" Massive strike pits African fishers against ‘superprofitable’ EU firms" 14 June 2023

Not only were they protesting over poor pay and working conditions in one of the world’s most dangerous jobs, they also said the agreements from the EU aren’t worth the paper they’re printed on. They accused the EU fleet of unsustainable practices, and urged the EU commission to listen to NGOs and investigate. Some fishers from Senegal and Ivory Coast employed on French and Spanish-owned vessels are paid as little as $219 (£174) a month, or $54 (£42) a week, according to the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF), which backed the strike. Their wages, far less than the monthly minimum of $658 (£522) set by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), contravene longstanding agreements between the EU commission and African countries to promote sustainable fishing and employment, unions said. [...] Opagac, a Spanish organisation representing producers of frozen tuna, denied claims crew are paid less than the ILO minimum or that any breach of fisheries agreements, known as sustainable fisheries partnership agreements (SFPA), had taken place. [...] A letter to Ivory Coast’s director general for maritime affairs, sent by a lawyer for the fishers and UMPCI and SYMAPECI unions for the Ivory Coast fishers, said the strike was lifted after a proposal to pay intermediate monthly salaries equivalent to £390 to the crew, plus bonuses. Dated 8 June, the letter said that some fishers had been arrested and imprisoned, and called for their release. A settlement needed to be agreed within 15 days, to “calm tensions”, it said. [...]

Julio Morón, managing director of Opagac, which represents Albacora, Nicra and Petusa, three Spanish companies owning vessels operating under SFPA sustainable agreements, said the EU tuna fleet “strictly complies with national and international legislation, and all sailors earn more than the ILO minimum wage.” He denied accusations of non-compliance with fisheries agreements. He added: “A period of six months of negotiation has been opened between African employers and unions that we hope can be resolved in a positive way for all.” The ITF union has submitted the fishers’ wider concerns to a body responsible for a review of the SFPA between the EU and Ivory Coast in 2024, with the hope they can be addressed by French and Spanish vessels before the signing of any agreement.