BROOKLYN NAVY YARD — Hiring has started for 200 new positions opening up with the city’s new commuter ferry — half of which will pay at least $50,000 per year or more, the mayor announced Wednesday.
The Citywide Ferry Service is looking to fill a wide range of positions — from concessions staff and deckhands to captain and chief operations officer — Bill de Blasio said during a press conference at the Brooklyn Navy Yard.
More than half of the new positions for the ferry service will pay $50,000 or more annually, with the remainder paying a “living wage,” the mayor said, without offering specifics about those salaries.
The 11 current job postings on the service's website are for full-time positions, while other part-time opportunities will be available later, officials said.
“Economic opportunity has not been spread far and wide enough in this city over the years,” de Blasio said Wednesday. “We need more good paying jobs.”
The new service has already hired for about 50 positions, including its first round of captains, who are currently in the Gulf Coast for sea trials, officials said.
New hires will have the opportunity to work their way up within the company and have access to training and career development, according to Economic Development Corporation President James Patchett.
“Folks who may start out working at a concession or something like that are going to have a chance to become a mechanic or something more skilled with longer-term opportunities,” Patchett said. “They’re going to have the opportunity to grow within.
Hiring will be locally focused and ferry officials will work with the career center at the Navy Yard, where the ferry’s home port will be based.
Construction of the 56,000-square-foot maintenance and storage facility is now underway at the Navy Yard. The port will include space for 25 boats, maintenance facilities, and restocking of food and drinks.
The port is set to open by the end of this year and the Navy Yard ferry stop is scheduled to open by the beginning of 2018, officials said.
The new service is slated to launch this summer, with the specific date released in April, de Blasio said.
The new system will incorporate the existing East River Ferry routes, along with five new routes, the first of which will service Astoria, Rockaway and South Brooklyn.
