Tuesday March 14, 2023 | VICTORIA, BC
by Mary P Brooke | Island Social Trends | TRANSPORTATION NEWS ARCHIVE
With the busy spring break period and summer vacation season upcoming, BC Ferries is trying to get ahead of the curve to cover their needs for workers in all areas of the corporation.
Back on February 26, when Premier David Eby announced $500 million to support BC Ferries (from the Budget 2022 surplus) in maintaining steady fare increases over the next few years, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure Rob Fleming said:
“Our government recognizes the importance of reliable and affordable ferry service for travel and goods movement,” said Rob Fleming, Minister of Transportation and Infrastructure. “It is vital that people living in B.C.’s coastal communities that depend on ferries – and all British Columbians – are well served and supported by this service.”
Marine highway:
Fleming said that the coastal ferry system in BC is a marine highway. Individuals, families and businesses rely on travel by BC Ferries between the mainland and various points on Vancouver Island, as well as between the smaller islands.
BC Ferries is one of the largest ferry operators in the world, moving more than 60,000 customers and 23,000 vehicles throughout coastal BC every day.
There are currently 39 ferries moving more than 22 million passengers and 8 million vehicles every year.
Recruitment campaign:
“We recently launched our biggest recruitment campaign in the company’s history,” said BC Ferries in a statement to Island Social Trends on March 3.
“We are recruiting to fill more than 500 casual positions for shoulder and peak season 2023. The recruitment campaign runs from February 23 to April 15, 2023.”
Fleming mentioned last month that even positions like ship captain need to be filled. Marine certified training is available at post secondary institutions in BC including BCIT, Camosun College and Vancouver Island University. “We’re building on the partnership around training for marine certification positions,” Fleming said last month.
Range of positions & locations:
BC Ferries says it is hiring for onboard catering, terminal and ticketing positions. There are also opportunities in their deck and engineering departments, from entry level to licensed officers.
These jobs are located throughout coastal British Columbia, from the lower mainland to the Southern Gulf Islands, throughout Vancouver Island, the Northern Gulf Islands and towards the North Coast including Haida Gwaii and Prince Rupert. Customer Care positions are also available at head office in Victoria.
Job postings online:
BC Ferries is hosting a series of hiring events this spring. Career events and hiring information is available online, where the range of job openings shows a real need for the corporation to stay afloat with a continual new influx of workers. For example, these job openings are currently listed:
- Trades jobs are available in Swartz Bay (Trades Supervisor), Horseshoe Bay (Industrial Mechanic) and Tsawwassen (Dock Repairer).
- Catering jobs are presently available in Prince Rupert, Tsawwassen, Swartz Bay, Langdale, Horseshoe Bay, Little River, Nanaimo.
- The position of Safety Manager for Special Projects is available in various locations: Victoria, Nanaimo, Comox or Vancouver Area.
- Information and Technology job openings: Senior Manager – Enterprise Business Systems, Senior Business Intelligence Developer, Database Specialist, and Intermediate Technical Analyst – Network.
- Chief Engineer needed for Swartz Bay and Salt Spring Island. Project Coordinator needed for Fleet Project Management Office(s).
BC Ferries says it partners with WorkBC to promote BC Ferries as an employer of choice, and is reaching out to prospective employees through educational institutions.
All positions are key:
“Every position is integral to providing customers with an exceptional experience and ensuring ships sail,” says BC Ferries.
===== RELATED:
$500 million boost to keep ferry fares affordable (Feb 26, 2023)
New BC Ferries CEO shifts over from ICBC (Jan 17, 2023)
BC Ferries service disruptions Dec 23 (Dec 23, 2022)
===== ABOUT ISLAND SOCIAL TRENDS:
Island Social Trends emerged in mid-2020 from a preceding series of publications by founder/editor Mary P Brooke and published by Brookeline Publishing House Inc, covering news of the Vancouver Island region, BC and national issues through a socioeconomic lens.
The publication series began with MapleLine Magazine (2008-2010), then morphed to a weekly print newspaper Sooke Voice News (2011-2013), and then into the weekly PDF/print West Shore Voice News (2014-2020). The news at IslandSocialTrends.ca (2020 to present) is entirely online.
Among many other qualifications, long time journalist Mary Brooke, B.Sc. holds a Certificate in Public Relations and an industry certificate in digital marketing. She reports with the BC Press Gallery.
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