A chief steward is the senior unlicensed crew member working in the Steward's Department of a ship. Since there is no purser on most ships in the United States Merchant Marine, the steward is the senior person in the department, whence its name. In the British Merchant Navy, a steward is a junior member of the department (referred to as a Steward's Assistant in the United States), and so the term "chief steward" is always used for the senior member. A chief steward's duties may overlap with those of the Steward's Assistant, the Chief Cook, and other Steward's Department crew members.