July 4 – Repeated ferry cancellations due to staff shortages at the Maine State Ferry Service frustrate residents of the Penobscot Bay Islands.
The service, which operates seven boats that transport passengers to Vinalhaven, North Haven, Matinicus, Swans Island, French Island and Islesboro, has struggled to retain employees.
Fourteen of the 64 full-time positions are vacant and another seven employees have been furloughed in recent months. Five of the 18 part-time positions are also unfilled.
The Department of Transportation, which operates the service, is spending nearly $1 million to address the problem.
The ferry system signed a $250,000 contract last week with Indiana-based Seaward Services Inc. to provide temporary workers. Four people have since started.
The state Department of Transportation also has allocated $736,000 to create six new positions. That includes three captains who can hold a lower license to operate 100-ton ferries instead of the 500-ton ferry license the state agency previously required of all captains. Three of the agency’s seven ferries can be operated with the lower license.
Vinalhaven’s ferries — which served 70,000 passengers last year and have the most traffic — have been hit the hardest. It’s the only island served by two ferries, not one.
Between January and mid-June, 215 of the 2,000 scheduled trips between Vinalhaven and Rockland were canceled. About 148 of those cancellations were due to staffing shortages, while the others were caused by maintenance, weather or mechanical problems. That puts service reliability to Vinalhaven at 89 percent, compared with about 98 percent for service to the other five islands, according to department spokesman Paul Merrill.
“Anytime we have to cancel a run, it’s disruptive. We know it affects real people in real ways,” Merrill said. “We try to avoid canceling runs at all costs, but if we don’t have personnel available, trained to safely and legally operate a vessel according to Coast Guard requirements, we can’t do it.”
Since 2019, the Mills Administration has raised wages by at least 24.1%, Merrill said.
As of July 1, ferry captains will earn between $78,000 and $92,000 annually and receive an additional 3% allowance; ferry engineers will earn $73,000 and receive a 21.5% allowance; and deckhands will earn $58,000 and receive a 30% allowance, he said.
Merrill noted that any changes to the existing wage structure to hire more workers could have consequences for passengers and Maine taxpayers. The ferry service’s operating costs are split 50/50 between fare payers and the Department of Transportation’s Highway Fund, which is primarily funded by state fuel taxes. A new fare structure under consideration would mean an 18.4 percent increase in fares and state funding. And that proposal, designed to address increased operating costs, was submitted before the recent staffing challenges, Merrill said.
So far this year, 197,882 passengers have travelled on the ferries. Many rely on them for essential connections to the mainland, such as doctor’s appointments, work and school. Repeated cancellations have left residents scrambling for alternatives.
Steve Ames, a coach for the Vinalhaven Ravens Little League team, said the team began traveling to Rockland for games on the players’ parents’ lobster boats instead of the ferry. He said the kids had a great time and it was nice not to have to rely on the ferry.
But Ames also works at the Sand Bar on Vinalhaven and says canceled ferries have delayed cargo shipments for local businesses, impacting their services. He said canceled ferries are creating “logistical nightmares” for residents.
Rachel Noyes, owner of a Vinalhaven gift shop called Go Fish, echoed that sentiment, saying supplies have been impacted. She also said she and other islanders have started leaving early for their trips to the mainland to ensure that canceled ferries don’t impact their travel. But that sometimes means paying to stay an extra night away from home, which can be expensive.
‘A LIFELINE’
Noyes also noted that the island often relies on tourists in the summer and that canceled ferry services affect those trips.
“It’s tough on a small tourist town that really relies on traffic. They’re day trippers, they’re not coming, which affects all of us,” Noyes said.
But she understands the difficulties of working on the ferries and wishes passengers were friendlier and more patient.
“People don’t want that job because they’re being treated badly,” Noyes said. “That part is disturbing to me.”
Eva Murray, who represents Matinicus on the ferry service’s advisory board, said there are only 36 trips a year to that island, so no one relies on the ferry for commuting.
But the staff shortage is hampering pressure from Matinicus residents for more frequent ferry trips. It’s hard to expect more service to Matinicus when the service is struggling with cancellations on the other islands, Murray said.
Merrill stressed that staffing shortages are a problem across the state, but he understands that ferries are “a lifeline” to the island’s communities.
“Hiring and retaining good employees is a challenge everywhere and has been for a number of years, and that’s true for ferry service as well,” Merrill said. “We wish we could find more skilled people who are willing to join the team. We think those are good jobs.”
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