Author: Joe Viechnicki, KFSK

Activity is ramping up in Petersburg harbors with just a few weeks before the start of some commercial salmon and crab fisheries in the region. Seafood processing companies bringing seasonal workers to town this summer have outlined their safety plans for the coronavirus. They intend to quarantine and isolate their workforce to protect employees and the community from a potential outbreak.

Charitable giving funds have announced grants for several Petersburg organizations that are providing services to people in need during the global health pandemic. Money is going to food programs and other support for people in the community.

Petersburg’s borough assembly Monday extended a local mandate for cruise ships expecting to dock in the community through the end of June. That mandate requires ships to check in with a borough health official before they’re allowed to dock. One cruise ship company says it is planning to start sailings in about a month. But local leaders want to know more information about plans for limiting the spread of COVID-19 between passengers and the community.

Most borough employees in Petersburg will be getting a two percent wage increase in July and have their contract extended through the end of the calendar year. That’s to give more time for face-to-face negotiations to start for a new collective bargaining agreement for municipal workers.

A consulting firm told Petersburg’s assembly this week that salaries for Petersburg borough employees and department heads are lagging behind their counterparts in other Alaska municipalities, especially at the top end of salary ranges. The borough comissioned the study of salary and benefits in preparation for the next round of labor negotiations.