A ferry nice workplace

$1680 a week for checking barge tickets

OPPORTUNITY is knocking for someone willing to work seven-day weeks on five-hour shifts and take home a $1680 weekly pay packet.

All they have to do is check passenger tickets on-board the Daintree ferry.

Douglas Shire Council will today consider two proposals for the vehicle barge, starting with the launch of a compre- hensive community consultation process to glean what users want from the service.

The current ferry operator contract has been in place since July 2006 and will expire on June 30, 2021.

The council wants to call tenders by June next year and have the contract awarded by the end of 2019 to “ensure a seamless transition”.

A report before today’s meeting reveals the community consultation process will span multiple channels, with fact sheets, emails, social media posts, surveys and posters among the plan of attack.

“Normally the community engagement plan would not be presented to council for endorsement but as this relates to the ferry operations which is a very emotive issue, it is intended that all aspects of the community engagement will be in the public realm,” the report says.

In the meantime, a threemonth trial for an additional staff member checking passenger tickets on-board the ferry is expected to begin at the start of next month.

If supported in today’s meeting, the recruit would be handsomely rewarded with $43.41 an hour on weekdays, $51.45 on Saturdays and a $67.51 hourly rate on Sundays.

The new deck hand would work daily from 1pm-6pm in an effort to make the ticket receipting process more efficient and reduce wait times at the crossing. It adds up to a weekly wage of $1680.

The council had investigated the more efficient option of stationing an extra worker on the river’s north bank but deemed it too dangerous because it “would require them to walk along the road”.

“With all factors taken into consideration, including driver behaviours, it was determined that the safety risks to that additional staff member could not be mitigated sufficiently to allow for a safe workplace,” the report says.