Cruise Ship Blues: The Underside of the Cruise Ship Industry

by Ross A. Klein

Book Overview

Cruising is one of the fastest growing industries in the world. Attracting over 12 million passengers a year, cruise ship companies are merging to become behemoths. And cruise ships themselves have... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0865714622
• ISBN13: 9780865714625
• Release Date: November 2002
• Publisher: New Society Publishers
• Length: 200 Pages
• Weight: 0.71 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.6" x 5.6" x 8.7"

Customer Reviews

I worked on a cruise ship and this is the ONLY book that speaks to my experience

After reading the reviews of this book that are virtually all written by passengers, I will add my review as a person who worked for six months on a cruise ship. Klein is absolutely correct about the working conditions on cruise ships. My cruise company recruited us by telling us we would work 9-10 hour days with one day off per week. That's a long day, but I had no idea that they regularly lie to workers about the hours during recruitment. My workday was an average of 14 hours, entirely on my feet (I didn't even know my body could do this) and I had two days off in ten weeks though I was promised one day off per week. And I'm an American. When workers from the Philippines and other countries are recruited--what are their options for complaining once they are on a ship? I had already put my things from my apartment into a storage unit. When your pay is cut by a third for no reason (which it was) when you are forced to work even while sick (which I was), when you see coworkers illegally dumping into "greywater" into a nature preserve in Alaska (which I did) you don't know where to complain where you will be taken seriously. The laws of the sea are very different than the laws of land. You can quit. Sure. But most cruise workers really want to succeed (and once you have put that many hours and sweat into it, your desire to succeed usually only grows). Unfortunately, although in the 1970's the average time worked on a cruise ship was three years, the average time today is 8 months. This statistic alone shows that despite the glamor and the beauty of the sea, few bodies can keep up with the cruel physical and emotional routines that are inflicted on cruise workers by most cruise lines in the name of profit. In addition, many third world workers working for the big cruise lines aren't allowed to go in most sections of the ship and can be fired for being caught in the wrong section. They spend most of their time at sea below the waterline, and they pay a large fee (often over $1000) to get this job, (although these recruiting fees are illegal) so their incentive to succeed is enormous. Yet Klein's right. The smiles aren't only fake--you can and do get fired for not showing them. It's funny that many of the reviews here call Klein a "professional complainer" and a whiner. And they're right that he is. But after having a rather horrifying experience working on a cruise ship, Klein's was the only book that was written with a personal sense of compassion for those who aren't lucky enough to be on the upperside of the water line. I felt extraordinarily grateful for his grace in writing it. Klein's website, at [...] also keeps up-do-date information for travelers and workers that can be helpful. Two other books I recommend for those who care about how the industry workers and the environment are treated by cruise companies are Kristopher Garrin's Devils on the Deep Blue Seas (although his book is "balanced" this means he shows more admi

From a former cruise ship worker

This book is much needed in todays world. I worked onboard the ships for two years, going from ship to ship and working one of the more "plush" jobs onboard as an accountant. Everything Ross Klein talks about in his works is true. I have seen and experienced much of what he talks about, and have seen the behavior of the guests who don't want to see. Most of the guests we had were Americans and I can tell you that the cruise ship crew (mostly foreigners) can think only bad things about Americans... between being exploited by their employers and abused by their guests. Those who don't believe this book... take a moment next cruise... and really look around.

Must Read for anyone considering a cruise vacation

I first heard of this book while on a recent vacation on the Hawaiian isle of Molokai. The locals were fighting to prevent some cruise ships from incorporating their island on a new tour package. They were trying to point out that only a few local merchants would benefit while leaving the town as a whole with increased litter, periodic crowding, massive overuse of port bathrooms & possible pollution from the ship while at anchor or when cruising nearby. This book was surprisingly mild in its tone and always cautious in its conclusions. Overall though it is a long overdue and much needed antidote to the hundreds of millions spent by the cruise industry in promoting their blissful, 'love boat' -type vacations. The most stunning chapters concern the pollution & sewage these ships so often discharge, and the widespread abuse of workers and profiteering by management. Also of note are the hushed up incidence of sexual assault and frequent outbreaks of food poisoning. The author continues to chronicle the industry on his website , cruisejunkie.com. The book & website are a Must Read!

The Other Side of the Medal

The problems of mass-tourism and fast growing industries are widely known. Ross Klein points out the specific problems of the cruise industry, like the strong demand for onboard workforces or the constant pressure to reduce cost, and he does that with much accuracy and much emphasis on the sources.Of course, any account of all the negative aspects must result in a somehow distorted picture of the cruise industry, but after reviewing all the sources available on the internet which Ross Klein mentions in his footnotes, I must say that there are several problems associated with the cruise industry which need to be solved if cruises should remain a popular form of travel.Most aspects Ross Klein talks about, even the environmetal issues, have an impact on passenger's satisfaction. So any cruise line executive should read this book to be aware of the problems which - quite certainly - all cruise lines have to deal with - sooner or later. Even if only a few cruise lines do not pay attention to these negative aspects, all others may get into troubles too, especially if the passengers start to feel that they get less than they have paid for.And to potential cruise passengers the book might show what they can really expect from a mass-market cruise line. It is not all gold that glitters.It is an excellent book, despite the fact that it is in contrast with the glossy cruise brochures published by cruise lines. There is much going on behind the scenes - and that makes the book a most interesting reading.

What every cruiser ought to know

What you should know if you're taking a cruiseTax avoidance, false advertising, shady business practices, sexual harassment, risks to health and safety, rape, environmental destruction. This is not only a list of abuses wrought on society. As Ross A. Klein describes in Cruise Ship Blues, these are also abuses the cruise industry dumps on its customers, workers and the world's oceans.To make his points, Klein mixes his experience of more than 300 days on cruise ships together with in-depth research on the industry to present information one does not find in glossy brochures or television ads. The truth behind the hype is that cruise companies rarely deliver on their lofty promises. Instead, they deliver appalling amounts of pollution to many exotic and otherwise pristine ocean areas. The book also describes the industry's substandard working conditions including graft, sexual abuse, and poor health care.Cruise ship advertisements projecting "all inclusive" vacations at reasonable prices lead to disappointment when passengers find they are required to pay extra for drinks, photographs, shore excursions, on top of their tickets, and their spending in casinos, bars, alternative restaurants and shops. On average, Klein reports passengers spend about $220 extra per day, while some spend much more than that.By flagging their ships in countries "of convenience" like Panama and Liberia, the industry also avoids U.S. taxes, while those nations rake in millions. In 1995, for example, Panama earned over $47 million in ship registration fees and taxes. Foreign flags also complicate enforcement of environmental rules and fair labor practices.Klein's journalistic style laces together anecdotal experiences of his own and others to create an important commentary on nearly every aspect of the industry. Whether one is considering a cruise, or just interested in the oceans, Cruise Ship Blues is a must read. But pack it for yourself, because it's one thing that definitely won't be sold in the ship's store.