Dispatches programme dismissed as 'nonsense'

Advantage Travel Centres has jumped to the defence of the cruise industry which is to be featured in a Channel 4 Dispatches tonight.

The programme will see a Dispatches reporter go under cover on a Celebrity Cruises vessel to investigate working conditions on board cruise ships.

Working as an assistant waiter, the programme makers say he will discover working conditions below the legal minimum in the UK.

Advantage leisure director Julia Lo Bue Said said Channel 4's decision to do an 'undercover' report was "nonsense".

"The cruise industry has faced many challenges over the past nine months, notwithstanding the catastrophic loss of human life from the Costa Concordia disaster early this year it is therefore greatly disappointing that Channel 4 has chosen to not only film in an unauthorised capacity but will no doubt present a biased view of labour and wage issues in the cruise industry," she said.

"I understand that Celebrity Cruises will be investigating the programmes findings but for Channel 4 to go to such extraordinary lengths to send one of their reporters undercover is a nonsense.

"Dramatisation of these documentaries does nothing to educate the public to the facts, but represents poor value TV entertainment and creates a negative image for a sector that has invested so much over the years to innovate its products into aspirational brands for all travellers."

She said Advantage Travel Centres will be doing all it can to ensure the correct messages are communicated across its network and customer base.

The programme, Cruises Undercover: The Truth Below Deck, is due to be aired tonight (October 1) at 8pm.

Celebrity Cruises has been unable to watch the programme in advance but was asked to respond to some allegations. It is due to comment in full following the programme's airing tonight.

* If you watch the programme tonight, afterwards tell us what you think by clicking on POST YOUR COMMENT below.

Monday, October 1, 2012

Post your comment

Your Comments

NOTE: Comments are subject to admin approval before being posted.

Nonsense?

Yes lets brush it all under the carpet & pretend that the staff on cruisers are well paid & have good conditions instead of being paid below minimum wage and having lousy working conditions.

By Tim Reiffer, Tuesday, October 9, 2012
working conditions

obviously out to shock, as all these exposures are, but why should cruise lines have to comply with legal minimum working conditions in the u.k anyway, surely they are only subject to international law, not u.k law? and the workers they are investigating are generally sourced from countries which have far lower standards for working conditions anyway (ask Primark!), but cruise ship employment offers a chance to send money home for their families whilst working in an environment which surely cannot be worse than the likely alternative employment they have in their country of origin? Viewers may be outraged, but would they be prepared for the increase in fares to bring working conditions/salaries etc up to western society norms? i think not, and once that is forced on the cruise companies by law, will that mean the end of cheap cruising as we know it? some would say that's not a bad thing, and while we're at it, we could find some way of exposing a certain airline beginning with 'R', to remove the cheap end of that market too!

By derek small, Monday, October 1, 2012
Cruise conditions

I'm not sure how anyone can defend working conditions on cruise ships. Stewards, waiters, etc recieved terribly low pay on the grounds it's good money where they live when ashore. There was a recent case in which crew demonstrated on the quayside to draw attention to low wages and falling tips. Newspapers reported these crew members have not been able to sign on again for daring to protest. 21st century ?

By Colin Luke, Monday, October 1, 2012
Heads up

I had no idea this program was on tonight: thanks for drawing attention to it.

By W Shearer, Monday, October 1, 2012