Fish Farming & Aquaculture

[MuckleJoannie]

Perhaps I am being naive, but I am sure that they wont want to see their fellow islanders out of pocket surely

 

How much are you putting on that?

[BigMouth]

How much are you putting on that?

 

My apologies, I have a nasty habit of judging other people by my own standards.

 

Personally I wouldn't be able to sleep at night if I owed people money, but I know there are those with more flexible morality in these matters, although they would describe it differently I am sure.

[JustMe]

MuckleJoannie wrote

In any bankruptcy the only losers are the banks and their shareholders. From other threads it would appear that Shetlinkers think banks make enough profits. Unfortunately in this case the shareholders are the Shetland people.

Sadly that is not completely true. Other creditors also lose out and that would include local firms both large and small......and that could go down to one man operations providing a service to the company that went bust. Window cleaner or computer technician for example.

[KOYAANISQATSI]

The wage needs to allow them to compete, simple as that. That's why they are still in business - all those years without a pay rise when they were making huge losses has helped them cut the cloth to survive

If LFT manager Michael Stark had been on £6 an hour for the last DECADE as the price of living soars, I'm pretty sure he'd have hightailed it back to bloody Germany a while back.

[ArabiaTerra]

It's 10 years since I worked at LFT for £6/hour. I do think that it is a scandal that anyone in that business should get a rise while the factory floor wages are frozen. If wages are to be frozen, then they should be frozen across the board, from top to bottom.

 

But then, what else can we expect from management?

 

I beleive that there should be one pay settlement allowed in any business and it should be applied universally, after all, there is no business without bodies on the factory floor to do the work. Management alone is nothing.

[Medziotojas]

It's not only LFT whose wages have been frozen at £6 per hour for an eternity. It's bigger next door neighbour also seems to have a similar policy.

 

Anybody who has ever worked in a fish factory will know how hard you are pushed to meet targets. Every year more liberties are stripped. Breaks are shortened or even disappear, etc.

 

£6 per hour is scandalous for this kind of work when you look at this:

 

March 7 2007 - Alistair Darling, Secretary of State for Trade and Industry, has announced the acceptance of the Low Pay Commission's recommended rises in the National Minimum Wage in October. New rates per hour will be:

 

Adult minimum wage rate - £5.52 (from £5.35)

18-21 rate - £4.60 (from £4.45)

16-17 rate - £3.40 (from £3.30)

[BigMouth]

You get what you pay for. You can't expect much from your staff if you don't pay them a fair wage and that is why so many organisations in Shetland HAVE to recruit from out of Shetland. They advertise themselves as bad employers.

 

The problem with across the board pay rises is that it is usually done on a percentage. I would rather have 3% of the MDs salary than 3% of the workers salary as a pay rise. There is a big difference between 3% of £150 and £1000 per week. That is why those with more are getting further away from those with less.

[MuckleJoannie]

The problem with across the board pay rises is that it is usually done on a percentage. I would rather have 3% of the MDs salary than 3% of the workers salary as a pay rise. There is a big difference between 3% of £150 and £1000 per week. That is why those with more are getting further away from those with less.

 

Unison used to go to pay negotiations asking for increases along the lines of a minimum pay rise of £1,000 and 3% for the higher paid. I don't recall them getting anywhere with this.

[MuckleJoannie]

The Scottish salmon farming industry is to embark on the first-ever industry-wide assessment of the sector's sustainability. Read the story here

http://www.theherald.co.uk/business/news/display.var.1566634.0.0.php

[Malcolm]

(** mod edit - this post has been merged to the existing 'Fish Farming & Aquaculture' thread **)

 

 

 

Lets hope nothing like this ever happens in Shetland.

 

 

Jellyfish Wipe-Out £1m Salmon Farm

 

By Sky News SkyNews - Thursday, November 22 02:42 am

 

More than 100,000 salmon worth over £1m have been killed in a freak jellyfish attack.

 

 

It has wiped out Northern Ireland's only salmon farm and owners are now facing ruin.

 

The massive invasion happened at Glenarm Bay and Red Bay, Cushendun, off the Co Antrim coast.

 

Billions of small jellyfish called Mauve Stingers were involved - they stung and then stressed the salmon which were being kept in cages about a mile out into the Irish Sea.

 

The attack lasted for nearly seven hours with the jellyfish covering a sea area of up to 10 square miles and 35ft deep.

 

Staff in three boats tried to reach the cages, but such was the density of the jellyfish they struggled to get through and when they did it was too late to save the salmon.

 

The fish is sold to some of London's leading restaurants and the Queen had salmon on her 80th birthday cooked by top Irish chef Richard Corrigan.

 

It was also exported to hotels and restaurants in France, Belgium, Germany and the United States.

 

John Russell, managing director of Northern Salmon Co.Ltd, said "We are still assessing the full extent, but it's a disaster.

 

"In 30 years, I've never seen anything like it. It was unprecedented, absolutely amazing.

 

"The sea was red with these jelly fish and there was nothing we could do about, it, absolutely nothing."

 

Fish farms around Britain and the west coast of Ireland have been attacked before by jellyfish.

 

But the type blown towards the Co Antrim coast by northern winds have never been recorded in that area.

 

 

 

http://uk.news.yahoo.com/skynews/20071122/tuk-jellyfish-wipe-out-1m-salmon-farm-45dbed5.html

[Guest Anonymous]

der had jelly fish trouble here for years , depends i believe on size and mabey species ? really peerie jelly fish just chock up der gills.

[Styles]

It happens some times, but if spotted in time things can be done to minimise its impact. Types of algae blooms do the same. They clog up gills or poison da fish.

Most o da jellfish here do not effect da fish though as it does depend on species, number and size.

[ladyfootballer]

No catch today ! -

 

http://www.fishupdate.com/news/fullstory.php/aid/10076/Cod_farming_pioneer_No_Catch_in_administration.html

 

Tough news for Shetland - hope a buyer can be found quickly.

 

(*** Mod - merged into existing thread ***)

[righter]

unfortunately,looking back on this thread,just over a year ago I suggested this would all end in tears.

 

Mostly because it never made any economic sense to me...who knows nothing...but also to people who work with fish.

 

Also the set up at Vidlin,was mightly large,very quickly. In the "old" days a business had to be set up slowly,building up in increments. Nowadays,with huge public grants,investor capital etc business seem to overeach themselves....but i suspect its a case of making a killing for a few people when money is pouring in to the coffers.

 

What I do not understand is how us Joe publics can ascertain among ourselves that this scheme or plan

[righter]

will not work but officials cannot ??

I am sure other businesses spring to mind.

 

I do not want to be a party pooper...because we need jobs,especially in rural areas,but what is it with administrators of public money.

 

(in two parts because it would not let me post,my post any longer??)