Sailors offered 500% pay rise to work Strait of Hormuz

By Megan Brooks 21/07/2026 3 min read 29 views

Shipping companies are offering seafarers a 500% pay increase to transport oil through the Strait of Hormuz, a volatile region where recent attacks have killed 17 sailors and damaged dozens of vessels.

Sinokor Group, one of the world’s largest owners of supertankers, is offering six months of extra salary for a round trip to take crude from Saudi Arabia or Iraq and offload it in the Gulf of Oman. The company, owned by South Korean businessman Ga-Hyun Chung, has expanded aggressively by purchasing hundreds of Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) this year. Mediterranean Shipping Company, the world’s largest shipping firm, has backed this expansion, positioning Sinokor at the center of crude exports from the Gulf as demand for tanker capacity surged.

It is believed that Sinokor now owns around 150 VLCCs. Reports claim that just three tankers operating continuously since April could have netted a windfall of between $60m and $120m. This aggressive financial strategy highlights a stark contrast between the operational capabilities of the companies and the human cost of the routes they are operating.

Typically, the captain is the highest-paid person on most ships, earning up to $15,000 a month. A junior sailor usually earns around $1,500 a month in normal times. With some crew members now being offered $9,000 to make the same trip, the financial temptation is undeniable. This gap in pay scales suggests that while the captains may have the financial stability to refuse, junior crew members face significant pressure.

According to data from the UN’s shipping agency, 17 seafarers have died since the start of the war, and 59 commercial ships have been attacked in and around the Arabian Gulf since the end of February. On Monday, two supertankers were attacked on the Strait of Hormuz. The crew of the Maltese-flagged Kavomaleas, owned by Greece’s Dynacom Tankers, was rescued by a tugboat after a fire broke out aboard the vessel north of Kumzar, Oman. The UK Maritime Trade Operations agency reported the fire earlier that day.

Crew Shortages

Ship-owners are commanding excessive fees to take their vessels on a trip in and out of Hormuz due to the heightened risks. However, it is the crew of these supertankers that are taking all the risk in reality. Captain Pradeep Chawla, Chairman of GlobalMET, a group that works with the International Maritime Organisation, said they have heard that large numbers of crew members are refusing to undertake the trips.

“They are being offered huge bonuses by some companies. We have heard stories of a large number of crew members getting off, but they are able to find people who are willing to go,” Chawla said. The company has become a key player in helping regional producers get their oil barrels out, particularly in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq. Salaries for crossing the Hormuz can vary, but two people involved in securing crew for vessels transiting the waterway said they were generally seeing lower rates than the bonuses offered by Sinokor, with some firms adding as much as 60 days of salary to a 30-day contract.

While the bonuses are substantial, the right to refuse remains a legal option for crew members. They do have the right to request to vacate the vessel and be replaced if they don’t want to sail into danger. The reality of the situation creates a difficult choice for maritime workers balancing their livelihood against the very real threat of violence in a strategic chokepoint.