MEDIA RELEASE

Crew study reveals the benefits and perks to boost morale and improve staff retention on board cruise ships

26 September 2007, Seatrade Europe, Hamburg, Germany - Navitas Telecom today announces key findings of a study into crew morale and retention on board cruise ships which reveals that two thirds of respondents would consider changing companies to receive better benefits. In addition, almost a quarter of crew questioned had worked for two to three cruise companies in the last three years, illustrating high turnover of staff for employers and a lack of loyalty from employees.

The study, carried out online and in association with WorkonCruiseShips.com, a complete resource centre for those working or interested in working on cruise ships, was completed by 600 cruise crew members during August and September this year.

When crew sign up with a cruise company they are not only taking on a new job, but with a variable location and limited communication facilities, life at sea can be tough. The study has uncovered the benefits and perks that will go a long way towards boosting employee motivation and helping cruise companies retain their staff.

Crew wellbeing
Around half of those questioned cited three benefits of key importance to them - larger living quarters, improved food and facilities on board and better communications facilities to keep in touch with friends and family. However, a third of crew say they are unsatisfied with the standard of food and drink, a quarter are unsatsfied with their ability to keep in touch with friends / family whilst onboard, and a fifth are unsatisfied with their living quarters.

Despite working long hours - 90% work more than six hours per day and over half work more than ten hours per day - only a third of crew consider working less hours to be a benefit they desire. As expected, salary is also a motivator as nearly two thirds of respondents cite this as being very important when it comes to their morale and over half feel they are not appropriately paid for the job that they do.

Communication facilities - the killer perk?
As communication is highlighted as a factor which is important to a significant proportion of crew members, it is crucial that employers focus on the needs of their employees and not just customers on board.

The survey found that 90% of crew have experienced problems while keeping in touch with friends and family at sea. Two thirds currently view communications facilities as being too expensive. Around half find that only being able to keep in touch in port is an issue as well as not being able to receive incoming calls.

Over a third of crew said their friends and family have had difficulties contacting them while on board and over a quarter have missed some important news from friends and families such as births and deaths of close ones.

Currently email is the most popular form of communication (91%), followed by use of a payphone on land or a mobile phone when in port (both 72%) and then use of an onboard payphone (65%). Although the installation of mobile phone networks on board cruise ships is a relatively recent development, 35% have used this service. Of those that have used an mobile phone network that works on board, more than half (52%) say they use it for calling friends and family and one fifth (20%) to give friends and family a means of contacting them. 14% use an onboard mobile service to manage their home life (such as banking or bill management) and 14% for texting.

A new form of communciation available for crew
All respondents were asked to state what they believe the key benefits of using an onboard pre-paid mobile phone service are. A pre-paid mobile phone service is a relatively new service available to the cruise industry and works by creating and interconnecting an on board mobile phone nework with traditional land based networks via a dedicated satellite connection. Once the network is installed on cruise ships, crew simply purchase a SIM card that works with their existing mobile phone. Crew can have peace of mind that they can make and receive calls whilst at sea. They can check their credit at any time and then top-up on board, rather than waiting until the boat docks to make their calls.

The top reason for wanting to use a pre-paid mobile phone service was to be contacted easily (95%), followed by the ability to call and text while at sea (81%). Other key benefits cited are the ability to have only one telephone number instead of different SIM cards (43%), increased privacy (42%), and to be able to control spending (39%). Significantly, 40% consider the provision of an affordable prepaid onboard mobile service to be an important factor when choosing which company to work for.

Bo Pinel, business development director of Navitas, said, "The results show that better communication facilties is something crew members want and would make a significant difference to their morale. A mobile phone service which uses an on board network is a great motivator, removing restrictions on when, where and how crew members can communicate with friends and family."

Neil Maxwell-Keys, CEO at WorkOnCruiseShips.com, added, "Crew members do have a tough job and they can be very fickle. Perks and benefits offered by employers can make a big difference and do not have to involve a big financial outlay. Introducing perks of importance to crew can mean companies hold on to good staff who are happy to work there and provide good service while also attracting new crew talent."

Rob Marjerison, COO at Wireless Maritime Service commented, "The findings prove what we believe, that the emerging telecommunications opportunity for cruise lines over the next two to three years is to provide more and better telecom options as a tool to attract and retain quality crewmembers." Navitas Telecom, a provider of mobile GSM networks on board ships, ferries and other vessels, offers a pioneering pre-paid mobile service whereby cruise operators can sell SIM connection packs and pre-paid mobile phone top-up cards to passengers and crew at sea. The new 'Navitas Freedom' service offers a convenient and cost-effective means of staying in touch whilst at sea, with no big bills when customers get home.

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For further information please contact: Julie Walsh, Emma Playford or Narelle Morrison at Babel PR on telephone +44 (0)20 7434 5550, mobile +44(0)7939 539 462 or email navitas@babelpr.com.

About Navitas Navitas creates mobile GSM networks on board ships, ferries, other boats and even oil rigs. This means that people can use calling and messaging features on their own mobile phones, whenever they like, wherever they are. They can either use their own SIM cards or purchase pre-paid and top-up SIM cards on board.

Its equipment is purpose built for the maritime industry and is tailored specifically for the type and size of vessel, from private yachts and ferries with the capacity to seat 200 commuters, to cruise liners and other vessels carrying 2,000 or more passengers.

Navitas Telecom is a trading name of Jersey Telecom, the licensed telecommunications operator. Navitas specialises in providing mobile networks and services in remote locations. The service works by creating and interconnecting an on board mobile network with traditional land based networks via a dedicated satellite connection. www.navitastelecom.com