OTHER JOBS ON A FISHING BOAT
CHIEF ENGINEER
#Engineer Bobby, he will kick ya in da butt if you move too slow. If you move fast, he will kick ya anyway! #fishing #fishermen #fisherman #faces #prisoner #alaska #beringsea #fishingboat #beard #tough #maritime #sealife #pirate
He was responsible for the overall technical state of the ship. When in port, he was responsible for fuelling the boat with water and fuel.
ENGINEER/OILER
He did all the necessary repairs and boat maintenance and was the right hand of the chief engineer. The engineer/oiler needs to be neat handed and have a few years experience of work on the ship (shipyard). Broader technological knowledge (practical! – welding) is necessary. Shackles from the factory or deck will come in handy.
FACTORY TECH
One of the most experienced people in the crew. This person made sure all the machinery in the factory run well. In the ideal case, factory run 24 hours a day so he had a direct influence on how much fish we processed – there was always something that didn’t work as it should.
CHEF
Our #Samoan chef to the right. He could tell how much you work by how much you eat. So you better eat up! #fishingboat #beringsea #alaska #fishermen #fisherman #fishingcrew #fishing #people
As one may expect the chef was responsible for food and its quantity, and also housekeeping. We had Thai, Samoan and American chef, so the food was very diverse. It was a very tough job as the boat crew was composed of people from all around the world; each with different tastes and customs. The chef had one assistant (COOK) and the housekeeper was under his command too. Seeing how one was eating he could deduce how much work they put in during the day – so you better eat a lot! 🙂 You might need an Alaska Food Handlers Permit for this position.
COOK
The chef’s right hand. Himself and the chef rotate shifts every twelve hours. For this job you might need Alaska Food Handlers Permit.
HOUSEKEEPER
The housekeeper took care of the crew’s laundry. He also maintained the inhabited part of the ship clean and in good order. Be nice to him!
OBSERVER
The observer was an independent, state-employed biologist. You need a specific college degree to do this job. It was a very relaxed job- our observer was so bored, that sometimes he came to help us sort the fish at the backline. He signed a contract for 90 days and got paid around $5000 a month. He collected data about our catch and also checked if we were following the rules. For example, we were not allowed to catch halibut. If we happened to catch a greater number of these in a certain area we had to reposition the ship elsewhere. The captain had a sonar at his disposition according to which he could predict what type of fish could be found undersea.
DATA MANAGER
Even in the Bering Sea office rats occur.
Even in the Bering Sea office rats occur. They are very rare breed up there but they have a very responsible job. Our Data Manager was in touch with the buyer and the office in Seattle. He managed a ship store where you could buy fishing clothes, toiletries, phone cards etc. I saw him working a lot with spreadsheets. He had to take care of all the paperwork related to our contracts etc. He also checked on the quality of the fish we packed. All of them, except for one, were women. I believe they all had third level education.
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