An uncomfortable stand-off is taking place between Iceland’s fishermen and the owners of the vessels they crew, with the possibility of a strike looming.
Vessel operators are now faced with making the first payments toward a fisheries levy, which has been imposed on them after a long process of recrimination and negotiation over several years.
To offset this additional cost, the Icelandic Federation of Fishing Vessel Owners (LIU) is now looking for fishermen to shoulder a proportion of this burden in the form of what boils down to a 15 percent pay reduction, which comes on top of the loss of a traditional tax break only available to seamen.
Ironically,
