What are the ‘ups’ and ‘downs’ for working on a cruise ship?

I live in Alaska and lots of cruise ships visit us. I've had the chance to meet some of the people who work on the ships and lots of them have told me some really sad stories. They employ a lot of foreigners and I guess they're allowed to pay extremely low wages. You see, the ships operate in international waters and are usually licensed in Liberia and other countries with no real rules (that's why the companies license them there), so you won't be protected by American labor laws. Not trying to discourage you, but I think you'd be much better off working in a hotel.