LOBSTER 207
This attachment contains information regarding how self-employed workers found their voice and improved their livelihoods through the main lobstering union. In achieving this dream, the lobstermen came up with an idea of forming an alliance that would assist in serving their interests as fishermen. The so-called business along the coastal strip was facing shrinkage due to fluctuating prices in the lobster market. The inability to set prices for their sea wares significantly seemed to bother them and ended up forcing them to form a union to market their output better.
The lobstermen succeeded in forming a group by the name. “Lobster 207”, a nickname for IAM local 207 after engaging in a trip aimed at developing a strategy for building their own political and economic power and understand how to establish a membership base tactically. The tour also highlighted the cultural alignment between the fishermen and the Machinists. This exposure made the lobstermen stop viewing themselves as workers engaged in strenuous and dangerous work as they sought to provide for their families.
There features some uniqueness between the fishermen and the officials of the union. When the meeting was held to address their challenges, the fishermen were given a chance to take the stage and voice all their opinions. Additionally, the lobstermen were encouraged to take a leading role in organizing themselves with much-unexpected ease. With the aid of “Organizer Joel,” the then union group of fishermen grew through mere phone calls, community meetings, discussions at the docks, and home visits but not through seemingly complicated procedures (lobster 207).
The strategy of the lobstermen affiliating themselves to the IAM local 207 co-operative, covered miles in cushioning the shore activities. The union succeeded in purchasing the wholesale operations of Trenton Bridge Lobster Pound and also hiring the existing CEO of the family business and fund the transaction with an innovative financial package. Acquiring a current company and hiring an experienced operator allowed them, lobstermen, to continue doing what they did best, hauling lobsters while capturing more value from the lobster value chain.
This strategic planning by both the organization and the lobstermen was quite effective and adequately thought out. Had the lobstermen not thought of organizing themselves, their source of livelihoods would eventually capsize. Had IAM Local 207 not believed of purchasing the wholesale operations of Trenton Bridge, the market volume of the lobsters would have remained low.