Looking for career options? Here’s an insider tip from your marine business insurance experts. Look into a maritime education. This expanding industry holds a wide variety of possibilities and is headed into a workforce shortage.
The marine business is growing, and career opportunities are plentiful. There are commercial and military options, plus the US Coast Guard and a wide range of manufacturing and recreational boating businesses that need educated and highly-trained workers.
How many people does the maritime industry employ? According to the Maritime Industry Foundation’s Maritime Knowledge Center, over one million people. (And this doesn’t include people in related jobs on shore, like dock workers or those employed at marinas.)
Not only is the cruise ship industry booming, but the shipping of goods is greener now and more cost-effective by ship. Currently, 90% of the world’s trade is shipped at sea by marine transport agencies. (And guess what? They all need marine business insurance, and most will want attorneys experienced in corporate law related to the marine business as well as ocean or coastal law.)
According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, Americans increased the shipping container trade by nearly 50 percent from 2010 to 2015. In 2015 around 44,000 privately-owned ships were operating out of the United States. The marine industry has created over 14,000 new job opportunities in water transportation and port services since 2010.
At sea, the opportunities include seamen, deckhands, ship engineers, marine oilers, and operators of small vessels or ferries. Onshore job opportunities include shipbuilding and repair, riggers and ship fitters, engineers, and tradespeople (construction, painting, welding, plumbing, electrical, machinists, and diesel mechanics).
Ports are booming and require cargo and passenger unloading, security, tugboat operators, and spill cleanup to name a few employment fields. There are also longshoremen, freight movers, harbor truckers, clerks and warehouse workers, office personnel, and marine underwriters (for marine business insurance).
There are youth maritime programs to help high school students explore marine career options and learn valuable experience before they graduate. For post-secondary possibilities, there are diplomas in maritime and the merchant marine, as well as a variety of professional training and certification programs.
Many current mariners are approaching retirement age, and the maritime industry needs highly-trained workers ready to serve on and offshore. The industry predicts a shortage of 150,000 workers by 2025. The future is bright for the maritime industry, and maritime education could be the start of a great career. To learn more about maritime careers that may interest you check out this guide https://www.marineinsight.com/careers-2/50-marine-careers-essential-guide/ or ask one of our marine business insurance specialists where to find additional resources.
