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LABOR MOBILIZES SALMON WORKERS

July. 10, 2000
No. 00-02

man seated at his desk with a woman seated across from him while man standing watches with his arms crossed.
Naknek Job Center manager Nelson San Juan assisting
 seafood workers to relocate.

Naknek Job Center Assisting Processors to Fill Jobs

The Alaska Department of Labor and Workforce Development is mobilizing seafood workers in an effort to fill job orders in Southeast and Southcentral Alaska. 

Workers who have completed their contracts in Bristol Bay where the season is winding down are moving on to new jobs with the help of the department's temporary Job Center in Naknek.

"Since we opened the office June 21, twenty to thirty people come in every day," said Nelson San Juan, Seafood Employment Specialist and Naknek Job Center manager. "Many of the processors are calling here instead of Anchorage or elsewhere to get an idea of what's going on in the job market so they can find more people." (The office is open through July 21.)

San Juan and his co-worker Melody Dosier have been visiting the local plants and talking to workers during lunch and breaks about where they can continue to work after the season closes in the Bay. At the same time, they have been working with Southeast seafood employers to alleviate worker shortages in Ketchikan, Sitka, and Petersburg.

Anticipating a higher than usual labor shortage in seafood processing jobs, the Labor Department has also informed unemployment benefit recipients about the need for workers. "Responses have been coming in from all over the state," said Pennelope Goforth, Labor's State Seafood Employment Coordinator. "We've been referring these people to all the companies that have expressed a need for workers."

Some companies are offering incentives such as end of season bonuses, travel vouchers, and housing discounts or rebates for those completing their contracts.

Interested workers are encouraged to call the Naknek Job Center at 246-7373, the seafood hotline at 1-800-473-0688, or visit the jobs Web site at jobs.alaska.gov. for the season's remaining openings.

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