Why are working conditions often bad in the fishing industry?
The fishing industry has some of the worst examples of workplace abuse. The dominance of FOC vessels means that many fishing crews are exposed to physical abuse and callous treatment by employers, and lack the protection of the most basic contract of employment. Crew have been cheated out of wages, worked for months on end without pay or abandoned in foreign ports if they complain. In the most extreme cases, crew members have been used as forced labour and locked in their quarters or in chains. Such abuses have even resulted in the death of fishers.