Health & Safety in BC Commercial Fishing, Video, 2016
This 13-minute video chronicles the evolution of safety measures in British Columbia’s fishing industry, highlighting the significant challenges and eventual improvements in working conditions for fishers.
In its early days, particularly in the 1950s, commercial fishing in British Columbia was often described as a “wild west.” It offered good money but came with significant risks. Fishers, including young individuals, faced dangerous conditions with little to no safety equipment and often learned hazards through harsh experience. Tragically, many lives were lost at sea.
Initially, workers’ compensation legislation, first passed in 1916, largely excluded independent fishermen, leaving their families without support if they died. Despite strong advocacy from the United Fishermen and Allied Workers’ Union (UFAWU), established in 1945, fishers were not recognized as “workmen” under the act, but rather as independent operators or “co-adventurers.”
A turning point came with the lucrative but dangerous roe herring fishery in 1975, which saw a staggering 14 deaths in just two months. This tragic event brought the issue of safety to the forefront. It spurred a West Coast inquiry, leading to new legislation that finally included fishers under workers’ compensation coverage by classifying fish buyers as employers and fish sellers as workers.
With this coverage, Workers’ Compensation Board (WCB) officers gained the right to conduct inspections on fishing boats. The federal government later reasserted its authority over occupational health and safety in the fishing industry, limiting the WCB’s direct jurisdiction on vessels. Despite this, the industry and union began developing safety initiatives.
Another series of fatalities in the herring and salmon industries in 1995 reignited the focus on vessel safety and the crucial need for coordinated inspection processes between Transport Canada and the WCB. Through community engagement and funding, the WCB supported the creation of an industry association to promote safety.
The video concludes by emphasizing the importance of remembering the historical struggle for safety legislation and continuing to work towards a safety culture where all fishers can return home safely.
This video was produced by WorkSafeBC for the BC Labour Heritage Centre.