Taiwan-caught fish remains listed on 'forced labor' list

Taipei, Sept. 6 (CNA) Taiwan-caught fish remained on the biannual List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor, released by the United States Department of Labor (DOL) Thursday (U.S. Eastern time).

According to DOL, migrant fishers on Taiwanese distant-water fishing vessels are often deceived by brokers who provide false information about wages and contracts.

These fishers are forced to pay brokerage fees and sign loan agreements, resulting in massive debt. Their wages are also frequently subject to illegal deductions, according to DOL.

This was the third consecutive time, after 2020 and 2022, that Taiwan-caught fish appeared on the list.

Lennon Wong (汪英達), director of migrant worker policies at the Serve the People Association in Taoyuan, urged the government to take steps to effectively eradicate forced labor among migrant fishers in Taiwan.

These include setting a timeline for reforms, first pushing for legal amendments, and making a firm commitment to implement fair hiring practices across the sector, he suggested.

In addition, Taiwan should reach agreements with migrant fisher source countries to ensure fair hiring practices, prohibiting workers being charged any fees and eliminating all forms of forced labor.

Finally, the government should assist individual employers, fishing associations, and trade unions when negotiating with downstream businesses, urging them to share the costs of hiring migrant fishers, Wong said.

In addition to having to pay high brokerage fees, migrant fishers also face delayed payment, Shih Yi-hsiang (施逸翔), a senior researcher at the Taiwan Association for Human Rights (TAHR) pointed out on Friday.

TAHR and the Indonesian Seafarers Gathering Forum (FOSPI), the largest Indonesian migrant fishers' association in Taiwan, revealed on Aug. 7 that 10 Indonesian migrant fishers on the Taiwanese distant water fishing vessel, "You Fu," had not been paid for 15 months.

The shipowner, however, argued that he had not deliberately delayed payment, citing cash flow problems due to falling fish prices amid high inflation and soaring fuel prices, and claiming he had to source funds to pay the migrant fishers.

Under the supervision of the Fisheries Agency (FA), all the fishers who were owed wages were paid in full on Aug. 8.

The "forced labor" list also noted that fishers often face the confiscation of their identification documents once on Taiwanese fishing vessels, while also being unable to dock for several months, and are forced to work in harsh conditions for 18 to 22 hours a day.

They may also suffer physical violence and verbal abuse, and are unable to escape from the fishing vessels or terminate their contracts, according to the list.

In response to Taiwan-caught fish being included on the list, the FA said that it launched the "Fisheries and Human Rights Action Plan" two years ago aiming to systematically improve the rights of foreign fishers across various aspects, including working conditions, living conditions, and brokerage management.

Measures taken include raising the minimum wage and insurance coverage for migrant fishers, requiring direct and full wage payments, keeping attendance records on board, and installing vessel surveillance systems on vessels.

The agency said it also recruited an additional 60 inspection personnel since the launch of the plan and increased inspections. As a result, the proportion of migrant fishers receiving full wage payments as required by regulations reached 98 percent in the first half of 2024.

It added that it has been in active communication with the U.S. about improvements in fishers' rights in Taiwan, and invited DOL officials to Taiwan to observe the situation.

The FA also emphasized its commitment to fully implementing the "Fisheries and Human Rights Action Plan." It called on the industry to actively improve the working conditions of foreign crew members, fulfill corporate social responsibility, and collaborate with seafarers and civil society groups to protect the rights of crew members.

The U.S. DOL indicated that removal from the list requires independent and objective verification and evaluation based on various sources of information.

Meanwhile, Taiwan's Control Yuan, which is responsible for censuring government agencies and impeaching officials, censured the Ministry of Labor (MOL) and the New Taipei City government over the unfair dismissal of 64 migrant coastal fishermen on Thursday.

The pair were censured for failing to identify any wrongdoing in the "appalling" accommodations for the fishermen and the fact that shipowners had unfairly dismissed a large number of migrant fishers.

The fishermen, predominantly Indonesians, had signed three-year contracts with their employers but were let go in September 2023 after China, claiming COVID-19 was detected on the packaging of belt fish from Taiwan, suspended the imports of the fish, Control Yuan member Chi Hui-jung (紀惠容) said.