1177
Views

U.S. Coast Guard Issues ALCOAST 568/08

Published Jan 11, 2011 9:32 AM by The Maritime Executive

Rear Admiral James A. Watson, U.S. Coast Guard Director, Prevention Policy, updates Coast Guard's marine safety personnel plans for 2009, which includes among other things, a nationwide civilian hiring drive.

The Coast Guard’s ALCOAST also includes an effort to recruit experienced mariners from all portions of the operating industry and people from ancillary maritime industries such as shipbuilding, port engineers, quality control personnel, and other seagoing related shore-side professionals. Some of these positions will be career-ladder structured to ensure appropriate professional development, retention, and longevity. Read the entire ALCOAST message below:

ALCOAST 568/08
COMDTNOTE 16700
SUBJ: COAST GUARD MARINE SAFETY PERSONNEL PLANS

A. COMDT COGARD WASHINGTON DC 021523Z OCT 08 ALCOAST 486/08

1. REF A PROVIDED AN UPDATE ON PAST ACTIONS ACCOMPLISHED IN CARRYING OUT THE MARINE SAFETY ENHANCEMENT PLAN. THIS ALCOAST PROVIDES INFORMATION ON THE MARINE SAFETY ENHANCEMENT PLAN ACTIONS AFFECTING PERSONNEL AND CAREER PLANNING.

2. LOOKING AHEAD TO ASSIGNMENT YEAR 2009 (AY 2009), WE ARE MAKING ALL NECESSARY PREPARATIONS FOR THE ADDITION OF 310 BILLETS TO SUPPORT MARINE SAFETY INCLUDING 110 PSC/TOWING INSPECTION, 99 MARINE INSPECTION AND 49 INVESTIGATION BILLETS FOR SECTORS. OTHER SECTOR FUNCTIONS HAVE ALSO BEEN FUNDED. OUR PLANNING EFFORTS INCLUDE COORDINATION WITH COMDT (CG-1), COMDT (CG-4), COMDT (CG-6), AND COMDT (CG-7) TO ENSURE OUR INFRASTRUCTURE SUPPORTS BOTH THE IMMEDIATE SPIKE IN WORKFORCE AND THE LONG TERM EXPANDED WORKFORCE.

A. OUR EXPANSION EFFORTS INCLUDE A CONCERTED EFFORT TO REDEFINE OUR WORKFORCE. A NATION-WIDE CIVILIAN HIRING DRIVE TARGETING A BROAD SPECTRUM OF COMMERCIAL MARITIME ENTERPRISES WILL PROVIDE A WIDE RANGE OF EXPERTISE TO HELP THE COAST GUARD TO BETTER UNDERSTAND THE INDUSTRY WE REGULATE. WE WILL SEEK TO RECRUIT EXPERIENCED MARINERS FROM ALL PORTIONS OF THE OPERATING INDUSTRY AND PEOPLE FROM ANCILLARY MARITIME INDUSTRIES SUCH AS SHIPBUILDING, PORT ENGINEERS, QUALITY CONTROL PERSONNEL, AND OTHER SEAGOING RELATED SHORE-SIDE PROFESSIONALS. SOME OF THESE POSITIONS WILL BE CAREER-LADDER STRUCTURED TO ENSURE APPROPRIATE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT, RETENTION, AND LONGEVITY.

B. WE WILL INCREASE OUR RECRUITING EFFORTS FROM MINORITY COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES TO FURTHER EXPAND THE DIVERSITY OF OUR WORKFORCE WITH A FOCUS ON SCIENCE, TECHNICAL, ENGINEERING, AND MATHEMATICS (STEM) DEGREES.

3. TO CONTINUOUSLY IMPROVE PREVENTION AND MARINE SAFETY COMPETENCY AND CAREER PATHS, MARINE INSPECTOR TRAINING WILL BE REVISED. WHILE CORE INDOCTRINATION COURSE AND ON THE JOB TRAINING WERE RECENTLY UPDATED, THE MANAGEMENT OF PERSONNEL HAS NOT BEEN MODIFIED TO TAKE FULL ADVANTAGE OF THIS TRAINING AND THE ADDITION OF CIVILIAN TRAINING COORDINATORS. THE FEEDER PORT CONCEPT IS BEING DEVELOPED WITH INPUT FROM SECTORS. THE FINAL CONCEPT WILL BE ADDRESSED VIA SEPCOR TO INCLUDE INFORMATION ON TOUR LENGTHS, ROTATION POLICIES FOR APPRENTICE MARINE INSPECTORS (BOTH MILITARY AND CIVILIAN), ASSIGNMENT POLICIES FOR JOURNEYMAN/EXPERT MARINE INSPECTORS, AND
CATALOGUING, DEFINING, AND REFINING COMPETENCIES.

4. WE HAVE INCREASED THE NUMBER OF POST GRADUATE ENGINEERING OPPORTUNITIES TO ENHANCE OUR ENGINEERING CAPACITY AT THE MARINE SAFETY CENTER (MSC) AND CGHQ. TABS FOR FY 2008 WERE INCREASED FROM 9 TO 11 AND WE EXPECT A FURTHER INCREASE TO 17 IN FY 2009. THIS INCREASE WILL ALLOW FOR ADDITIONAL TECHNICAL EXPERTISE AT CGHQ WHILE ENHANCING THE OPPORTUNITY FOR ROTATIONAL TOURS BETWEEN MSC, SECTORS, AND PREVENTION STAFF ASSIGNMENTS.

5. TO FURTHER ENHANCE OUR COMPETENCIES, MERCHANT MARINE INDUSTRY TRAINING PARADIGMS WILL BE REVISED TO ADD FLEXIBILITY WITHOUT DECREASING UNIT STRENGTH DURING TRAINING. A WIDER RANGE OF PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES WILL BE DEVELOPED, INCLUDING SHIP RIDER PROGRAMS, INDUSTRY AND COMMERCIALLY OFFERED SPECIALIZED TRAINING, AND LOCAL AREA INDUSTRY PARTNERSHIPS. OVER THE SUMMER WE INITIATED A PILOT PROGRAM WHERE ONE OCS AND FIVE CGA ENSIGNS ASSIGNED TO SECTOR MARINE INSPECTOR BILLETS WERE SENT ON MERCHANT SHIPS FOR PERIODS RANGING FROM THREE TO SEVEN WEEKS. THESE OFFICERS COMPLETED A ROBUST INDOCTRINATION PROGRAM DESIGNED TO PROVIDE THEM WITH A SOLID WORKING KNOWLEDGE AND APPRECIATION FOR MERCHANT VESSEL OPERATIONS. WE APPRECIATE THE SUPPORT OF THE FOUR SECTORS INVOLVED WITH THE PILOT PROGRAM. INITIAL FEEDBACK FROM PARTICIPATING ENSIGNS AND VESSEL OPERATORS IS VERY POSITIVE. WE WILL PURSUE OPPORTUNITIES TO FURTHER DEVELOP AND IMPLEMENT GUIDANCE ON THIS SHIPRIDER PROGRAM FOR USE BY ALL SECTORS.

6. IN MAY 2008 WE POSTED A DRAFT MARINE SAFETY PERFORMANCE PLAN (MSPP). COMMENTS FROM A WIDE RANGE OF SOURCES WITHIN THE MARITIME INDUSTRY AND THE COAST GUARD WERE RECEIVED AND EVALUATED. CHANGES TO THE MSPP HAVE BEEN MADE IN RESPONSE TO THE COMMENTS. WE ARE CATALOGUING AND CATEGORIZING COMMENTS WITH THE INTENTION OF MAKING THE DISPOSITION OF COMMENTS TRANSPARENT TO ALL. IN THE FUTURE, THE COMMENT CATALOGUE WILL BE POSTED ON THE CG-54 WEBSITE HTTP://WWW.USCG.MIL/HQ/CG5/CG54/MARINESAFETY.ASP.

7. THE FINAL IMO AUDIT REPORT DOCUMENTING THE RESULTS FROM THE APRIL 2008 VOLUNTARY MEMBER STATE AUDIT WILL BECOME PUBLIC WITHIN THE NEXT THREE MONTHS WHEN PERMITTED BY THE RULES OF THE INTERNATIONAL MARITIME ORGANIZATION.

8. WE ARE WORKING WITH THE TRANSITION TEAM TO IMPROVE STANDARDIZATION OF OUR PROCESSES THROUGH CONTINUED DEPLOYMENT OF THE MISSION MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (MMS).

A. MMS IS FULLY IMPLEMENTED IN THE MARINER LICENSING AND DOCUMENTATION PROGRAM.

B. D5 AND D14 ARE IN THE PROCESS OF ROLLING OUT MMS FOR MARINE INSPECTIONS AND INVESTIGATIONS. A COMDTINST ADDRESSING THE MMS WILL BE PUBLISHED SOON.

C. I ENCOURAGE YOU TO VISIT THE MMS TAB UNDER RESOURCES ON CGCENTRAL WHICH TO HELP LAY THE FOUNDATION FOR UNDERSTANDING THE MMS. WE EXPECT THE MMS AS FURTHER DEVELOPED UNDER FORCECOM AFTER MODERNIZATION WILL ACCELERATE CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT AND STANDARDIZATION NATIONWIDE.

D. LASTLY, WE WILL CONTINUE WORK ON DEVELOPING MEASURES OF OUR READINESS AS OTHER COMMUNITIES WITHIN THE COAST GUARD HAVE DONE. IN THE FUTURE WE EXPECT THIS EFFORT WILL BE LED BY FORCECOM.

9. IAW OUR MARINE SAFETY IMPROVEMENT STRATEGY, IN FY 2009 I WILL CHARTER A WORKING GROUP TO BEGIN THE PROCESS OF IDENTIFYING ENHANCEMENTS THAT WILL ENSURE FIELD PERSONNEL HAVE THE RIGHT INFORMATION AT THE RIGHT TIME, THAT INDUSTRY HAS RELEVANT TIMELY COAST GUARD INFORMATION, AND THAT THE INFORMATION SHARING BETWEEN INDUSTRY AND THE COAST GUARD IS ACCELERATED FOR MUTUAL BENEFITS.

RDML JAMES A. WATSON, DIRECTOR, PREVENTION POLICY.