A successful B.C. Ferries hiring blitz has brought in 500 new employees in five weeks with the company’s president saying it is leaving “no stone unturned” to add more mariners to its payroll in the wake of numerous sailing cancellations.
The company will announce a cash bonus within a month for staff who bring in certain categories of employees, president Mark Collins said Thursday after addressing a Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce meeting.
Plus, “there will be a monetary incentive for joining us,” he said. Details were not immediately released.
One of the biggest barriers to hiring is the cost of housing, he said. That has prompted B.C. Ferries to consider the idea of live-aboard ships.
Salish-class vessels, for example, have a full deck of crew cabins and northern vessels have cabins as well, he said, suggesting that a crew member could live in Calgary and come in to work every two weeks.
The company is looking domestically and is ready to hire internationally. About 28 Ukrainian professional mariners are in the pipeline to work for B.C. Ferries, Collins said. “If you’ve got an international qualification and the government of Canada has given you your work permit, I have a job for you.”
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