When the fish come to the seas of Alaska there is an instant need for workers. Whether you are interested in fish harvesting or fish processing, you are sure to find plenty of job openings in Alaska during the fishing season. In fact, 2008 saw a massive increase in the number of Alaska fishing jobs to approximately 52 thousand.
Work on an Alaska Fishing Boat
These fish harvesting jobs are mainly held by workers in the 29 or younger age bracket. They make up 47 percent of all deckhands. The rest of the jobs on board such as the permit holders and other crew are held by men averaging 46 years of age. Fish processing works have an average age of 39.
Now, you would expect to find that the young people working in the fish harvesting industry have come in from other countries and states to earn the huge salaries that are promised in fish harvesting. In fact the studies show that 54 percent of workers actually live in Alaska, mostly in the coastal region. In the seafood processing industry, however, 74 percent live outside Alaska. These numbers are primarily due to the high demand for workers during the short seasons.
If you are interested in finding work in the fishing industry for about 10 or 11 months of the year, you will have to move around the state to find employment based on the current season. This is great for those who want to explore while they earn a good salary. Here are the main fishing seasons where you can find seafood harvesting work:
- In January the Pollock A season begins and lasts until March or April. This will see you finding work in Dutch Harbor, Kodiak, the infamous Bering Sea, and King Cove.
- In the last week of April sees the start of the 2 week Herring season which makes jobs available in Bristol Bay.
- From June through to August is when the Salmon season runs.
- October and November is the season for King Crab, Pollock, and Cod where you can find work in Dutch Harbor.
Most of the fishing jobs are in the Salmon processing industry, but thanks to the popularity of the Discovery Channel reality show, “The Deadliest Catch”, the King Crab industry generated an extra 55 jobs during 2008. Currently the figures for 2009 have the Sockeye Salmon as the strongest harvest.
Although the salaries are high and the locations are spectacular, these fish harvest jobs should not be romanticized. They provide adventure, but also danger, and over the past 8 years alone, there have been 126 fatalities from Alaska fishing jobs. This works out to 14 deaths on average per year which is 26 times higher than all other US jobs.
Of these deaths 53 percent were caused by a vessel disaster, 27 percent was from falls overboard, and the remaining 20 percent were from injuries on deck, on shore, or whilst driving. The areas where most of the fatalities occurred was in the Bering Sea, Bristol Bay, and the Aleutian Islands, with the Salmon fisheries causing the most deaths, Cod and Sole fishing causing the second most, and in third place, Crab fishing.
Although Alaska fishing jobs are the most dangerous in the world, the pay is extremely high, so if you are in for the adventure of a lifetime, then you should check out Alaska Job Finder today.
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