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Photo courtesy of Spinner Publications
“We were the ones who brought in the union. So, when that came, it was like God heard our prayer.”
LaVerne Gomes
LaVerne is a retired Cape Verdean American frozen fish packer. In this excerpt, she explains how the harsh working conditions in the fish processing plants may have contributed to chronic illnesses that she and the other women working in the fish houses faced later in life. She explains how unionizing, finding religion, and listening to the advice of her mother helped her persevere despite the limited opportunities available to her without a high school diploma.
This interview was originally conducted in English.
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Background Information:
Like many women in the Cape Verdean community, LaVerne supported her family by working in the fish houses processing and packing seafood. Long hours in cold, wet working conditions with heavy equipment have resulted in injury and illness rates for seafood processing workers that are 2.5 higher than the industry average. She describes how conditions improved with the union. The Seafood Workers Union ensured that workers were paid a fair wage and had benefits such as health insurance and paid sick leave. When the union was dismantled in the early 1980s, wages fell overnight from $17/hour to less than $7.
