Royal Caribbean to Temporarily Stop Hiring Indian Crew

Royal Caribbean International has made the decision to immediately suspend incoming crew movement from India, according to a letter sent from the company and report by Crew Center. The letter was later obtained by Cruise Industry News.

The company said it was "based on various reasons and related to recently announced travel restrictions and complexities with crew movement to and from India," where COVID-19 cases continue to rise.

Those crew members who are currently at hotels pending joining a ship, or are currently en route (already flying) will also be notified and accommodation will be provided to them under quarantine guidelines untll further notice, according to the cruise line.

Indian crew have confirmed that their assignments have been cancelled due to developing travel restrictions.

"It's not the way we want to operate but it is the reality of quick changes we need to make based on different reasons that are often unplanned or beyond our direct control," Royal told crew members that saw their assignments cancelled.