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The earthquake 2015 in Nepal shed light on the countries bad economical situation. Instead of paying sherpa bad the government should increase their salary and foster growth through increasing tourism. Mountaineers should be first to adapt.
How much do Sherpas make?
Today, Local guides are hired by climbing companies. Sherpa get paid the paltry amount of between $3,000-$5,000 US-Dollars for the climbing season, plus bonuses if they climb the Everest.
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This is not enough. Read what it should be:
How many times a year do Sherpas climb Everest?
Westerners climb the Everest for adventure — only once or twice. On the other hand, Sherpas have to do it all over again and again. While the Westerners cross an icefall four or five times at most, the Sherpas have to do it over 15 to 20 times, fixing the ropes, making camps and transporting luggage.
An Everest season lasts around four months. In this time they prepare all camps – from base camp to ABC and camp 1,2,3 and 4. Guides fix ropes to the summit of Everest every year – from both sides. They carry equipment and food, and they cook.
What should be the Sherpa Salary?
Compared to minimal income elsewhere a Nepali guide should earn around 10 US Dollars an hour plus heath and social insurance.
Ten hour shifts a day should make the Sherpa 100 US Dollar. Assuming they do normal shifts for three months during a seasons that results already in 9.000 US Dollar a season.
Further assuming that 30 days per season they do high risk work for 24 hours a day it would be only fair to double the salary per hour. This makes them 480 US Dollars a day, 14.400 US Dollar for 30 risky days.
Mandatory sherpa live insurance
According to figures compiled by Outside magazine, Sherpa have the most dangerous job in the world, with a shocking annual fatality rate of 4,035 per 100,000 full-time equivalent workers over the last decade. This compares with rates of 25 for miners and 124 for commercial fishermen.
A mandatory life insurance policy has to be signed by companies employing Sherpas, but its payouts have been ridiculous. In 2014 the Nepalese government doubled the amount of the mandatory live insurance to $11,000.
This sounds like a lot of money in a country were the GDP per capita is only 750 US Dollars. But it needs to cover the rest of the life of the Sherpas´s family.
Summary
| 60 days normal work | 6.000 US$ |
| 30 days high risk work | 14.400 US$ |
| Life insurance | 11.000 US$ |
| Sherpa salary a season | 31.400 US$ |
The salary of Sherpas per each season should increase to around 30.000 US Dollar. This is still less than the 60.0000 – 100.000 US Dollars some climbers have paid for Everest summits.
This seems like a long way.
But it will happen.
Tourism will change Mt Everest
Nepal is a very poor country with only 19 Billion US Dollars GDP. Tourist industry is already important with almost 600.000 people visiting the country every year.
Nepal´s government is earning: It is reported that a license to climb Mount Everest costs about 11.000 US Dollars today. The value of a Sherpa’s life insurance.
Possibly this is the wrong strategy.
Tourism can change Nepal as it changed the Alpe region. Many mountaineers forget that history is repeating in Himalaya. The world has seen a similar development in the Alps, only 150 years ago. Villages there are rich today – think of St. Tropez or Chamonix. Roughly 400 million people life in a distance of two hours of flight from Mt Everest!
Nepal must improve conditions for tourists to improve the financial situation of its inhabitants in rural areas. Some measurements include
- Improved mountain rescue and medical aid
- Up-to-dated communication systems
- Better access to mountain villages
- Energy and water supply and drainage systems
- Earthquake-proof houses
This, in turn, will help to care for both, more income from tourism and a better future for themselves. Climbers can help to do so.
Climbing Mt Everest is risky for Sherpa
Mount Everest is not one of the deadliest mountains on this planet. But more and more ascends to the top of the world make it harder for the guides:
Everest 2012
In 2012 Russell Brice and his Himalayan Experience, or Himex, were heavily criticized when he withdrew all Sherpas and climbers from the mountain without any compensation for tourists. But he was right – the same year many accidents occured as the world finally realized how many people climb the Everest. “Trek and Tourism on Everest” is a normal thing meanwhile.
Everest 2013
A year later, in 2013, the well know climbers Steck, Moro and Griffith were attacked by guides fixing ropes leading towards the Everest South Col. This confrontation was not well received by many climbers.
Everest 2014
In 2014, an overhanging wedge of ice the size of a Beverly Hills mansion broke loose from the same ice bulge that had frightened Brice into leaving Everest in 2012. 13 Sherpa, one Gurung, one Tamang, and one member of the Hindu Chhetri caste died. Three of them are still buried there adding to the dead bodies on Everest. 300 Nepali guides at the mountain’s base camp voted by a two-thirds majority to cease all expeditions to the summit. They went on strike as I predicted it with my installation Sherpa walkout .
Everest 2015
This did not help them in 2015: at least 17 people are believed to have been killed on Everest by an avalanche caused by the earthquake, and 61 are said to be injured. Ten dead persons have been identified as Nepalese.
A massive earthquake in 2015 caused a humanitarian catastrophe in Nepal. By now more than 6.000 people are reported to have died. A number that was raised daily and is likely to grow because it is so time consuming to reach remote villages in the Himalaya.
Many Nepali lost everything: family members, house, home and their future.
This situation, likely to happen in this area with intensive tectonic activity, is a common situation for many Sherpa and other people living close to the highest mountains on earth. 180.000 Sherpas sharing the surname live in Khumbu region and its surroundings. They reside in clans of small villages of around 50 huts, which accommodate a full family each. Many of these villages know men who died in the mountains, often one mountain: Mount Everest.
Links
- http://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/death-and-anger-on-everest
- https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2014/04/25/sher-a25.html
- http://www.outsideonline.com/1929351/everest-brawl-sherpas-tale
- http://www.alanarnette.com/blog/2013/04/30/everest-2013-the-sherpas-viewpoint/
- http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-22680192
- http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/apr/25/deadly-everest-avalanche-triggered-by-nepal-earthquake
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2015_Nepal_earthquake
- http://www.outsideonline.com/1929351/everest-brawl-sherpas-tale
- http://www.outsideonline.com/1922426/value-sherpa-life
- After all, guides have been included in Wikipedias list of dead climbers on Everest: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_people_who_died_climbing_Mount_Everest
- Picture: /bhanterahula.blogspot.de/
Hi, I just stumbled upon this article. It is very interesting. I live in the US, and I had no idea that so many Sherpas die on the mountains every year. For the amount of money people pay to go on climbing trips, it seems absurd that Sherpa guides don’t get paid more. Do tourists ever tip them? I will post a link to your article on social media to help you spread awareness on this issue. Thank-you for the read. Your article is very well written and informative.
u in the west know what the minimum wage is .in nz it is $17 per hour.these sherpas are getting $500 a week in the season.the other times no Wwork no pay.and they work hard ..who is able to carry 20kg + or more on their foreheads and back..old sherpas .cant do it.and those not necessarily europeans are benefiting from it All that climb the mount and are usually well off..or rich.they able to afford this and more $$$.pay them what right not exploit them.a death among them means the whole family have not much means of support.death of a sherpa compensation is peanuts.u know thAT BUT U KEEP QUIET.a university graduate ..min wage is $50,000p annum
The top pay for a surgeon in Nepal is around $1600 a month. Relative to that scale and the cost of living in a country where a good part of the population makes less than $100 month, seems like sherpas are making bank.
Why do these articles always compare the pay to US or other developed nations? That’s not how reality works.
Thanks for the comment – I guess that is because surgeons do not tend to die at work.
Excellent point about surgeons. Thanks.
Ya well they don’t earn that every month right ! Use your common sense ! Its a seasonal job that also risking your life to death. They have children to educate family to support plus savings for future since Nepal has no social security whatsoever!