AroojAltaf, Central Washington University Arthur Manjarrez, Central Washington University

1. National Technology and Social Science Conference
April 5-7, 2020
Harrah's Hotel & Casino
Las Vegas, Nevada
A Study of the Alaskan Fishing Industry
By
Arooj Altaf
Law and Justice/Sociology
Central Washington University

2. Personal Experience
 In June 2019, I worked at Alaskan General Seafood's
(AGS) during the summer season
 The flight, living accommodation, and food was paid
by AGS
 I worked in the freezer as part of the assembly line
and in the warehouse
 I worked 451 hours and it was challenging work that
required persistence and hard work
 I met employees who differed in their race,
ethnicity, and multi-cultural background
 All these diverse people worked together to form a
team

3. Personal Experience
 It gave me the opportunity to learn
new skills, learn how to drive the
forklift, operate warehouse
machinery, pack fish cans before
shipping, and make new friends
 There was no Wi-Fi
 It helped me make and save money
for education

4. Introduction
 Alaska General Seafood’s (AGS) is a prosperous fishing
company located in Bristol Bay, Alaska and is home to the
world’s largest wild sockeye salmon fishery
 600 people are hired around the nation for the mid June-
mid July season
 The different working stations include: the freezer, fishing
on the boats, warehouse, stock room, and storage room
 The different working stations come with a different pay
rate, level of hard work, and required skills
 Inside the challenging life of the cannery, workers of
different ethnic backgrounds are categorized and
segregated into different working stations
 Research Question: What factors determine the cannery
workers working station?
 Factors that categorize and segregate cannery workers
include gender, language skills, race, ethnicity, physical
ability, education etc.

5. Literature Review
Observation:
 Inside the cannery, workers with specific
ethnicity are made to work together
 Mexican females mainly work next to the
conveyer belt
 The “fishing-gang” consists of only males
 All men expect for one female, drives the
forklift
 All the employees in the warehouse speak
fluent English while, workers in the freezer
do not
 Almost all the Human Resources (HR’s) are
white who can speak English fluently
 Men do most of the heavy lifting (physical
work) while, the females work long hours
doing the tedious work of cleaning fish

6. Literature Review
Noor (2015) conducted a case study of British Columbia’s fishing industry to examine it’s
employment characteristics and to reveal how ethnic and social divides at once separated
workers while unifying and strengthening the industry as a whole.
Findings:
 4 main ethnic groups: Natives, Chinese, Japanese, and Whites were assigned a
different working role within the cannery
 White employees earned $1000-$1,200 monthly while other cannery workers made
$65-$100 monthly
 60 females were employed that worked only on low-paying canning lines
Zavella (1985) spent some time in Santa Clara Valley’s canning industry and interviewed
31 female workers with a mean age of 46 years (15 Chicanas)
Findings:
 Segregation of cannery workers by race, sex, and age
 Chicanos made 64% of the work force
 “Work culture” was created among the female Chicano workers; they trained each due
to the lack of formal training
 White men kept getting promotions while, language barriers and lack of information
about promotions kept Chicana women in lowest paying jobs

7. Literature Review
Hall (2008) focuses on the Oregon Packing Company that consisted of low pay, poor working
conditions, and a harsh management towards the primary female and child workers.
Washington’s fish, and fruit and vegetable canneries during the 1920s faced discrimination.
Findings:
 Men performed the “highly skilled” work of cookers and heavy lifting that paid more
 Canning was open to women with limited skills and modest education where they did
the less valued and low paying work of sorting, cleaning, and packing of cans
 Women made ¾ of cannery workers with ages ranging from early teenage to 60s in 1930
 Wages depended on the quality and type of fruit: one made $1 a day working with
strawberries and 40 cents a day with cherries
Muszynski (1984) highlights the significance of expansion of the British market for canned
Salmon during WW2 and the division of labor in the canneries on the basis of sex and
ethnicity
Findings:
 Chinese men, Native women, and Japanese were hired to work in the cannery
 Low wages with no security of employment and long shifts with no overtime pay was
prevalent
 Chinese labor was paid $183 per month while, White’s made $245 per month
 White men occupied the key positions of machine and reduction plant workers
 White women were paid by the hour while, Native women were paid by the piece as
hand filling cans of fish

8. Method
 I plan on doing my research at
AGS, in the month of June and
July 2020.
 Survey handouts in
English/Spanish will be given to
approximately 100 employees
 2-3 employees will be
interviewed and recorded

9. Survey Instrument
1. How old are you?
2. What is your gender?
3. Which race/ethnicity best describes you? American
Indian or Alaskan Native, Asian/ Pacific Islander, Black or
African American, Hispanic American, White/Caucasian,
Multiple ethnicity / Other (please specify)
4. How many languages can you speak please? Which
ones?
5. What is your marital status? Any dependents?
6. What is your highest education level?
7. What is your job role?
8. How satisfied are you with your experience working
at AGS on a scale from 1-10?
9. How many years have you been working here? What
brings you back?
10. How many opportunities have you been presented
with to help you get promoted?

10. AGS Employment Application
 First name, last name, email address, phone, address, resume
 Who referred you to this position? Enter their first and last name
 Do you have a valid Commercial Driver's License?
 What's your citizenship / employment eligibility?
 Are you 18 years of age or older?
 What languages do you speak fluently?
 Can you work overtime?
 Have you ever been convicted of a felony?
 Please list any friends or relatives working at AGS
 Are you able to work the full season?
 Are you willing and able to work overtime for several days, possibly weeks, without a day off?
 Are you able to stand for an entire shift - including required overtime?
 Have you ever worked for AGS, Kanaway Seafoods, Alaska General Processors or Nelbro Packing Company
before? If yes, please list dates and locations
 List any previous seafood processing experience that you believe would make you an asset to AGS
 How did you hear about Alaska General Seafoods?
 Please provide information of 2 Professional and 1 Personal Reference

11. References
Moon, C. (2015, April 7). Ethnic and social divides within the BC salmon canning
industry : a study of the North Pacific Cannery [R].
Zavella, P. (1985). "Abnormal Intimacy": The Varying Work Networks of Chicana
Cannery Workers. Feminist Studies, 11(3), 541-557. doi:10.2307/3180117
Hall, G. (2008). The Fruits of Her Labor: Women, Children, and Progressive Era
Reformers in the Pacific Northwest Canning Industry. Oregon Historical
Quarterly, 109(2), 226-251. Retrieved March 8, 2020
Muszynski, Alicja. “The Organization of Women and Ethnic Minorities in a
Resource Industry: A Case Study of the Unionization of Shoreworkers in the B.S.
Fishing Industry 1937-1949.” Journal of Canadian Studies/Revue D’etudes
Canadiennes 19.1 (1984): 89-107. Web.
https://akgeneralsfds.applytojob.com/apply/KrmdqsUHHg/Naknek-Seafood-
Processor-2020