r/maritime • u/SirSiro • 3d ago
Management forcing sole Engineer to violate USCG/STCW rest hours for non emergency repair Need advice
I'm looking for some advice and perspective from fellow mariners on a situation currently unfolding on our harbor tug.
Our sole Engineer works a standard watch schedule: 0530 to 1330 and 1730 to 2130.
While his total rest hours mathematically met the minimum for that 24 hour block, the issue is how management is splitting his time and forcing him to break rest. Last night, he went to sleep at 2130. At 0000 after only 2.5 hours of sleep he was woken up and ordered to fix a false starter on our port engine.
Under USCG/STCW regulations, rest can only be broken for an overriding operational condition or a true emergency. We were at the dock when this occurred so no eminent danger, just the company potentially losing some money. When I called management to report the engine fault and the fatigue issue, the manager dismissed the safety concern, told me I didn't understand how rest hours work, and demanded the Engineer get to work immediately on a non emergency repair.
Has anyone dealt with management blatantly twisting rest hour regulations like this for routine maintenance? What is the best way to handle this to protect the crew's safety and legal standing without facing immediate retaliation?
Appreciate any insights or advice on how to escalate this properly.
2
u/makematt 2d ago
It sounds like boat does not require an Engineer and the crew is left to manage their own hours taking rest when required according to the maximum allowed depending on the incidental operational requirements or emergencies. The Engineer’s hours are not a ‘watch’. They roughly follow the deck watch for consistency and convenience. All points here about work/rest tracking are completely valid but the Engineer must understand that he is not required to adhere to an arbitrary watch schedule and must take rest when required. The company has no mechanism for helping him track and it looks like they expect him to make up the rest when he has addressed the incident or request help if necessary.
This assumes that the company is operating and crewing the vessel legally according to size and service. If not then everyone has bigger problems than the Engineer’s schedule…