How crew share math actually works.
A plain-English explanation for captains, crew, and CPAs.
A. What is gross stock?
Gross stock is the total dollar amount your vessel earned on a trip before anything is subtracted. If the F/V Naknek Queen lands 122,400 lb of Bristol Bay sockeye at $1.74/lb, gross stock is $213,400. That number comes straight off the fish ticket issued by the processor and is the foundation of every settlement.
Every other number on the settlement sheet - vessel share, crew pool, individual gross pay - is derived from gross stock. Getting it wrong by even a few cents per pound cascades into hundreds of dollars of error per crew member.
B. How the vessel share works
Before the crew gets paid, the vessel takes its share - typically 50% in Bristol Bay, but anywhere from 40% to 70% depending on fishery and boat ownership. The vessel share covers fuel, gear, insurance, moorage, and the captain's return on capital.
On a $213,400 trip with $8,200 in shared expenses (fuel and ice paid off the top), net stock is $205,200. The vessel takes 50% - $102,600 - and the remaining $102,600 becomes the crew pool.
C. How the crew pool gets divided
Crew members are paid in share units, not flat amounts. A full share is 1.0. An experienced engineer might get 1.5. A greenhorn on their first season is often 0.75. Add up everyone's share units to get the total.
On the Naknek Queen, the four crew add up to 4.25 share units. Divide the $102,600 crew pool by 4.25 and you get $24,141.18 per share unit. Pete (1.0) earns that. Tom (1.5) earns $36,212. Jesse (0.75) earns $18,106.
D. What goes on the settlement sheet
A settlement sheet is the legal record of how the trip was divided. It must include: vessel name and trip dates, the fish ticket reference, gross stock, every expense taken off the top, the vessel share percentage, every crew member's share units and gross pay, any advances or deductions, and a signature line for each crew member.
Crew members keep their copy to prove income at tax time, apply for loans, or settle disputes. The captain keeps the master copy for IRS records and CPA review.
E. 1099 vs W-2: which applies to your crew?
Most commercial fishing crew are classified as 1099 independent contractors under the IRS "fishing boat operator" rule (IRC §3121(b)(20)). This applies when the crew is paid a share of the catch, the vessel typically has fewer than 10 crew, and the crew member receives no cash wages other than nominal amounts.
If you pay an hourly wage, salary, or a flat per-day rate, that crew member is a W-2 employee - and you owe payroll tax, workers' comp, and withholding. MarineBookkeeper handles both classifications and prints the correct designation on each settlement sheet.