Marine Captain presso King County, WA

About the Department

*** This position is open to King County Metro Transit employees and the general public. ***

The Marine Division with King County Metro Transit is hiring for a Marine Captain for the Water Taxi team. 

Our Captains work onboard our Water Taxi vessels, which are based out of the Pier 50 passenger only ferry terminal on the Seattle waterfront. While working under the direction of the Port Captain, the Marine Captain commands the vessel and all crew activities in alignment with applicable regulations and service schedules. The Captain plays a critical role by providing consistent leadership of vessel operations, ensuring open communication between crews and shoreside management, and ensuring the safety and security of the vessel, its passengers, and crew members. This position directly supports the County's interest in ensuring our commuters have a reliable way to access our downtown core through our Vashon Island and West Seattle service routes.

This recruitment will immediately fill one (1) Career Service (CS) position, and may be used to create an eligibility pool to fill future Career Service (CS), as well as any fully-benefitted Term-Limited Temporary (TLT) and/or Special Duty Assignment (SDA), vacancies that may come available in this classification and division. Eligibility pools remain valid for six (6) months upon creation, or until the list is exhausted, at the discretion of the hiring authority. 

Interviews are anticipated to begin during the week of September 22-26, 2025, though dates are subject to change.

WHO MAY APPLY: 
This recruitment is open to all current King County employees and the general public.

King County Water Taxi System

King County has been operating Water Taxi services since October 2009. In 2019, the Marine Division joined King County Metro to help Metro meet its goals of incorporating multiple modes of transit, including buses, boats, trains, shuttles, accessible services, and rideshare programs.

The Marine Division operates the Water Taxi ferry service on two routes in Puget Sound, both originating at Pier 50 in downtown Seattle: one route to West Seattle and the other to Vashon Island. The Water Taxi provides year-round service 7 days a week, 11 to 17 hours daily. In addition to King County Water taxi service, Kitsap County currently provides passenger-only ferry service to Kingston, Bremerton and Southworth, which all use the King County passenger-only facility in Seattle.

TO APPLY:

Required Application Materials:

• An online employment application with employment history going back at least ten years if you have ten years of employment (or more to include all relevant experience). Be sure to list all job duties, dates of employment, and reasons for leaving. 
• Completed supplemental questions
• A cover letter/letter of interest, which describes:
  1. How you meet or exceed the qualifications posted for this position, and
  2. Your leadership experience, and ability to be the onsite supervisor for a passenger vessel operation, and
  3. How your communication skills will provide the critical link between vessel operations and Division management. 

Note: Please limit your cover letter/letter of interest to no more than two (2) pages. A resume is highly encouraged, but not required. Other uploaded documentation will not be reviewed.

Want to make sure your application materials are as competitive as possible?
We highly recommend visiting the Career Support Services website for tips and examples on how to make your application materials most effective: Workforce Development - King County.

For more information regarding this recruitment, please contact:

Erica Minshull, Talent Advisor for King County Metro Transit

Position Duties

Applying equity and social justice principles is a daily responsibility and a foundational expectation for all King County employees. In this role, you will apply equity and social justice principles that exemplify shared values, behaviors, and practices to all aspects of the work. As a Marine Captain, you will also:

• Prepare the vessel for service and for turnover or shutdown. 
• Be responsible for vessel navigation and maneuvering demonstrating knowledge of the rules of the road, determine course and speed of vessel using knowledge of weather, tides, and currents. 
• Supervise crew on duty to ensure safe, efficient ferry operations.
• Serve as the person-in-charge aboard the vessel, communicate with other vessels, shoreside, law enforcement, emergency services, and division management as needed. 
• Ensure vessel is operated in strict compliance with U. S. Coast Guard and other applicable regulations; render aid to other vessels or individuals in distress in accordance with maritime law.
• Serve as Vessel Security Officer and perform security duties in accordance with regulations; maintain security equipment in good operating condition; conduct safety and security checks.
• Conduct crew training and perform drills as required; under direction of the Port Captain, conduct staff training in passenger safety orientation and other related subjects as required for safe operation.
• Maintain all vessel logs and associated records.
• Ensure the vessel and navigational aids are in good operational condition and well maintained.
• Perform vessel and dock maintenance.
• Adhere to the published service schedule with the goal of maintaining on-time performance.
• Ensure the crew adequately performs housekeeping duties and the vessel is maintained in a sanitary condition.

Minimum Qualifications

To be eligible to apply, you must meet the following minimum requirements:

1. Possess the following credentials:
   • A valid Transportation Workers Identification Credential (TWIC) issued by the Transportation Security Administration (TSA).
   • A valid United States Coast Guard (USCG) Merchant Mariner's Document (MMD) or Merchant Mariner's Credential (MMC) with minimum endorsement of 100 Ton Master License valid upon Inland Waters.
   • A valid Marine Radio Operator Permit (MP) issued by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). 
2. Two (2) or more years of work experience serving in the role of Captain on a high-speed USCG-inspected passenger vessel; or, be a King County Water Taxi employee currently placed in the King County Metro Transit Marine Division Captain’s Eligibility List and having held this status for two (2) or more years; or, some combination thereof totaling two (2) or more years.

The most competitive applicants will also possess these desirable qualifications:

• Experience navigating US Coast Guard-inspected passenger vessel in Pacific Northwest waters.
• Experience operating high speed vessels.
• Certification in Fire Safety Training and Life Saving Training.
• Ability to work effectively with others in a work environment that embraces and encourages diversity in its workforce and where differences are valued.
• Ability to demonstrate behaviors that include fairness, respect, and inclusiveness.
• Ability to respond safely, effectively, and expeditiously during an emergency.
• Effective communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Ability to resolve conflict, solve problems, and listen effectively.
• Skill in establishing and maintaining effective working relationships.
• Knowledge of workload planning and scheduling, with ability to effectively manage competing priorities. 
• Basic computer skills with knowledge of Microsoft Office applications, such as Outlook, Word, Excel, Teams, and computerized work order systems, e.g. EAM.
• Ability to be punctual in order to provide reliable sailings as scheduled for the traveling public.

Other Qualifications

Class Code / Pay Grade

9620100 Marine Captain / Grade 67

Union Membership 

This position is represented by International Organization of Masters, Mates, and Pilots (MM&P).

Work Environment and Location

The work location will be at Pier 50 on the downtown Seattle waterfront. You will be working outdoors on board the Water Taxi passenger vessel, as well as inside the cabin and pilothouse of the vessel, in all weather conditions. The Pier 50 facility is located in Seattle's historic Pioneer Square district, within easy walking distance to popular urban residential neighborhoods like Queen Anne, South Lake Union, Capitol Hill, and near bus lines, Link Light Rail and the Sounder (commuter train) Station.  

Work Schedule
The position is anticipated to be full time, with 35-40 hours scheduled per week. This position is non-exempt from the provisions of the Fair Labor Standards Act and is therefore overtime eligible with prior supervisory approval. Employees must be available and willing to work any shift (including early mornings, evenings, weekends, split shifts, and holidays). This position is not eligible for telework/remote work.

Safety Sensitive

This position is considered safety-sensitive. Applicants for positions defined as safety-sensitive are required to undergo drug testing prior to employment and, subsequent to the commencement of employment, will be subject to random, post-accident, reasonable suspicion, return to duty and follow-up drug and alcohol testing in compliance with Federal DOT and United States Coast Guard (USCG) alcohol and controlled substances testing program protocols.

Selection Process

Applications will be screened to determine whether candidates meet minimum qualifications, and for clarity, completeness, and responsiveness to the application instructions above. Highly competitive applicants may be asked to interview. Formal offers will be finalized after candidates have successfully completed any necessary pre-employment processes, such as drug and alcohol testing, background checks, DOT physicals, and internal record reviews or reference checks.

Forbes recently named King County as one of Washington State's best employers. 

Together, with leadership and our employees, we're changing the way government delivers service and winning national recognition as a model of excellence. Are you ready to make a difference? Come join the team dedicated to serving one of the nation's best places to live, work and play.

Guided by our "True North", we are making King County a welcoming community where every person can thrive. We value diversity, inclusion and belonging in our workplace and workforce. To reach this goal we are committed to workforce equity. Equitable recruiting, support, and retention is how we will obtain the highest quality workforce in our region; a workforce that shares and will help advance our guiding principles--we are one team; we solve problems; we focus on the customer; we drive for results; we are racially just; we respect all people; we lead the way; and we are responsible stewards. We encourage people of all backgrounds and identities to apply, including Native American and people of color, immigrants, refugees, women, LGBTQ+, people living with disabilities, and veterans.

King County is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Employer

No person is unlawfully excluded from employment opportunities based on race, color, religion, national origin, sex (including gender identity, sexual orientation and pregnancy), age, genetic information, disability, veteran status, or other protected class. Our EEO policy applies to all employment actions, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, selection for training, promotion, transfer, demotion, layoff, termination, rates of pay or other forms of compensation.

Need assistance?

Applicants who are unable to apply online should follow the instructions in the Application FAQs at www.KingCounty.gov. If you have any questions related to this job posting, including needing the announcement in an alternative language format, or regarding accommodation requests for the application or assessment process, please contact the recruiter listed for this job announcement.