Tag Archives: Alfred Fitzpatrick

‘On pins and needles’ – NL fish harvesters, processors keeping an eye on China as coronavirus crisis continues

COVID-19, also commonly referred to as the coronavirus, is having a significant economic impact on China, a country whose importance continues to grow as a destination for seafood from this province. “Everybody’s on pins and needles,” Garnish-based harvester Alfred Fitzpatrick told SaltWire Network recently. The crab season along the province’s south coast usually opens up in early April, followed a couple weeks later by lobster. That’s not far off, and with talk in recent days of COVID-19 potentially becoming a pandemic, it looks as if the economic consequences will continue, as well. “Oh, my God, yes,” Fitzpatrick responded when asked if the COVID-19 crisis was inspiring conversation on the province’s wharves. “Like I said, everybody is worried. With the cost of everything going up and the new requirements and everything everybody got to do, I mean, it’s all money, and if you don’t make it, you can’t spend it, hey,” he said. >click to read< 17:40

N.L. crab fishers taken aback by DFO’s latest details on crab data

Alfred Fitzpatrick says it seems the opinions of fish harvesters aren’t carrying much weight with the science branch of the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) as of late. “We always thought we had a pretty good relationship with DFO Science – when it come to crab anyways, cod is another story,” said the Garnish-based fishermen, who represents harvesters from the Burin Peninsula in crab fishing areas 10 and 11 on the Fish, Food and Allied Workers (FFAW-Unifor) union’s inshore council. “It seems like now it’s changing. It’s not a good working relationship, not as good anyway, I’ll say.” >click to read<16:10

FFAW seeking clarification on EI extension for fishery – Fish harvester wants answers

President Keith Sullivan says his impression was that all fishery workers would be covered by the extension that was announced earlier this week, but now he’s hearing concern that plant workers are covered but fish harvesters are not. Alfred Fitzpatrick is an inshore fisherman out of Garnish on the Burin Peninsula. He says that the extra five weeks of EI would greatly benefit fish harvesters. He questioned an FFAW decision to issue a press release about the EI victory when doubts still remain about whether harvesters will qualify as well. “There’s a good news story for some of the membership but not all. And some of the most vulnerable are being left behind again. I don’t like it,” said Fitzpatrick, who sits on the FFAW’s inshore council. >click to read<21:31