EU social partners – the European Transport Workers’ Federation (ETF) and EU fishermen’s representative body Europêche – have called on the European Commission to base its decisions impacting the fisheries sector only after properly assessing the socio-economic consequences, warning that measures taken in Brussels to address gaps in the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) could seriously impact fish workers’ livelihoods.
EU Commissioner for Environment, Oceans and Fisheries Virginijus Sinkevičius recently attended the plenary of the European Social Dialogue Committee for sea fisheries, with ETF and Europêche reporting there had been “constructive dialogue” about the social dimension of the CFP.
Sinkevičius was also told that despite more and more stocks being fished at sustainable levels, more of the EU fleet and its fishers are disappearing year-after-year.
The social partners said that during the meeting, the commissioner reiterated his commitment to making fisheries sustainable in Europe, zero tolerance towards IUU fishing, tackling pollution, preserving biodiversity and also the profitability of the fisheries sector.
He also stressed that the intention of the Commission is not to revise the CFP but to implement policies better for the sake of stability and predictability for the sector.
“We sent a clear message to the Commissioner,” ETF Fisheries Section President Juan Manuel Trujillo said.
“We are 100% in favour of sustainable fisheries, and we support the Commission in its zero tolerance against illegal fishing. However, the CFP must be based on three pillars – environmental, social, and economic sustainability – that should be treated on an equal footing. That is why the Commission should always do a thoughtful and proper socio-economic impact assessment before taking any preservation measure and, if necessary, shape the policies taking into account the outcome of such potential negative socio-economic consequences.”
Trujillo continued, “What we observe is that the sector and the workers are dramatically impacted by the decisions taken by the Commission disproportionately closing areas to fishing, proposing to include perfectly regulated species in CITES and proposing fishing activity reductions in areas like the Mediterranean to the point that is sentencing the sector to disappear. The voice of fishermen is not sufficiently heard.”
Europêche spokesperson for social affairs Ment van der Zwan added, “The EU must clearly reduce its dependency on imported energy and food alike. For that reason, it should cherish its fishers and protect their lives and livelihood. There is a lot to gain in that respect.
“The Commission often talks about the protection of fish but little about the protection of fishers. In fact, the CFP is increasingly linked to environmental legislation and poorly linked to social and safety objectives. To attract new generations to our sector, we need the EU to adopt fisheries policies that provide legal security and stability and enhance the competitiveness of fisheries enterprises. Until we reach that point, we will be unable to make this job attractive.”
