Photo courtesy: ABC Eyre Peninsula: Amelia Costigan. Retrieved from abc.net.au
It’s not uncommon to hear Port Lincoln’s crew of Kiribati fishermen burst spontaneously into song while at work.
Their sweet-sounding harmonies are reminders that despite being naturals on the water, the community of seasonal tuna industry workers have brought more than much-needed fishing expertise to Australia’s seafood capital.
The 82-strong crew from the Micronesia sub-region of the Pacific Islands spend nine months of the year in the Eyre Peninsula town where South Australia’s $120 million tuna industry is concentrated.
Kiribati seasonal worker Teraaka Toaraoi says the experience is mutually beneficial for the Australian and Kiribati employees.
“It’s kind of quick when they show us how to do it, we learn it quickly because back home we’re fishing, so fixing something like nets, we know how to do it, how to tie things, we do it,” he said.
“We really like working here because it’s the same as back home. We go early in the morning, we come back in the afternoons, same as back home.”