Ryan Cleary says FISH-NL needs cash — or else it will fold
Breakaway union wants members to start paying dues or it will fold by end of October
Ryan Cleary says he wants to keep fighting for FISH-NL — the breakaway union he started — but only if fish harvesters are willing to pay for it.
"It's up to in-shore harvesters to decide. The ball is back in their court." said Cleary, president of FISH-NL.
"This new call will be the deciding factor for the future of FISH-NL."
Cleary, along with other executives and supporters of the breakaway union, issued the ultimatum at a press conference in St. John's Wednesday.
"Let me be absolutely clear: if a minimum of 500 harvesters do not voluntarily come aboard to pay membership dues of $24 a month, then FISH-NL will not continue," he said.
"FISH-NL will fold."
Cleary said that FISH-NL will be calling prospective members to reiterate the appeal, but time is running out and he needs members to sign up, and commit to paying the dues, by the end of October.
Union certification dismissed
Efforts to create a new union for in-shore fish harvesters suffered a blow in late September, when the provincial labour relations board dismissed FISH-NL's application for union certification.
FISH-NL had signed up 2,372 prospective members, but the membership of the Fish, Food and Allied Workers Union (FFAW) is pegged at between 8,000 - 10,000 members. A minimum of 40 per cent of existing union members was required to trigger a vote on the new union.
Cleary has accused the FFAW of inflating its numbers by relying on an overly broad definition of fish harvester, but Cleary maintains appealing the decision would be too costly and time consuming.
Instead, FISH-NL plans to hold a new membership drive and reapply for certification in 2019.
FISH-NL was initially funded through GoFundMe campaigns and voluntary contributions from supporters. Cleary called it "a wing and a prayer" and said a second application cannot be funded the same way.
"Everyone knows there are massive problems with the FFAW," Cleary said.
"But the time has come to either do something about that, or watch the fishery continue to slip away."
FFAW calls Cleary divisive
Keith Sullivan, FFAW president, said the breakaway group has been a negative influence in the fish industry.
"For too long, Ryan Cleary and FISH-NL have tried to divide harvesters." said Sullivan on Wednesday.
"We need everyone working together to achieve our goals."
Sullivan said the breakaway effort has been losing steam for some time, and that the industry needs to move on. But he insisted he harbours no ill will towards the members who signed up for the new union.
"For those people who, at some point in time, showed support for FISH-NL, we hear those people." said Sullivan. "We're interested in working with all our members to tackle our problems."