The Seamen’s Recruiting Office

The Seamen’s Recruiting Office of the Marine Department started operation in May 1966, registering seamen following the enactment of the Merchant Shipping (Recruiting of Seamen) Ordinance. The purpose of setting up a registration system in the Seamen’s Recruiting Office was to record the movements of all Hong Kong seamen, as well as securing their interests and employment.^[34] The aim was “to ensure that seamen recruited in Hong Kong for service aboard foreign-going ships obtained the types of employment they preferred and for which they were best suited”. Hence, all seamen had to register with the Seamen’s Recruiting Office. Among other fees, an engagement fee of HK$4 was charged on the employer and seaman respectively. Individual shipping companies authorised by the Office could recruit seamen directly by themselves, though they were subject to strict conditions of control.^[35]

The system allowed companies flexibility in recruiting seamen. For the seamen, this registration system prevented the exploitation of the seamen by the intermediaries as the authority had complete control over the salary payments of different shipping companies. The overall results achieved by the Seamen’s Recruiting Office were very encouraging. Statistics showed that over a period of around one and a half months, more than 1,200 seamen were employed by shipping companies through the Seamen’s Recruiting Office under the Company Roster and General Roster system. Furthermore, nearly 3,000 seamen obtained employment through listing with the crew departments of the licensed shipping companies. With an unexpected total of 12,205 seamen registered, the facilities of the Seamen’s Recruiting Office consequently proved inadequate. Nevertheless, by the end of December 1966, the Office had assisted a total of 23,793 seamen in finding employment.^[36]

The Seamen’s Training Centre and other training institutes

The training of seamen reached a climax in the 1970s, when Hong Kong’s shipping industry experienced rapid growth. By that time, there were various institutes, such as the Hong Kong Sea School, the Department of Nautical Studies of the Hong Kong Technical College (later the Hong Kong Polytechnic), College of Merchant Marine Professionals of Island Navigation Corporation, and the Seamen Training School of the World-Wide Shipping Co.

In the early 1980s, as the shipping industry became adversely affected by the global economic downturn, the various institutes started to withdraw as trainers. The government, as a flag administration, required to meet its obligations under the International Convention on Standards of Training, Certification and Watchkeeping for Seafarers, 1978 of the International Maritime Organization (IMO), established the Seamen’s Training Centre in Siu Sai Wan in 1984, and placed it under the management of the Vocational Training Council. In 1988, the centre was moved to Tuen Mun because the original site was too remote and lacked training facilities. The Seamen’s Training Centre had been mainly focusing on the comprehensive training of seamen. In the late 1990s, the centre’s role was extended to include safety training for workers in the shipping industry.