“These bulkheads have ears.” “Loose lips sink ships.” It’s best to assume that no place on the rig or boat is safe from Big Brother’s eavesdropping. Hidden microphones and intercoms turned on without warning have been used for extortion and to run seamen off. These can serve as an unofficial blacklisting system that you may never become aware of. How often has the mic on your walkie-talkie or headset been keyed without you knowing about it? How many embarrassing conversations have you heard when other workers’ radios have been keyed and the “search” party took 20 minutes to track down the unknowing offending persons? Some years back this situation happened on a freighter outbound in the Houston Ship Channel when the Chief Mate and the Second Mate were overheard making explicit sexual comments about other crewmembers. The conversation was picked up by the pilots in the wheelhouse.
The moral of the story: always think before you speak!
Category: Blackball Concerns?
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