Pennies for their thoughts

Thursday the provincial budget committee got a first hand look at the crisis in the local fishing industry and the impact that EI regulations have had on those that work in it.

Thirty members of UFAWU dropped in (unexpectedly) on the proceedings, to bring the committee members up to speed on the issue that has become more desperate with the absence of a pink salmon run this year and other unexpected problems with the fishery.

Using a most effective strategy of rattling salmon cans with pennies in them, the protestors highlighted the situation that they currently find themselves in. They drew attention to a system which puts them under a current Employment Insurance program which puts Prince Rupert into the same category as the job rich Peace River region, despite rather disparate employment rates.

The clever bit of message sending highlighted the lack of communication between the Northwest and Victoria, as a few of the committee members sought out many of the protestors for further details.

The Daily News covered the protest in its Friday edition, which found some traction in the Lower Mainland in the pages of the Vancouver Sun.

WORKERS ENSURE EI ISSUE IS HEARD
By Leanne Ritchie
The Daily News
Friday, October 6, 2006
Page Three

The province’s budget committee was visibly rattled yesterday after 30 members of the United Fishermen and Allied Workers’ Union showed up shaking pennies in cans to protest about how little money they will have to live off of this winter following the failure of the pink salmon runs.

Joy Thorkelson, northern representative for the United Fishermen and Allied Workers’ Union (UFAWU) explained they were rattling the cans in order to give the committee some idea of what people will have to live off this winter after most of the 1,200 shoreworkers failed to get enough hours of work to qualify for Employment Insurance (EI) and now will be forced onto welfare.

“Herring failed, pink salmon failed and crabs failed this year,” she said. “That’s three huge failures. People are being driven onto welfare and they can’t live off welfare.”

Shoreworkers are in a tough spot because not only have they had less work this summer- people with 30 years seniority have only gotten 300 hours compared to more than 1,500 in previous years- but changes to fishing regulations by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans means they won’t have the opportunity for winter work in the way they have in the past.

All this is lumped in with the fact that Prince Rupert is lumped into an assessment area that includes Prince George and Fort St. John when it comes to determining the number of hours necessary to qualify for E. I. Because of the booming economies in those two cities, the time needed to qualify for EI has increased by 120 hours.

“People want to stay here, live here, retire here,” said Conrad Lewis, UFAWU executive. “EI rules seem to persecute people for that.”

Each of the 30 UFAWU members present stood up before the committee, introduced themselves, gave their seniority ranking and talked about how few hours they had received this year.

The failure of federal government to recognize and address the crisis seemed to shake committee members.

Have you been able to talk to your Member of Parliament? I agree that those are totally different areas,” said committee Blair Lekstrom after hearing about the EI rules.

Lekstrom and a number of committee members actually left the hearing table following the presentation to get more details about the crisis.

The union asked the committee to pressure the federal government to respond to the EI issue. They also asked it to raise welfare rates to a reasonable standard so those on welfare wouldn’t be forced into soup kitchens and consider employment programs that will allow shoreworkers to stay in the community and work this winter.”

They made it clear, they would prefer to work and they want to work here/

“If we take shoreworkers out of the industry and move them elsewhere where their skills aren’t appreciated you will de0skill our industry and companies will leave,” said Thorkelson.