labor will increase the cost of his fillets 

 by 2.5 to li.O cents per pound. ,^2/ a con- 

 dition of labor surplus both in and out of 

 the fishery coupled with a situation where 

 there are few buyers, would seem to put the 

 trawler owner in a formidable position to 

 bargain over wages, lays, layovers, and 

 general working conditions. If he, also, 

 paid a labor rate comparable to or better 

 than that in other industries, this would 

 seem to enable him to exercise discretion 

 in hiring fishermen. 



The limits of this study do not permit 

 a definitive answer to the question of how 

 strong is the bargaining power of the Cana- 

 dian trawler oimar. Ownership of large 

 trawlers is highly concentrated. In addi- 

 tion, new trawler crewmen can be recruited 

 from a larger fishing labor force than is 

 available to a New England owner. Further- 

 more, as will be developed later, there are 

 legal barriers to the unionization of crew- 

 men in Canada. 



A recent study by the Royal Commission 

 on Price Spreads of Food Products implies 

 very forcefully that the bargaining over 

 prices is one-sided in favor of the buyers. 



"....we have noted conditions and de- 

 velopments on the fish buying side of the 

 industry, affecting the spread (of prices) 

 which give cause for concern. The behav- 

 iour of prices at both the primary level 

 and for fishery products sold in the domes - 

 tic market indicates some measure of con- 

 trol maintained in past through ease in 

 managing the relatively small volume throigh 

 the narrow domestic marketing channels. 



"If it appeared that effective compe- 

 tition in pricing could be achieved, our 

 desire would be to recommend action appro- 

 priate to this end. 



'".iTe have noted the perishable nature of 

 the products of the fisheries, which reduces 

 the bargaining position of the primarj'- pro- 

 ducer. We have smphasized the problems which, 

 in the fisheries, result from the relatively 

 limited domestic disappearance of fishery 

 products. We have called attention to the 



high degree of concentration and vertical 

 integration in the marketing of fish prod- 

 ucts. These factors, and the view we have 

 gained of the position of the fisherman, 

 lead us to conclude that the primary pro- 

 ducers jn fisheries should be given the... 

 opportunity to organize for the purpose of 

 participating in the determination of the 

 price received for his product ttirough 

 negotiation with the buyers." 53/ 



There are, of course, barriers to ex- 

 ploitation. One is the absence of any sur- 

 plus of experienced trawler crewmen. The 

 inexperienced iiishore fishermen cannot, 

 without training, acquire the skill needed 

 for trawler employment. There is indeed a 

 Mortage of masters and engineers, and 

 these officers are able to bargain vigor- 

 ously and to obtain special employment 

 premiums . 



The other major barrier to exploita- 

 tion rests on the alternative employment 

 opportunities afforded by the growing num- 

 ber of subsidized long-liners and draggers. 

 These are particularly attractive when they 

 permit ownership shares and the fisherman 

 becomes a true co -adventurer. 



On balance, the Canadian trawler owner 

 is in a more advantageous position with 

 respect to his labor force than is his New 

 England competitor. A job as a fisherman 

 in the Atlantic Provinces while not one with 

 social prestige, does not rank as low on the 

 scale of desirable occupations as it does 

 in New England. Earnings of trawler crew- 

 men in the Atlantic Provinces, while low in 

 relation to those on New England vessels, 

 do compare favorably with those in the in- 

 shore fishery, and are showing long-term 

 upward trends. Fishing for a living has 

 relatively better monetary as well as 

 social attractions in the Atlantic Provinces 

 than it does in New England where earnings 

 are not generally high enough to compensate 

 for the rigors of vessel life. 



While there is no indication that 

 there is any over-abundance of trawler 

 crewmen, there is a backlog of potential 

 deep-sea crewmen in the Atlantic Provinces 



52/ Fillet yields are 25 to 1;0 percent of the raw fish poundage. 

 ^/ Report of the Royal Commission on Price Spreads of Food Products , Vol. I, 

 Queen's Printer and Controller of Stationery. Ottawa, September, 1959. p. 76. 



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