Adrian The Cruise and Travel Guy
#1 AU/NZ
Carnival Pays Crew $2.50 Per Hour?!
There’s been a lot of noise this week around claims made by the Maritime Union of Australia (MUA), specifically targeting Carnival Cruise Line and alleging that international cruise ship crew are being paid as little as $2.50 an hour while working in Australian waters. In this video, I take a calm, fact-based look at those claims - what’s being said, what the law actually allows, and how cruise ship employment works in practice. We’ll unpack: • Where the $2.50 per hour figure comes from • How cruise ship crew are paid under international maritime contracts • Why Australian minimum wage laws do not apply to most cruise ships • The role of the Coastal Trading Act 2012 and current government exemptions • What international labour standards (ILO / IMO) require cruise lines to provide • Carnival’s response to the claims • And why this is a broader industry-wide issue, not one unique to Carnival This video is not an attack on crew, unions, or cruisers. It’s an attempt to add context and clarity to a complex and emotional topic that’s currently generating a lot of headlines. Cruise ship crew work incredibly hard to deliver the holidays many of us enjoy, and they deserve to be treated with respect - both onboard and in the way this conversation is handled publicly. As always, I encourage respectful discussion in the comments. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 🛳️ My website hosts one of the world's most powerful cruise search engines where you can research and even book your next cruise or land holiday. Take a look here: www.thecruiseandtravelguy.com.au - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 🛒 Shop my Amazon Cruise Essentials here: https://www.thecruiseandtravelguy.com.au/cruise-essentials - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - 🤳🏼 Follow me on Facebook and Instagram: www.facebook.com/thecruiseandtravelguy www.instragram.com/thecruiseandtravelguy Music by Master Planned Music 0:00 Introduction 1:10 What the Union Claims 1:56 Not Just Carnival 2:28 Coastal Trading Act 2:52 International Contracts 4:15 Carnival’s Response 5:08 Billionaire Owner? 5:57 My Experience 7:15 What does the Union Want?