Owners of fishing boats in the northern central province of Thanh Hoa are facing difficulties finding crew members.
Many boats stay ashore due to the lack of crew members in Thanh Hoa Province. Photo by Vietnamnet
Tran Van Phung, one of the boat owners in Quang Tien District, Sam Son City said that this was a very difficult time as fuel prices have sharply increased and there has been a serious shortage of fishermen.
"My boats used to make 15-day trawling expeditions with between 15-20 crew members," he said. "But in recent years, the crew has decreased to 7-8 members. It has become very difficult to employ new workers as many young people in the area have gone to work abroad as they offer better incomes.”
Another boat owner, Nguyen Van Cong, said that he has had to look for workers in neighbouring mountainous areas but not many of them continue with fishing work.
"Our work is hard, and the income isn’t good," Cuong explained. "We’re having to go out to sea at the moment in order to maintain our crew, despite the losses caused by high fuel prices."
Cuong expressed concerns that fishing would fade in popularity in the future as most workers in his area were elderly people.
According to an official at Quang Tien Ward, Nguyen Van Can, there are 207 fishing boats operating in his ward. They need around 1,600 crew to work the boats.
However, many boats stay ashore due to the lack of crew members, Can said.
