-owning companies is primarily due to the relative advantage in wages - Ukrainian seafarers, unfortunately, have some of the lowest wages in the world, along with Romanian and Filipino seafarers. Recently, this trend has begun to improve for the better, however, of course, the level of salaries of EU or US citizens is still very, very far away. Thus, it cannot be said that the reluctance of many ship-owning companies to hire Ukrainian seamen is solely in their work under the Ukrainian flag. There are many factors that have nothing to do with this. Yes, it is possible that there are isolated cases of just such a causal relationship, but they are isolated so as not to take them as the basis of the problem.
