The 48 year-old fisherman — who has always been dependent on the sea to make a living — is used to the uncertainty of his craft. And with the price of lobsters plummeting, he’s prepared for another difficult season.
But what is most worrisome to French and other fishermen — who depend on Employment Insurance to supplement their incomes during the off-season — are sweeping changes to the program that may spell an end to their benefits.
The new program — announced by the Conservative government last Thursday and expected to take effect next year — zeroes in on repeat users and could force them to take lower-paying jobs and commute up to an hour to find employment. The consequences could prove taxing for a province dependant on the fishing, forestry and tourism sectors, which are all reliant on seasonal workers.
“This is what we do,” said French, whose father and grandfather fished the same waters. “There’s nothing more challenging than catching lobsters. It’s not just a job, it’s a way of life. Does the government want us all to move to Alberta to work?”
The changes are expected to affect the 325 boat captains who fish up the Fundy coastline along with hundreds of others around New Brunswick — not to mention their helpers. The main species caught here are scallop in January and February and lobster, which is fished from November to Christmas and May and June.
The herring fishery, which is caught between April and October, is also vital to the region.
For French, he’ll keep fishing but it will probably mean he’ll have to continue without any help.
For his hired hand, Wade Randall, the future looks much more dire.
“I’ll lose my house and vehicle to start with,” he said.
Maria Recchia, executive director of the Fundy North Fishermen’s Association, which represents the region, said the changes to the EI program will be devastating to the province’s fishing industry.
“Most of these workers depend on EI for the two or three months of downtime,” she said. “What happens if they, especially the younger people, can’t find temporary employment and are forced to leave the province to find full-time work? There will be a shortage of fisherman to keep the industry going in the future.”
The federal government says the crackdown is meant to push unemployed Canadians off the insurance rolls and will help make sure they’re not passing up local job opportunities.
In announcing the changes, Human Resources Minister Diane Finley said that “what we want to do is make sure that the McDonald’s of the world aren’t having to bring in temporary foreign workers to do jobs that Canadians who are on EI have the skills to do.”
But fishermen say the changes are unfair to them and their industry.
Sixty-two-year-old old boat owner Norman Ferris has been fishing out of this wharf since 1988 and is also reliant on Employment Insurance during the off-season.
Fishing both lobster and scallop from his vessel, he also depends on three helpers. He said he’s already talked to his workers and said he’s gotten no guarantees that they’ll be on board come next season.
He’s already contemplating fishing alone next year.
“What bothers me the most is the uncertainty of what the bureaucrats are going to do to me,” he said.
“I think they want to get rid of small enterprise. It’s a shame, this country was built on small enterprise.”
Original Article
Source: the star
Author: Andrew Rankin
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