Photo: Revista Puerto/FIS

Paralyzed Shrimper Trawl Fleets Trigger Unease Among Plant Workers Amidst Prolonged Labor Dispute

ARGENTINA
Thursday, May 15, 2025, 00:10 (GMT + 9)

As freezer trawlers stand firm on delaying the season until the maritime union (SOMU) accepts a 30% wage reduction, and fresh fish trawlers also halt operations, processing plant workers fear a 'critical winter' without raw material, reports Nelson Saldivia for Revista Puerto.

The protracted conflict between the freezer trawler fleet and the maritime union 'Sindicato de Obreros Maritimos Unidos' (SOMU) over a proposed 30% reduction in production reference values is generating a climate of increasing uncertainty within the fishing industry. With May effectively lost due to these ongoing disagreements and the mandatory conciliation ordered by the Labor Secretariat under the National Ministry of Human Capital, the resumption of fishing activity in national waters remains stalled.

Adding to the complexity, the Federal Fisheries Council is scheduled to determine the date for a exploratory survey within the Permanent Closed Area for Juvenile Hake. This survey aims to gather biological data crucial for setting the opening date of the Pleoticus muelleri shrimp fishery within its jurisdiction.

However, the delays are not limited to the freezer fleet. The 'high-seas fresh fish trawler fleet,' where five companies have jointly announced their refusal to commence fishing operations in national waters once authorized, is causing significant worry and unease among onshore processing plant workers.

The lack of a guaranteed supply of raw material inevitably means that processing plants will have no fish to process. Consequently, 'temporary' and 'seasonal' workers face the grim prospect of not being called in for work in May, a stark departure from previous years. At the current pace of the dispute, their employment prospects for June and July also appear bleak.

Meanwhile, 'permanent plant employees' will receive their minimum guaranteed salaries or, at best, engage in limited tasks related to the reprocessing of any unsold frozen shrimp remaining in the plants.

Photo: Revista Puerto

After several weeks, there are no clear indications that the national waters fishing season will materialize, given SOMU's unwavering stance against any wage reduction negotiations.

Against this backdrop, concern and uncertainty are escalating among workers tied to the processing plants, who are viewing the prolonged delays with extreme alarm due to the impending lack of work.

Plant workers have sought explanations from the leadership of the Food Industry Workers' Union (STIA Chubut), but have reportedly received no assurances. Simultaneously, their union leaders, typically vocal, have maintained a conspicuous and unsettling silence throughout this period, as reported by Nelson Saldivia for Revista Puerto.

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