Community Guidelines

MarinersLobby is a professional network where maritime professionals at sea and ashore, students and companies meet. These guidelines exist to keep it a place where everyone can look for work, ask questions and talk safely. Everyone who uses the platform agrees to follow these guidelines, which form part of the Membership and Terms of Use.

1. Be respectful and professional#

• People of different ranks, departments, nationalities and experience are here together. Challenge ideas, not people.
• Insults, humiliation, threats, harassment and persistent unwanted messages are prohibited.
• Don't target anyone because of their nationality, ethnic origin, religion, sex, age, disability or similar characteristics.
• Don't look down on questions from newcomers and students; we all started somewhere.

2. Be honest#

• Use your real information in your profile. Don't open an account on someone else's behalf, and don't impersonate another person or company.
• State your rank, sea service and certificates as they are. Presenting a fake or expired certificate as valid has serious consequences here and on board.
• Job postings must be for real positions. Salary, vessel, contract length and conditions must be as written in the posting.

3. No money from candidates#

There is no exception to this rule. No money, deposit or payment may be requested from a candidate for any job or internship, whether it is called a recruitment, file, document, visa, training, medical check or guarantee fee, or anything else.

Postings that do this are removed immediately, the accounts are closed and, where necessary, the case is reported to the competent authorities. If you are asked for money, don't pay, and report the content with the reason Asked for money.

4. Protect yourself from scams#

Fake job offers are common in the maritime industry. Be careful if you see any of these signs:

• A payment requested under any name before you start work
• Unrealistic promises such as "guaranteed job", "instant visa" or "hired without an interview"
• Requests for photos of your passport, seaman's book or certificates before an interview, without explanation
• Pressure to move the conversation off the platform to personal messaging apps straight away
• Email addresses that don't match the company name, or employers with no website or tax details

Verified companies carry the Verified company mark on their profile. It shows that the company's domain, tax number and website are consistent; still, judge every offer with your own good sense.

5. Respect personal information#

• Don't share other people's ID, passport, seaman's book, phone number, address, health information or photos without their permission.
• Use information you access through applications and messages only for that recruitment process; don't collect it, sell it or share it for other purposes.
• Don't publish messages from a private conversation elsewhere without the other person's permission.

6. Good questions and good answers in the forum#

The forum is where knowledge that would otherwise scroll away in a chat becomes permanent and searchable. We keep its quality together:

• Search before you ask; your question may already have an answer.
• Write a clear title: "Phase difference alarm when synchronising generators" rather than "Help!".
• When you answer, say what you know, and say so if you are guessing. Cite sources where you can (rules, circulars, manufacturer manuals).
• Be careful on safety matters. Forum content is the opinion of colleagues; on board, your company's safety management system and flag and class rules come first.
• When describing incidents and accidents, don't name people, and leave out vessel and company names where appropriate. The aim is to learn lessons, not to expose anyone.
• Don't share companies' trade secrets or confidential documents.
• Don't open the same question again and again; once you find your answer, mark the best answer so that people who come later benefit too.

7. Chat rooms#

• Stay on the room's topic. A regional room is for that region's ports and news; the technical room is for technical questions.
• Don't post advertising, chain messages, or repetitive or irrelevant content (spam).
• Room creators are responsible for keeping order in their rooms and are expected to report content that breaks these guidelines.

8. Additional rules for employers#

• Only publish postings for positions you actually hold or have written authorisation for; if you post on behalf of another employer, say so clearly.
• Don't set discriminatory conditions except where required by law, flag state rules or the ship's manning requirements.
• Be honest and professional with candidates. Don't repeatedly change an application status or interview appointment in a way that misleads or harasses the candidate.
• Use candidates' information only for the relevant recruitment process; don't bulk-download it, sell it or use it for marketing.
• Keep your company information (name, tax number, website, fleet) accurate and up to date.

9. Prohibited content#

The following may not be shared anywhere on the platform:

• Fake, misleading or illegal job postings; offers of unlicensed placement or undocumented work
• Scams, phishing, malware or malicious links
• Insults, threats, harassment, hate speech and discrimination
• Obscene content and content that glorifies violence
• Advertising, spam and unsolicited bulk messages
• Other people's personal data and content that infringes intellectual property rights
• Any content that violates the applicable law

10. Report it#

When you see a job posting, profile, company, message, forum post or chat room that breaks these guidelines, use the Report link next to it and choose the right reason. Reports are reviewed by our moderation team; the person or company you report is not told who reported them.

Misusing the report tool to silence someone or to harm a competitor is also a breach of these guidelines.

11. How the guidelines are enforced#

• Content passes through automatic filters. Clearly prohibited expressions are not published; suspicious content is sent for review by a moderator.
• Depending on how serious the breach is and whether it is repeated, the measures may be a warning, removal of content, a temporary restriction on messaging and posting, suspension of the account, or closure of the account. For company accounts, postings may be taken offline and the company page hidden.
• For serious breaches such as asking candidates for money, fraud or severe harassment, the account may be closed directly.
• Every measure is recorded together with its reason. If you believe a decision about you is wrong, you can appeal at [email protected]; your appeal will be reviewed and, if it is found justified, the measure will be lifted.

These guidelines may be updated as the community grows. The current version is always on this page.

In case of any inconsistency between the Turkish and English versions of these guidelines, the Turkish version prevails.