Recruiting sessions are being posted through May by the Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development in hopes of filling over 4,000 full-time temporary seafood processing jobs for that industry with Alaska hires.
Most of the jobs offer transportation, room and board benefits to those who successfully complete their contracts. Pay depends on the season, but average rate is about $13 an hour, plus overtime, confirmed Bernardita Dobson, lead employment services technician in the Seafood Employment office at the Anchorage midtown job center. “The companies also supply most gear needed for the job,” she said.
According to state labor officials, while processing companies are recruiting far beyond Alaska, employing Alaskans can save those processors the cost of hiring foreign labor brokers, paying fees for labor importation and the high cost of transporting foreign workers to Alaska.
Labor Commissioner Tamika Ledbetter noted that the seafood processing industry is the largest employer of nonresident hires in Alaska. “With Alaska residents making up less than 25 percent of the seafood processing workforce, we need to focus on recruiting Alaskans first,” she said.
Anyone interested in such employment may view a 20-minute seafood processing orientation available online at jobs.alaska.gov/seafood/processing.html to learn what to expect in this line of work.
Job openings are posted in Laska’s Labor exchange system (ALEXsys) at www.jobs.alaska.gov, including higher paying skilled and technical positions.
Job seekers may sign up for seafood jobs email alerts online at https://public.govdelivery.com/acconts/AKDOL/subscriber/new?topic_id=AKDOL_87
Further information is available online at www.jobs.alaska.gov/offices/index.html or visit individual processing companies online to learn more about their hiring needs.
Most of the jobs offer transportation, room and board benefits to those who successfully complete their contracts. Pay depends on the season, but average rate is about $13 an hour, plus overtime, confirmed Bernardita Dobson, lead employment services technician in the Seafood Employment office at the Anchorage midtown job center. “The companies also supply most gear needed for the job,” she said.
According to state labor officials, while processing companies are recruiting far beyond Alaska, employing Alaskans can save those processors the cost of hiring foreign labor brokers, paying fees for labor importation and the high cost of transporting foreign workers to Alaska.
Labor Commissioner Tamika Ledbetter noted that the seafood processing industry is the largest employer of nonresident hires in Alaska. “With Alaska residents making up less than 25 percent of the seafood processing workforce, we need to focus on recruiting Alaskans first,” she said.
Anyone interested in such employment may view a 20-minute seafood processing orientation available online at jobs.alaska.gov/seafood/processing.html to learn what to expect in this line of work.
Job openings are posted in Laska’s Labor exchange system (ALEXsys) at www.jobs.alaska.gov, including higher paying skilled and technical positions.
Job seekers may sign up for seafood jobs email alerts online at https://public.govdelivery.com/acconts/AKDOL/subscriber/new?topic_id=AKDOL_87
Further information is available online at www.jobs.alaska.gov/offices/index.html or visit individual processing companies online to learn more about their hiring needs.