Premier intervening in snow crab negotiations, says fishermen's union

With the snow crab fishery stalled over this season's low price, Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Andrew Furey is intervening in negotiations between harvesters and producers,according to the province's largest fishermen's union.

The Fish, Food & Allied Workerssaid late Tuesday that talks between the union and the Association of Seafood Producers had been ongoing all day and were expected to continue into the evening.

"The premier's intervention today signals the extent of the current crisis and the need for action to find an agreeable solution for harvesters," said a press release from the union Tuesday afternoon.

Meanwhile, the mayor of La Scie a small town on Newfoundland's Baie Verte Peninsula says the community is divided over some snow crab fishermen's decision to defythe harvesters' union and head out on the water.

Mayor Marlene Regular said Tuesday things are tense, with fishermen wanting to earn money for their families but also wanting to keep their boats tied up in protest of the $2.20 catch price.

"We've got some that want to get up and go. They want to get up in the morning, they want to go to work," she said. "We got more that want to stand with their fellow fishermen, which is to be expected, but we don't know their situation. Like, you can look at someone and say, 'Oh, they're well-to-do. They don't mind having to stay in.' But there's other people, you don't know their situation, when they look at their kids. What do you do? Do I look at my kids, or do I look at my fellow fishermen, right? It's a big choice."

It's difficult to see people on opposite sides of the issue, she said.

"It's almost like one against the other, and those people known each other right on up through their lives. It makes it hard feelings, in some cases," she said. She's worked with fishermen in the past, she said, as a grader determining the quality of a fishermen's catch.

"They're the best that you can come across, they're family-oriented, right? Everybody knows everybody, and it makes it hard when you see one talking about the other one and stuff like that. Should never be."

The first break in the Fish, Food & Allied Worker's union decision to tie up the boats came on the weekend, when skipper Jamie Mouland posted on Facebook that he was heading out on the water to support his family and his crew. Mouland's boat returned to the dock in La Scie on Tuesday but declined an interview and wouldn't say if he'd caught any crab only that there was no crab on board.

Nearby the wharf on Tuesday, fisherman Justin Giles said he supported Mouland's decision, and said the reality of the situation will hit home for more harvesters when their employment insurance starts to run out.

"It's time to get stuff on the go, you know? I know it's $2.20 a pound, it's not a lot of money, but people gotta make a living," he said. "That's my opinion on it. Few dollars is better than no dollars, at the end of the day."

He said fishermen did their best to fight for a better price but they're no further ahead than they were when the price was set.

"If the market goes up, we should get our share of whatever it would be," he said. His frustration level is "unreal," he said.

"It's time to go, right? You're losing out on other fisheries besides crab turbot, shrimp, stuff like that, right? Time is just slipping by."

Mood is dismal, says Salvation Army major

Maj. Kay Barnes of the Salvation Army in La Sciesays the mood in town is "dismal."

"People are wondering what's going to happen for their livelihood, not only for now the summer months, but come the winter, how they're going to survive."

Barnes says the church is doing its best to support residents in the uncertainty.

"This community is a great community. I love being a part of this community," she said. "I love being out in the community, and it doesn't matter if they're Salvation Army or what denomination they are I am there to be a part of this community and to be there for them."

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