Alaska’s Seafood Industry has opportunities for seasonal or full time work and the possibility of advancement into management or technical positions with good pay and benefits.

SEAFOOD PROCESSORS may do the following:

• Offload fish from tender, shovel chipped ice
• Clean and pack fish eggs
• Butcher frozen, fresh or salted fish for marketing or further processing; move racks of product in and out of freezer room
• Clean fish; scrape, cut, gut, head, wash, clean stomach linings; fillet; prepare for canning, freezing or smoking
• Butcher live crab, prepare shellfish
• Clean, remove foreign matter; weigh; record weights; sort; pack in jars, cans, boxes or containers of crushed ice for fresh pack.
• Feed cans and lids into lidding machine; operate machines to move live or packed seafood from place to place

WHAT THE WORK IS LIKE The typical environment of a seafood processing plant is wet, cold and smells like fish. Most entry-level seafood processing jobs involve working very long hours while standing at a work station. Employers may rotate workers from one work station or job to another to give workers some variety.

Seafood workers generally prefer to work as many hours as possible to earn more wages. Demonstrating a positive work attitude may lead to advancement to a different position with better pay or more responsibility. When a worker who is unprepared for the working conditions quits, it is costly and disruptive to both the worker and the company.

TYPES OF PROCESSORS Seafood processing plants may be shore based, floating processors, or on board factory trawlers. Shore based plants are located throughout the coastal regions and along the major river systems of the state. The largest concentrations occur in Southeast Alaska, Prince William Sound, Cook Inlet, Kodiak, the Aleutian Islands, and Bristol Bay. Within each of these areas, there are urban, semi-remote and remote sites. Plants located close to larger communities are easily accessible and attract many job seekers. There may be several people applying for every job in these plants. In Anchorage, room and board is not provided, but housing is available.

Floating processors are plants on large ships and barges that usually anchor near shore and receive harvested fish for processing. Factory trawlers operate in Bristol Bay and the Bering Sea both catching and processing seafood product.

RECRUITMENT AND APPLICATION Employers generally recruit either through their company office or a reliable recruitment office such as the Alaska Job Center Network (AJCN). Openings listed with an AJCN office are posted on the Seafood Jobs in Alaska Internet site at http://www.jobs.state.ak.us (once there click on "Seafood Jobs") There is no fee for using these services. Applicants must be physically present in Alaska to be referred to one of these jobs. Checking with the Seafood Jobs In Alaska Internet site first can save time, money, and possible frustration versus looking for a job on your own by heading to remote processing sites.

The best time to apply varies by area, the type of fish or shellfish, and by company. Look at a map of Alaska and choose the area you wish to target. Contact the local AJCN office for recruitment details. Most Alaska companies prefer to hire people already in Alaska. However, some Alaska processing plants fill their jobs through home offices in Washington, Oregon, and California. Many of these workers return to their jobs year after year (this is especially true for Bristol Bay and floating processors).

The Internet site and Seafood Hotline, (907) 465-8900, list openings as they occur, by location. The Anchorage Job Center at 3301 Eagle Street is a central hiring point for seafood processing jobs around the state in all three categories of processing plants.

TRANSPORTATION Find out what the transportation arrangements are before accepting a job. Employers try to hire close to the job site. Many do not pay transportation costs of any kind on initial hire. Each company has its own policies on transportation, and job seekers must pay close attention. Even if the company pays your way to the job site, you may have to pay your way home if you are fired or quit without good cause. Transportation is hard to get during the processing season; you could be stranded for two to three days with no food or lodging.

THE INTERVIEW Pay close attention to a prospective employer’s description of the job and working conditions – particularly on floating processors or in remote sites. Seafood processing is dangerous work – especially out on the fishing grounds. Most Alaska seafood companies work hard to process the harvest in a safe working environment. Ask if the company has a safety and health program.

Ask about, and be sure you understand the employer’s rules regarding hours of work, pay, room and board, and transportation to and from the job site. Good companies will not mind your questions because turnover is costly to them. They want you to be sure before accepting the job. If you have doubts, ask to see written policies relating to pay, hours, transportation and safety. A reputable company will have well-defined personnel policies including safety policies, and will provide safety and health training for all employees.

The supervisor interviewing you may work very long hours under incredible pressures. Ask your questions in a pleasant, considerate, and positive manner. Carefully read any employment agreement before you sign. Just say "no thank you" if you aren’t comfortable with the job offer.

KNOW THE LAW Alaska law is clear. If you are hired by a company that pays your way to the work site, the employer is required to pay your return fare ... unless you are fired for cause, which includes fighting, alcohol or drug problems, prolonged unexcused absences or if you don’t tell the truth on your application for work.

If you quit, the employer is not required to pay your return fare unless you can prove that the employer misrepresented your wages or hours, or that you quit because of unsafe working conditions. How can you prove your case? All employees should write the hours they work each day in a notebook. If problems occur, write them down. You have almost no chance of resolving wage or other problems without good documentation. The Labor Standards and Safety Division (LS&SD) of the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development helps people who have wage or safety problems. However, when working on a floating processor outside the three mile limit, NO state government agency can help you if you are treated unfairly by an unscrupulous boss or company. Some workers have worked the full season and gone home owing the company money due to low pay and high room and board charges!

BEYOND THE THREE-MILE LIMIT Work on a floating processor is a great job for some people. You work, eat, sleep and basically spend the season out on the fishing grounds. Since you rarely get to town, it can be an excellent way to save money.

Most floating processors abide by Alaska’s wage, hour, and safety laws, but some do not. If you are receiving conflicting information about a potential employer, call and ask the local Better Business Bureau or State Wage and Hour or Occupational Safety Officers.

YOUTH aged 16 and 17 must have a work permit. This requires the original or faxed signature of a parent or legal guardian. Although some young people are very responsible and can legally work in some seafood jobs, minors should not come to Alaska alone.

ALCOHOL AND ILLEGAL DRUGS Alaska’s seafood industry has a drug-free policy. It works hard to provide safe work sites. Most companies require drug testing as part of this effort. If you use or sell illegal drugs or need alcohol at your work site, these companies invite you to seek some other kind of occupation – and preferably in some other state!

PAY varies from one plant to another and among locations. The minimum wage went up to $7.15 per hour in Alaska on January 1, 2003. Floating processors' pay is hourly, and room and board are included if the floater is off-shore and not tied up to a dock. The average pay, when room and board is provided, is estimated to be $7.15 per hour. When it is not provided, you'll make about $7.50. A few plants operate only for a short five to six week season and may pay $8 or $9 an hour.

WORK HOURS in seafood processing run to extremes. You will work when the fish or crab are in. Workers are expected to stay on the job until released. This can mean working in excess of 16 hours per day, seven days a week. With overtime pay, a worker can make good wages. If workers do not show up on time, or do not work the required hours, they may be dismissed.

HOUSING is an issue to consider before accepting a job. While looking for work, and maybe after you find a job, you’ll need a place to stay. About half of the seafood processing plants offer their employees food and lodging. A few provide meals but no housing. Most processing plants are located in areas where hotels and motels are few or nonexistent, rooms are expensive ($75.00 to $100.00 per night) and often not available. Rentals, youth hostels, YMCAs or charitable organizations are not available in having processing plants. Always ask about housing before you accept a job.

CAMPING is allowed in some areas but not all. An approved site costs $4.00 to $14.00 per day. Some have showers or laundry facilities. Find out in advance how close approved campsites are and what transportation is available to your work site.

BEARS can be a danger if you’re camping in wooded areas or by salmon streams. Unattended camping and personal gear may be stolen. If you camp, please leave your area clean. Campers endure mosquitoes and rainy weather, but they also enjoy clean air, awesome wildlife, and fantastic scenery!

DOCUMENTATION By law, within three days of being hired you must furnish documents that prove your identity and show that you can legally work in the United States. AJCN staff will confirm that job seekers possess appropriate documentation before referring applicants to a job. For a list of acceptable documents, contact the AJCN office or Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) office nearest you.

WHAT ELSE TO BRING Durable raingear and duct tape for repair, knee-high rubber rain boots with wool liners, wool or polypropylene socks, bib style waterproof pants, baseball hat and warm hat with ear covers for cold weather, three sets of warm work clothes, layered clothing in soft luggage or seabag.

• Camping gear, tent, tarp, stove, utensils, sleeping bag. Traveling light is important, but remember that your tent is your home.
• Items such as required medication (two months’ supply), extra eyeglasses or contacts, towels/washcloths, toilet articles, non-electric alarm clock, a small notebook to keep track of your hours and addresses.
• Identification and right-to-work in the U.S. documents.
• Bring a return ticket and enough money to live on for a month. It often takes that long to find work. Don’t bring jewelry and other valuables.

TRAVELING SEAFOOD WORKFORCE This program offers extended seasonal work for seafood processors and help ease the labor shortage. Moving workers from one completed contract to another as fishery seasons progress benefits everyone. Seafood processors and seafood companies benefit from reduced transportation costs. There will be a temporary Job Center in Naknek, Alaska from late June to mid July, to recruit and relocate seafood workers during the peak of the Bristol Bay salmon season.

Community seafood employment specialists can be contacted in these Alaska Job Center Network (AJCN) offices:

• Melody Dosier or Nelson San Juan, Anchorage Job Center, 3301 Eagle Street, Room 100
• Patrick Charlie , YK Delta Job Center, Bethel, BNC Complex
• Pat Freeland, Bristol Bay Job Center, Dillingham, BBNA Center
• Lisa Croft, Homer Job Center 270 W. Pioneer Ste. A
• Becky Fulkerson, Juneau Job Center 10002 Glacier Hwy Ste. 200
• Ken Sirois, Peninsula Job Center, Kenai, 11312 Kenai Spur Hwy, Ste 2
• Noni Burno, Ketchikan Job Center 2030 Sea Level Dr., Suite 220 
• Maureen Butler, Kodiak Job Center 309 Center Street
• Vicki Erickson, Nome Job Center 214 W. Front St., Ste. 130
• Valori Enge, Petersburg Job Center 102 Haugen Drive
• Mollie Burton, Seward Job Center 809 2cnd Ave.
• Carolyn Evans, Sitka Job Center 304 Lake St. Rm 101
• Jean Cobb, Valdez Job Center State Ofc. Bldg. Rm 22

SEAFOOD JOBS HOTLINE – Call (907) 465-8900 for current seafood jobs information.