Good morning, I represent the plant workers that process snow crab.
Our situation is as follows. Since 2000, plant workers have not been getting enough hours and weeks of work in the plant. They have no choice but to turn to projects developed by the Quebec government, to leave the plants to go back to school, to completely change their type of employment or to leave the region altogether. We are having trouble getting enough hours and weeks of work to qualify for employment insurance, because you need 420 hours and 14 weeks, which is practically impossible to have every year. In order to be eligible for projects developed by the government, you must have worked four 40-hour weeks at the plant since 2003. People who did not work four 40-hour weeks in the plant in 2003 are left to fend for themselves; they are not considered to be plant workers. They have not been plant workers since 2004.
In 2005, there were 300 of us working at Fruits de mer Gascons Ltée. Since it closed, 120 people have secured a job at Unipêche M.D.M. Ltée in Paspébiac. Today, only 75 former employees of Fruits de mer Gascons Ltée are working. There have been huge job losses, and people have either relocated or left the region altogether.
This year, with a 63% reduction in quotas, the boats have gone to other plants. Unipêche M.D.M. Ltée has had to diversify into other species, such as lobster and whelk, so that people are able to work the mandatory four 40-hour weeks. If there is a quota cut next year, all these people are likely to be in real trouble.
We just wanted to describe the actual context. These days, the average plant worker is between 45 and 60 years of age. There are not many people applying to work in the plants. The fact is that few people are interested in working for only four weeks.
That is what I wanted to say.