The Proud History of BC Ferry Services Inc.

[Scott]

Going along with our high hopes that BC Ferries might actually do something special with the Queen of Tsawwassen to celebrate their 50th anniversary... something to dampen our spirits.

BC Ferry Services Inc. doesn't appear to care too much about their past. They've only updated the "history" part of their website once since becoming a new corporation. Here's the last entry in their "milestones" section:

April 2, 2003 - The British Columbia Ferry Corporation is officially relaunched as a new, independent commercial company and renamed British Columbia Ferry Services Inc. The Dogwood emblem, which had not changed in 25 years, is replaced with a stylized wave representing white ships on blue seas.

www.bcferries.bc.ca/corporate/history/milestones.html

Scroll to the top of the page and you'll find that they DID update their logo, but they still have the same archival photo of the Spirit of British Columbia in red and blue:) Seriously, I don't think this part of the website has changed one bit since they took over except for a few new paragraphs telling us how they replaced the dogwood with mating slugs.

[Hardy]

Ah yes, but how much revenue does the website DIRECTLY generate?

It is much much more important to have a service notice about a vessel being 15 minutes behind schedule than to have a state of the art website that is correct and up to date.

Why pay someone $45/hr to be in communications, when you could hire someone to write code at a flat contract rate which will work out to about $28-30/hr. Tell me, where is the financial wastage in that!!??

[nolonger]

This is what saddens us as employees the most. There was a lot of pride in the old dogwood. It was on our uniforms, our stationary and our ships. The once proud "Dogwood Fleet" which owned an impeccable safety record and was something that British Columbians felt was theirs, has been reduced to a 3rd world outfit run by a bunch of overpaid Corporate Fatheads who think that the bottom line is all that matters. We are disiplined if a dogwood appears on anything we wear. Safety comes a distant second to dollars and "on time performance", and well quite frankly, I think most users have a dislike of the staff and crews. The only history BCFS Inc has is one full of labour unrest, and major incidents like the fire on the Surrey, the Oak Bay grounding and of course The North. Over and out!

Do I sound like the guy in the Coors commercial on the top balcony of the cabin while all his friends are partying down below talking about the dream that became a Coors Light?

[Hardy]

notmuchlonger said:

This is what saddens us as employees the most. There was a lot of pride in the old dogwood. It was on our uniforms, our stationary and our ships. The once proud "Dogwood Fleet" which owned an impeccable safety record and was something that British Columbians felt was theirs, has been reduced to a 3rd world outfit run by a bunch of overpaid Corporate Fatheads who think that the bottom line is all that matters. We are disiplined if a dogwood appears on anything we wear. Safety comes a distant second to dollars and "on time performance", and well quite frankly, I think most users have a dislike of the staff and crews. The only history BCFS Inc has is one full of labour unrest, and major incidents like the fire on the Surrey, the Oak Bay grounding and of course The North. Over and out!

Do I sound like the guy in the Coors commercial on the top balcony of the cabin while all his friends are partying down below talking about the dream that became a Coors Light?

You sound bitter and jaded just like me. I am not a BCFS employee, but I work at a company that does similar things to undermine the "pride in ownership" concept. I know that the loss of the dogwood was a major blow to all the long serving employees, but, looking at it, the lack of respect and not listening to the employees appears to have been far more demoralizing. Once you are made to feel like only a number, you begin to have a Number attitude too ....

I for one still try to take pride in each and every thing that I do -- if it is worth doing, it is worth doing right, or don't do it at all! But sometimes when the company is dumping on your or undermining your efforts, the "frack it, I'm just putting in my time" attitude surfaces.

[NMcKay]

Albion had the same issues when it moved from MOTH:MB to FRMT

[WettCoast]

Sorry John but I have to take issue with your title The Proud History of BC Ferry Services Inc. BCFS Inc has no proud history - maybe a sorry one, but certainly not proud.

Their predecessor companies, however, had a proud history which BCFS's have done their level best to bury. It really is a shame.

Hopefully, one of these days the damage will be undone.

[nolonger]

hardy said:

notmuchlonger said:

This is what saddens us as employees the most. There was a lot of pride in the old dogwood. It was on our uniforms, our stationary and our ships. The once proud "Dogwood Fleet" which owned an impeccable safety record and was something that British Columbians felt was theirs, has been reduced to a 3rd world outfit run by a bunch of overpaid Corporate Fatheads who think that the bottom line is all that matters. We are disiplined if a dogwood appears on anything we wear. Safety comes a distant second to dollars and "on time performance", and well quite frankly, I think most users have a dislike of the staff and crews. The only history BCFS Inc has is one full of labour unrest, and major incidents like the fire on the Surrey, the Oak Bay grounding and of course The North. Over and out!

Do I sound like the guy in the Coors commercial on the top balcony of the cabin while all his friends are partying down below talking about the dream that became a Coors Light?

You sound bitter and jaded just like me. I am not a BCFS employee, but I work at a company that does similar things to undermine the "pride in ownership" concept. I know that the loss of the dogwood was a major blow to all the long serving employees, but, looking at it, the lack of respect and not listening to the employees appears to have been far more demoralizing. Once you are made to feel like only a number, you begin to have a Number attitude too ....

I for one still try to take pride in each and every thing that I do -- if it is worth doing, it is worth doing right, or don't do it at all! But sometimes when the company is dumping on your or undermining your efforts, the "frack it, I'm just putting in my time" attitude surfaces.

Not really bitter. Or jaded. I still, after 36 years try to perform my duties in a professional manner. I try to remeber that passengers are still people trying to get to their destination and that travel is often stressful. But the new BCFS is not my BC Ferries. I guess I just don't fit in anymore. Retirement is close and looking good!

[Curtis]

Not much of a history up to 2003, though I guess you can't blame them putting up the Oak Bay Crash or The QotN Sinking. Though it would br nice if they would update it with things like Purchasing the John Atlantic Burr and the Sonia. It is intresting reading it though

[Political Incorrectness]

There is no proud history of BCFS.

As I have outlined in my thread here this outlines the "not so proud" history of the semi-privatized BCFS.

[BrianWilliams]

I am less pessimistic than most of the posters in this thread.

In 50 years, BCF has grown from an improvised service to a truly great fleet of efficient boats on a difficult coast.

BCF keeps schedules in all weather -as well as any service anywhere- with superior safety. Our White Fleet is doing the job of serving our coast, uniting our coast and doing that effectively.

Queen Of The North's loss was terrible: a surprise that blackened BCF's reputation. And we lost confidence with loading accidents at Departure Bay and downtown Nanaimo.

But: we should be proud of BC Ferries after 50 years. The Spirits are 2,000-passenger liners; fast, elegant ships that you can ride for 20 bucks on foot.

Humble Queen of Nanaimo still bumbles through the Gulf Islands, providing an eagle/whale watching cruise in any season that rivals a trip to Alaska.

BCF's truly hard workers are on the obscure minor routes: Skidegate, Sointula, Thetis Island and Whaletown.

Rain, fog, snow or howling gale; BCF is there. The kids get to school, groceries and fuel arrive.