Zimbabweans banned from cruise ship jobs
SOME recruitment agencies have blacklisted Zimbabweans for cruise ship jobs due to a history of absconding when the ships dock on foreign lands.
There have been reports of several incidents of Zimbabwean employees not returning to their respective ships, causing significant inconvenience and financial losses to cruise ship operators.
In a notice on its website, one of the leading employment agencies, Safe Cruise Agency, confirmed the freeze on employing Zimbabweans.
“We are not authorised to recruit citizens of Zimbabwe. We are not considering the new curriculum vitaes as we do not have open positions for this year for African passports. We will post new positions as we have them, but not before 2024.”
In February this year, reports suggested that the United States government was considering deporting Zimbabwean cruise ship workers due to perceived “migration risk”.
According to a leaked internal human resources email dated February 20, Celebrity Cruises, a luxury ocean liner, informed its staff members about a directive from Miami Customs and Border Control officers stating that Zimbabwean workers would no longer be allowed to disembark from cruise ships in Miami, Florida.
Cruise ship companies rely on a diverse workforce from different countries to provide services to passengers during their voyages across the oceans. Zimbabweans were once sought-after for their skills and work ethic, but the frequent absconding incidents have led to a loss of trust and confidence in their reliability.
The ban is expected to have a significant impact on Zimbabwean job seekers who were previously attracted to the cruise ship industry as a means of employment and a chance to explore the world.
