On Saturday morning, workers for the sole provider of ferries to Alcatraz island went on a four-hour strike to contest what they allege to be unfair labor practices.
“The cat’s out of the bag,” said Tristan Senft, a deckhand who is on the negotiating committee for Alcatraz Workers United, which represents some 90 Alcatraz ferry workers. At 8:30 a.m., some 50 workers and supporters began to rally at the ferry’s boarding terminal at Pier 33.
The strike came several days after Alcatraz Workers United, which is a chapter of the marine division of International Longshore and Warehouse Union, voted 91 percent to authorize a strike. The union, which was officially certified in October 2022, is still trying to secure its first contract from Alcatraz City Cruises, the company that operates the ferry service.
In a statement, Alcatraz City Cruises said it is continuing to negotiate a potential contract, and that it was “disappointed the union would threaten our passengers, partners and the community with a potential disruption.”
The company said it had reached a tentative agreement with the union at its last bargaining session, but the union disagreed with that characterization. Senft said that the two sides had only agreed to minor points and that they were still awaiting a full economic package from the company.
Despite the strike, which lasted from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., the ferry’s service continued throughout the morning. While workers circled around the entrance, chanting, a steady stream of passengers waited through the long line to board the ferry — crossing the picket line.
According to Evan McLaughlin, an organizer with ILWU, the vast majority of the company’s unionized workers are on strike. That includes captains, officers, deck hands, food and beverage workers, mechanics and ticket takers.
“We’re trying to encourage the company to finish the negotiations,” said Brian Dobruck, a captain at Alcatraz City Cruises. “We’re doing what we can to move things along.”
Some workers expressed concern that the company continued to run the ferries, saying the limited staff could make rides unsafe. “They have a skeleton crew on deck,” said Senft.
Alcatraz City Cruises runs some 12 to 15 ferries to and from Alcatraz Island every day, carrying 300 to 400 passengers per ride, according to Senft.
At the last minute, the company called in port captains who typically oversee operations from their desks to help on board, according to Senft. Another captain was flown in on an overnight flight from the Bahamas to fill in. While these workers do have the license to pilot the ferry, they are not used to operating it, he said.
“They’ve had some pretty dodgy landings,” said Senft, describing how one ferry came within 15 feet of hitting the pier earlier this morning.
Meanwhile, the workers continued to chant and rally. “We’re not asking for anything over the moon,” said another employee. “We just want fair wages and benefits.”
Correction: A previous version of this piece switched the names of Senft and Dobruck with McLaughlin.
Don’t scab and don’t cross pickets!