The FFAW is slamming the door on any out-of-province crab ready to land in the province.
In a release late Sunday night, the FFAW didn’t hold back when claiming that fish harvesters are mobilizing around the province to block out-of-province crab from landing in Newfoundland and Labrador for processing.
Harvesters and plant workers are calling on the provincial government to step in and prohibit this while they work to ensure their safety in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.
They say to date the government has taken no action.
A petition posted Saturday night calling on the provincial government to prohibit bringing in outside crab for processing has garnered over 2,000 signatures in the last 24 hours.
Fish harvesters are in Port Aux Basques this evening blocking out-of-province vessels from landing crab in NL, asking them to turn back. Learn more & sign the petition: https://t.co/ImUDs2qqHi #nlpoli pic.twitter.com/B7hYEcdJfH
— FFAW-Unifor (@FFAW_Unifor) April 26, 2020
The union had strong words for processing companies, stating that rather than negotiating a fair price for Newfoundland and Labrador harvesters or responding to the concerns of workers, “processing companies have pocketed subsidies from the federal government and are trucking in crab from outside the province in an attempt to pressure NL plant workers back to work.”
The FFAW says significant concerns still surround safety in plants as companies have yet to confirm if proper PPE will be available in plants.
Workers will not stand for these actions by the processing companies, says the union, and they will block any attempts to bring in outside crab for processing.
Fish harvesters are mobilizing around the province to block out-of-province crab from landing in Newfoundland and Labrador for processing. READ MORE: https://t.co/pmm1ilCpha @NTVNewsNL @VOCMNEWS @CBCNL @TheBroadcastCBC @StJohnsTelegram
— FFAW-Unifor (@FFAW_Unifor) April 27, 2020
