Viking Cruises is taking the initiative in the cruising industry in implementation of pay raise based promotions. Crew members from every cruise company have consistently made complaints related to the unfairness of pay that is comparable to entry levels even when they have spent years loyally working for the company. The result usually is company hopping for better pay, benefits and/or crew who decide to obtain land-based positions that offer ability to financially promote and not just a rank. 

Viking has heard the requests and taken them seriously as they officially announced to its crew members in a letter of the pay progressions and promotions for crew and supervisors. This comes along at a time that is even more needed than ever as worldwide inflation and recession is on a rise due to many factors that have occurred over the past several years.

Viking has announced 3 exciting new crew benefits which will start in January 2023.

Viking Anniversary awards

The first of the plans is the Viking Anniversary awards - a one-off payment awarded to the crew member in the month they achieve key milestones working for Viking. This is a scheme that has been in place on Viking river ships for some time and the company is now able to roll out the same benefits for the crew working on the Ocean-going ships.

Viking Seniority program

The second benefit is the Viking Seniority program rewarding crew members an increase in their monthly salary depending on how long they have worked in the same role.  There are two reward payment levels, $50 and $100, capped at 5 levels and each level is based on how many days onboard crew member have been in the current role. Crew or officers reaching level 5 can earn an extra $250 and $500 per month. This scheme will initially roll out for hotel crew in January with the aim to include all crew within 12 months.

Targeted pay

The third incentive is targeted pay increases for several onboard roles.  These increases will bring pay for certain roles in line with market rates, create clearer pay steppingstones between roles, and provide increases for the most junior roles in the onboard organization.

Crew members are acknowledging that the cruise companies will have to do better in order to attract its experienced crew back, keep them smiling and happy for the guests to have the best guest experience which would be worth returning for another cruise and many more to come. While the marvelous ships and amazing destinations are enticing for many guests, at the end of the day the most important factor of any vacation experience are the people who care for the guests. Happy crew members will always equate to happy guests and greater revenue. 

We are grateful that Viking Cruises has acknowledged the importance of its crew members and is taking an important step into the future of the cruise industry and with this Crew Center is calling on the remainder of the cruise industry to simply catch up.