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Alaska Fishing Jobs:

How can I get a job in Alaska’s seafood industry and where do I start?

In order to obtain a job in Alaska’s seafood industry, you must be a citizen of the United States. If you are a United States citizen, but you’ve never crewed on a fishing vessel before, chances are somewhat slim in finding a job.

Most boats are family operations, or use seasoned crews, year after year. A walk-on crewmember could land a job if he was in the right place at the right time. Generally, we recommend the ports of Kodiak, Soldotna, Ketchikan, or Petersburg. These are listed because of their accessibility; however, only Soldotna is on a road system connected to the Lower '48. Because of Alaska’s vast size and few roads, most travel in Alaska is done by air. Some areas can be reached by our “Marine Highway System” (ferries), which would allow you to take a vehicle. Bookings fill quickly, however, so you will want to make reservations early.

What kind of money could I expect to make?
Most of what you hear about BIG MONEY in Alaska is simply not true. While some boats make very good money, others make very little, and crewmembers won’t necessarily see much of it in either instance. Most permit holders have extremely large payments. For example, a typical Bristol Bay salmon gillnet vessel now costs about $325,000 (new) to buy. Crab vessels run several million dollars to build, and tens of thousands of dollars to operate annually. All of Alaska’s salmon fisheries, and many of our shellfish, herring, and crab fisheries, have gone to a limited-access system of some kind. This means that in order to participate in that fishery, you must purchase a permit (or the privilege) from an individual wishing to get out of the fishery. Permits for entry into these fisheries can run from $8–450 thousand. Payments are generally on a 10- to 15-year schedule. You can appreciate the tremendous overhead involved. Fuel, nets, and other required gear cost even more. A crewmember on a salmon boat gets between 6 and 15% of the “net profit,” after the boat and skipper generally take 50%. Earning potentials for crewmembers are probably somewhere from zero to tens of thousands of dollars.

What kind of onboard jobs might be available?

Most of the jobs you have probably read about are in our groundfish fisheries. Groundfish, like pollock and cod, are harvested in very large quantities (billions of pounds) in the Bering Sea. As the old saying goes, “it’s not the end of the Earth, but you can see it from there.” The Bering Sea is a very remote and hostile region. These fisheries involve catcher as well as catcher/processor vessels. The advertised work most probably is on a catcher/processor or “factory trawler.” These can employ up to 100 crewmembers per vessel who work on large, floating fish processing plants. These boats generally go to sea for 6–8 weeks at a time. Most jobs are on the “slime line” (butchering line) below deck. Hours are long (10–18 hours / 6 to 7 days per week) and the work can be very dangerous.

What about cold storage or cannery jobs?
Another option for employment is to work in a cold storage facility or cannery. Processing plants can be found in nearly all coastal areas of the State. The pay is $5–8/hr for “slime-line” workers. These plants are almost always looking for summer help.
Alaska Division of Commercial Fisheries.
http://www.cf.adfg.state.ak.us/

• Alaska fishing jobs

• Fishers and Fishing Vessel Operators
• Farmers, Ranchers, and Agricultural Managers