Crew shortage forces fish firms to eye foreign labour

A shortage of qualified crews means Nelson inshore fishing operators are regularly putting to sea short-staffed and some are considering recruiting foreigners to plug the gap.

Crew shortages were highlighted last week in a Maritime Safety Authority report on the grounding of a fishing boat crewed by Nelson skipper Dennis Wells.

Two Nelson-based companies are now crewing factory trawlers with Filipinos because of labour shortages.

Pursuit Fishing director Mark Roach said labour shortages had been hurting smaller operators like himself for about two years.

He said his company, which operates two mid-range trawlers and employs 11 crew, had been through 31 employees for just four deckhand positions in the past year alone.

Finding competent and committed crew was becoming increasingly difficult, with many simply quitting after their first trip.

Mr Roach said reasons included lower pay rates linked to declining fish catches, low unemployment, industry pessimism because of an economic downturn, and a general decline in young people's work ethics.

"I think it's a sign of the times. There just doesn't seem to be anybody who wants to go and do it."

A deckhand advertisement placed three weeks ago had attracted just two applicants, with the successful one quitting after a few days.

Mr Roach said that on some occasions, trips had been cancelled because of crew shortages, resulting in financial losses for the company.

Most Nelson inshore operators were in a similar position, and some were now considering recruiting foreigners, Mr Roach said.

Port Nelson Fishermen's Association president Darren Guard agreed that crew recruitment and retention were major problems.

He knew of several inshore operators who had inquired about the recruitment process for foreign fishing crews.

- NZPA