A civil service mariner, or CIVMAR, is a federal government employee who pursues a civil service, Navy career while assigned aboard U.S. government-owned, our ships that support Navy’s warfighters and warfighting platforms around the world. CIVMARs account for 80% of our workforce, their service is the backbone of our mission and it plays a vital role in the Navy’s ability to operate forward every day.

Because our ships are operated by civilians, crewing levels and crew organization aboard our vessels reflect the standards found aboard civilian commercial ships rather than combatant ships.

Additionally, the crews are divided between licensed and unlicensed personnel. Licensed personnel (i.e. the ship’s master and chief engineer) hold a current, U.S. Coast Guard-issued license, which is obtained through a combination of sea time and successful completion of a licensing exam. Although the division between licensed and unlicensed personnel aboard our ships may be compared to the officer/enlisted relationship aboard combatant vessels, a more appropriate analogy is the management/labor relationship in the civilian industry.

For current CIVMARs interested in human resource, medical, travel and pay information, visit: CIVMAR.sealiftcommand.com

For job information visit: sealiftcommand.com.