Migrant workers from Odisha and West Bengal are slowly dislodging their Tamil counterparts as a predominant workforce in fishing boats in the district.
A perceptible indication of this change has emerged from coastal belts like Vypeen and Munambam where boat owners have engaged more Oriya and Bengali workers this post-trawl ban season.
Gireesh, a Munambam-based boat owner, has said that out of an average 10 to 13 strong workforce in a fishing boat, three to five are migrant workers.
“But this does not make any difference in the outlay towards wage, as the revenue is shared between the owners and workers in the ratio of 60:40. The distribution of that share among workers depends on the quantum of work and the extent of expertise involved,” he said.
Pushkaran, another boat owner, said that while the technical crew of the boat are mostly local, the migrant workers are mostly restricted to manual work on the decks besides sorting and icing the catch. “We are in the process of collecting their identity cards as the boat owners association has taken a firm decision to employ migrants only after ensuring their credentials. Their presence is not limited to fishing boats, as they dominate the workforce in 50-odd ice plants along Munambam and Pallikkara,” he said.
Charles George, secretary, Trade Union Centre of India (TUCI), said that the drop in the number of workers from Tamil areas like Colachel and Marthandam has paid way for the entry of other migrants.
The traditional sea faring community members from Tamil Nadu proficient in deep sea fishing now prefer to venture out on their own boats and their number in the local boats would only dwindle in the coming years. They own about 600 boats in the State and have share in numerous others, he said.
“On the other hand inconsistency in job opportunities and income has been driving away locals from taking up work in fishing boats. For instance, fishing boat workers have job for only seven days in a month during the first five months of the year,” Mr. George said.
