12/06/2025
Straight out of college, graduates from the country’s maritime academies can earn more than $200,000 as a commercial sailor, with free food and private accommodations. https://on.wsj.com/48abzhw
Despite the pay and perks, maritime jobs go begging, and it is raising national-security concerns.
America is already short of commercial seafarers for a cargo fleet President Trump wants to see grow. Very little cargo currently moves on American-flagged ships, partly because of staffing. U.S. shipping companies, which are generally required to hire Americans, say they are starved of crews.
Being a sailor wasn’t a great job through most of America’s history, and in much of the world it still isn’t. Many veteran American sailors no longer want to spend months at sea, where until recently they had been largely cut off from communications.
To address the shortage, shipping companies have begun offering fat signing bonuses. To retain hires, they are lifting salaries while improving onboard gyms, connectivity and cuisine.
At the Merchant Marine Academy in New York—one of only five federal service academies—recent graduates say that with the right pitch, sailing could become more broadly appealing. And as artificial intelligence threatens more office jobs, hands-on work like sailing is increasingly appealing, especially to the mechanically inclined.
“If you went to the average auto-mechanic shop and were like, ‘Hey, you want every tool ever, almost infinite supplies, and you can do whatever you want?’ they’d be like, ‘Yeah, sure, how do I do that?’” said Wahlin. “And by the way, you make 140 grand” as a base salary for six months of work.
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