Human Rights at Sea International (HRASI) attended and presented recommendations at the latest APPG on Fisheries Round Table meeting held in Portcullis House, Westminster, London. 

Background

With the Employment Rights Bill currently before the House of Lords and in the context of the Government’s recently published white paper on immigration, the APPG on Fisheries hosted a roundtable in Parliament on Wednesday 4 June on recruitment and labour issues affecting UK fishing. 

Building on earlier conversations, during the meeting MPs and Peers heard from industry experts, civil society organisations, and retail of the current challenges facing the sector, alongside efforts underway and needed to address issues relating to access to both domestic and non-domestic labour, training, and welfare.

As part of the discussion, which was chaired by APPG Co-Chair Alistair Carmichael MP, concerns were raised surrounding ‘systemic’ narratives relating to fishing and fisheries, and the need for a sector-appropriate visa for those coming to the UK to work within the sector was outlined.

Interventions

HRASI had the opportunity to raise several interventions. These were:

  1. The term 'migrant fisher' is derogatory and so HRASI uses the term 'foreign fisher / foreign crew'.
  2. The largest risk of exploitation for foreign crew found in Northern Ireland during the recent '100% Worker Voice' Individual Social Review was through debt bondage and financial exploitation by recruitment agencies in home countries. Foreign crew have to pay illegal recruitment fees to get on the local recruiters register.
  3. The administrative burden for skippers is too high and requires dedicated support for all members of Producer Organisations.

Recommendations

HRASI made three (3) recommendations:

  1. Increased administration support to skippers and owners, especially for seasonal fisheries where profit margins are tight.
  2. UK Recruitment agency regulation and licensing to achieve common standards and accountability under UK law.
  3. Increased support for the MCA inspectors in reviewing social issues onboard vessels in UK waters.

ENDS.

Source: APPG on Fisheries Secretariat

Photo: APPG on Fisheries Secretariat

Contact: If you have any questions, please write to us at enquiries@hrasi.org.

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