Crew Recruitment Consultant
A crew recruitment consultant fills jobs on yachts. You take the brief from a captain or management company, find the right people, check their references and tickets, and put a shortlist forward. Most consultants used to be crew themselves. That background matters, because captains trust a recruiter who knows what a busy charter week does to a team.
The jobWhat fills the day
The job is matching people to boats. A captain calls with a brief: a second engineer with a Y3 for a 65m motor yacht, rotation, starting in Palma in ten days. You search your database, call candidates you know, screen new applicants, and check every reference by phone. You confirm STCW, ENG1 and CoCs are valid and genuine. Then you send three strong CVs, arrange interviews and handle the offer. Under MLC 2006 the crew pays nothing. The yacht pays the agency fee, usually around a month of the hired person's salary.
The year has a rhythm. From February to May the Mediterranean season fills up and the phones never stop, mostly with deckhand, stew and chef roles in Antibes and Palma. Autumn brings the Caribbean and Fort Lauderdale shift, plus refit and rotational hires. Senior placements such as captains, chief engineers and chief stews take longer and pay more. Many consultants specialise by department. An ex-chief stew runs interior, an ex-engineer runs the engine room desk, and a former captain handles command roles.
Agencies hire mostly from crew. Five or more years at sea, ideally at head of department level, gives you credibility with captains and a feel for who will fit a team. Some firms take people from hospitality or general recruitment and train them, but those hires work harder to earn trust. You need to be organised, honest about candidates, and good on the phone. A second language helps a lot in Antibes, Palma and Monaco.
Progression usually means building a client book. Captains who trust you send repeat work, and your commission grows with it. Senior consultants manage a desk or a small team, and some become directors or partners. Others move into management companies as yacht crew managers, handling contracts, payroll and crew welfare for a fleet. A few set up their own boutique agencies once they have enough captains who will follow them.
Skills employers look for
- Candidate screening and interviewing
- Reference and certificate checks
- Knowledge of MCA tickets
- Client relationship management
- MLC 2006 compliance
- Database and CRM discipline
- Negotiating offers
A working dayTuesday in an Antibes crew agency, early April
Desk and coffee. Thirty new registrations overnight, mostly green deckhands and stews who have just landed for the season.
Call from a captain on a 58m in Port Vauban. His bosun has left, and he wants someone with a Yachtmaster Offshore and tender experience by Friday.
Searching the database and calling three bosuns you have placed before. Two are free and interested.
Reference checks on both, speaking to their last captains directly. You confirm the ENG1 dates and check the CoC against the MCA database.
Lunch on the Rue de la République, where a chief stew you placed last year stops to say hello.
Walk-in registrations. Short interviews with new crew, checking STCW certificates, photos and CVs, plus honest advice on dockwalking.
Shortlist goes to the captain. You arrange two video interviews for tomorrow morning.
Offer call on an earlier placement. You agree salary, rotation and start date for a sous chef joining a 70m in Genoa.
Update the CRM, log fees due, and reply to emails from a Fort Lauderdale management company planning its winter hires.
Pay by experienceAnnual salary. Estimates. Bars share one scale.
Most agencies pay a modest base with commission on fees billed, so a strong season can double take-home pay. Shore salaries are taxed, unlike most crew pay, which makes the move ashore a real pay cut for many ex-crew in their first year or two. See the Yacht & Crew Management salary guide for figures from live adverts.
Qualifications
Must have
- Right to work in the agency's country
Gets you hired
- Previous yacht crew experience, ideally head of department
- Working knowledge of STCW, ENG1 and MCA CoC structure
- MLC 2006 recruitment and placement rules
- French, Spanish or Italian
- CIPD or REC recruitment qualification for UK offices
Where it leadsA typical career path
Yacht & Crew Management jobsOpen now on SuperyachtRoles.com
Questions crew ask
Do I need to have worked on yachts?
Not strictly, but most agencies prefer it, and captains do too. Several years at sea, ideally in a senior role, lets you judge candidates properly and talk to clients as an equal. Recruiters from hospitality can break in, usually starting on entry-level desks.
Can agencies charge crew a fee for finding them a job?
No. MLC 2006 bans recruitment and placement services from charging seafarers for placement. The yacht or its management company pays the fee, and a reputable consultant will make this clear to every candidate.
Where are the jobs based?
Antibes has the biggest concentration of crew agencies, followed by Palma, Monaco and Fort Lauderdale. There are also offices in the UK, Australia and the Netherlands. Some consultants work remotely, but most agencies want you near the docks during the Mediterranean season.
How much of the pay is commission?
It varies by agency. A common setup is a base of around €25,000 to €35,000 in France or Spain with commission on placements billed. Experienced consultants with loyal captains often earn more from commission than from base salary.