Seafarers Recruitment

Catering Jobs on Ships

The catering department feeds the crew and keeps the accommodation clean. MLC 2006 Regulation 3.2 requires food of suitable quality and quantity on board and ship’s cooks who are trained and qualified. On most cargo ships the department is one cook and one messman; tankers with larger crews, offshore units and passenger ships have more catering staff.

Ranks

Cook: The cook prepares all meals for the crew, plans menus for the food on board, orders provisions with the master, and keeps the galley, provision stores and cold rooms clean and in order.
Messman: The messman (steward) works with the cook.

What every catering rating needs

Basic Training (STCW Reg. VI/1) and security awareness (STCW Reg. VI/6)
Seafarer medical certificate (STCW Reg. I/9, MLC 2006 Reg. 1.2)
Seaman’s book from a flag state
For cooks: ship’s cook certificate (MLC 2006, Standard A3.2) and minimum age 18

Hotel jobs on cruise ships and ferries (stewards, waiters, housekeeping) are covered on the passenger ships page.

Contract length

Catering contracts on cargo ships are commonly 6 to 9 months, set by the employer for each vacancy. MLC 2006 limits continuous service on board to less than 12 months before the seafarer is entitled to repatriation.

What to put in your CV

Ship types and crew sizes you cooked for, the cuisines you can prepare, your ship’s cook certificate and food hygiene courses, and references from masters or chief cooks.

Jobs by ship type

Jobs by rank and ship type

How to apply

All posts on this page are open recruitment for crewing agencies and shipowners we work with. Create a free seafarer account, complete your CV once and apply to the rank you hold. Employers can then find your profile when a vacancy opens.

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Other departments

Seafarers: see how Seafarers Recruitment works for seafarers. Employers and crewing agencies: post a vacancy or search crew.