Port assistant
| Highest | $3,350 / mo · Switzerland |
|---|---|
| Experience | 0–1 yrs |
| Degree | Not required |
| First paycheck | Via UAE or Germany visa processing: 2 to 6 months |
Pay in the destination countries
Monthly, in US dollars. Each country is an Imora admission package — open one for that route's fees, language requirement and deadline.
| Country | Monthly |
|---|---|
| SwitzerlandIELTS 6.5 · CHF 0.9–8k | $3,350max |
| Hong KongIELTS 6.0–6.5 · HK–200k | $3,050 |
| SingaporeIELTS 6.5 · SGD 18–35k | $3,050 |
| United KingdomIELTS 6.0–7.0 · £11–38k | $3,050 |
| NorwayIELTS 6.0–6.5 · NOK 130–260k | $3,000 |
| United StatesTOEFL 80–100 · $10–70k | $2,950 |
What does the day look like?
Work takes place on container yards, bulk terminals, RoRo ramps, and shipside berths. Marine terminals operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Shifts run on either continuous 12-hour cycles (07:00 to 19:00 day shift, 19:00 to 07:00 night shift on a 4-day-on / 4-day-off pattern) or 8-hour three-shift systems (06:00 to 14:00, 14:00 to 22:00, 22:00 to 06:00). Working conditions involve severe weather exposure, from freezing rain, wind, and sea spray in northern Europe to heat exceeding 45 degrees Celsius in the Persian Gulf. Class 3 high-visibility clothing, steel-toe boots, safety helmets, and auto-inflating lifejackets within 2 meters of the quay edge are mandatory.
Between 70 and 80 percent of an entry-level shift consists of heavy physical labour: hauling mooring lines, manually locking or unlocking twistlocks on cold steel decks, connecting 15 to 20 kilogram lashing rods, driving terminal tractors, and signalling gantry cranes via hand signals or VHF/UHF radio. The remaining 20 to 30 percent covers scanning barcodes with Zebra TC77 or Honeywell handhelds, confirming bay coordinates in Terminal Operating Systems like Navis N4 or Tideworks Mainsail, checking IMDG dangerous goods placards, and waiting between vessel hatch changes.
Where does this lead?
Next step up
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