OYSTERS

Young oyster-openers wanted

By SCOT MacKAY - The Southland Times | Thursday, 08 April 2010

THE OYSTER'S YOUR WORLD: (From front) Jimmy Ryan-Thoms,
Cory Boyce, Colin Smith and Graham Hunt open oysters at Direct
Fish and Oyster in Bluff. There are just three under 25 who
work there. — BARRY HARCOURT/The Southland Times.

The ageing work force of oyster openers could mean an industry-wide struggle to keep up with demand to open oysters in the future.

Oyster openers in Southland are, on average, in their late 50s to early 60s with some working into their 70s.

Direct Fish and Oyster co-owner Karen Calder said it was becoming harder to find young people to do the job and that could create problems when the more experienced workers retired.

Oyster openers were paid up to $300 a day before tax, depending on how much they opened, but the job suited the lifestyle of only a few people because it was physical, weather-dependant and lasted just three or four months, she said.

If the weather was good, workers could open oysters for as long as the boats kept coming in, but if the weather was bad they could have weeks off, Mrs Calder said.

"It is a major problem. If you do not have the constant work we cannot entice people into the industry. It used to be the season coincided with the freezing works, but now they (the works) go for much longer."

Workers can open up to 6000 oysters on a good day, but they need at least two and a half years of training to do that.

If young openers could not be found, the demand for oysters could outstrip supply all season because of the lack of openers, Mrs Calder said.

To put that figure into perspective, last year Keith Lovett opened 50 oysters in 2 minutes and 32 seconds at the annual Bluff Oyster and Food Festival oyster opening competition.

Barnes Oysters manager Graeme Wright said he was conscious of the future of the industry as his workers were also averaging in the late 50s, with two of them older than 70.

The lack of young people coming through and gaining experience could be a problem, he said.

Mrs Calder said one way to attract younger workers was to increase the quota because that would increase the length of the season, but that decision would be made by the Bluff Oyster Management Company after assessing the impact of oyster catching.

Jimmy Ryan-Thoms, one of three workers aged under 25 at Direct Fish and Oyster, enjoyed the job but said he would need to find another fulltime job in the off-season because he could not survive on the money from the short season.

http://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/news/3556316/Young-oyster-openers-wanted