Decommissioning neglects deckhands

“A programme of retraining may be fine for a fisherman of a certain age but to propose retraining to a man who has given perhaps 20 years of loyal service to a vessel owner would be an insult to his dignity at this stage of his life” - Joey Murrin

Retired fishing industry leader and member of the Cawley Review Group Joey Murrin has voiced his concern that the recently announced Decommissioning Scheme makes no allowance for the many fishermen who will be left unemployed and uncompensated.

In a statement to The Irish SKipper, Mr Murrin says that while decommissioning may relieve some financial pressure for many skipper/owners and allow them to walk away debt free, it will do nothing to help deckhands who have given the best part of their working lives at sea. “As members of the Government’s appointed Review Group to formulate a strategy for restructing the Irish fishing industry, Dr Noel Cawley, Ruan O’Bric and myself gave much time, thought and sympathy to this particular issue but could find no enabling mechanism (such as a redundancy payment) which would allow crews of decommissioned vessels direct financial compensation for their retirement,” Mr Murrin said.

Joey Murrin is in no doubt that the legal decision taken many years ago which defined deckhands as ‘self employed’ people is centrally to blame for many fishermen having to now walk away empty handed. “This was a miscarraige of justice. After this decision was taken, I could never understand how a self employed person could legally be sacked if he failed to turn up for work.” Mr Murrin also added that he was aware that Minister Coughlan is sympathetic to the current plight facing fishermen whose employment will be terminated as a result of decommissioning of vessels and that she has therefore allocated part of the Scheme’s fund towards retraining. “However, I’m not so sure that the powers that be would have the same sympathy and could possibly find many reasons wy these men cannot get financial compensation,” he said.

Mr Murrin says he has now written to Minister Coughlan requesting that she sympathetically re-examine the possibility of establishing a special scheme to enable legislation to allow fishermen with a long and dedicated track record to walk away with some form of financial compensation for their retirement.