Sailors jump ship leaving Hong Kong’s iconic Star Ferry urgently needing fresh talent

Chief coxswain Chan Tsu-wing misses the days when his job was all about sailing boats.

The 61-year-old father of two, the Star Ferry’s longest-serving employee, says he had to study hard and learn from his seniors in order to obtain licences for bigger boats, but now, instead of sailing, he largely spends his time managing his subordinates. He admits he would rather be out on the water.

“I’d like to be a captain if I could,” he says. “Because I’m afraid of getting too much involved in personnel issues; I’m very sick of this. If I steer a ship, I just need to focus on steering. I’d then face very few problems.”

Chan has retired twice during his 33-year career, but has subsequently been asked to come back to work twice because his experience was unrivalled, and fewer young people are joining the company’s ranks.

“If we want to protect this cultural symbol of Hong Kong, we have to have successors,” he says. “Fewer young people want to work in this field and we have no one to take our place. The most difficult thing for us is the lack of fresh talent. Nowadays, we would need to urge people to take licence examinations. People today are not as hardworking as in the past.”

Chan started work as a sailor with the company in January 1984 after applying for the job through the Hong Kong Labour Department. He went on to become vice-chief coxswain after 15 years, before being promoted to chief coxswain in 2005.