Rising number of Greeks sign on as seafarers

The number of Greek seafarers enrolling on merchant ships increased last year for the first time since 2011.

It is the first tangible evidence that biting austerity measures could be pushing more and more Greeks to pursue a career at sea.

A total of 14,313 Greek nationals embarked on commercial vessels in 2016, compared to 13,927 in the previous year, Greek statistical service ELSTAT said in a press release.