Sea Weavers

In Galicia, Spain, the role of fishing-net weavers has traditionally been filled by fishermen’s wives — women who were simply pitching in to help their husbands. Today, the women who perform this job remain essential to the fishing sector in Galicia, but they don’t receive any of the benefits that men do. In fact, the few men who do help weave nets receive benefits as “sailors on land,” but the women who weave receive next to nothing. They have no fixed schedules, no salary protections and they are the only fishing industry workers in the entire country who have no early retirement option. But these women have had enough — and they’re taking their fight to Madrid to lobby for their rights.

“Sea Weavers” captures a hidden struggle for gender equality, and work that often goes overlooked and underappreciated. Watch how these women take back their agency and rally for their rights.