Socioeconomic Conditions And Survival Strategies Of Fish Porters At Selili Fish Landing Base, Samarinda

Abstract

Fish porters at Selili Port (PPI) receive relatively low wages, barely enough to cover their living expenses. They face the risk of workplace accidents, cart breakdowns that hinder their work, and limited social connections, all of which impact the stability of their livelihoods. Active, passive, and networking strategies are essential to meeting their needs. The purposes of study are to understand the socioeconomic conditions, and to identify the survival strategies employed by fish porters at PPI Selili Samarinda. Data collection of research was conducted for 2 months in PPI Selili, Samarinda City. The sample consisted of 11 respondents using a purposive sampling method, considering their primary membership in the community and cooperative in communication. The results showed most fish porters at PPI Selili, Samarinda had low levels of education and low social connections, but their health was relatively guaranteed through BPJS membership. Economically, fish porters were included in the poor and lower-middle economic groups as measured by their residences, which were still in the form of rented houses and semi-permanent houses. The types of assets they owned with the highest value were only motorcycles and carts/pedicabs. The majority of income was IDR 3,000,000 per month. Four categories of survival strategies selected: 9.10% of fish porter workers implemented passive strategies, 36.36% implemented active and passive strategies combined, 36.36% implemented passive and network strategies combined. Meanwhile, 18.18% of fish porters implemented all three survival strategies. The government should be able to organize training/workshops to improve skills and labor protection policy.