EVIDENCE | Forced labor, child labor, and/or human trafficking in seafood
| Source | Details |
|---|---|
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U.S. Department of Labor 2024 List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor |
Not profiled in report |
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U.S. Department of Labor 2024 Findings on the Worst Forms of Child Labor |
Not profiled in report |
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U.S. Department of State 2025 Trafficking in Persons Report |
Evidence of trafficking in the fishing sector. Traffickers targeted intellectually disabled South Korean men to work on fishing vessels and fish farms. The ROK is a transit point for Southeast Asian fishermen exploited in forced labor on fishing ships bound for Fiji and other ports in the Pacific. There are ongoing reports of abuse, including forced labor, of migrant workers in the South Korean fishing fleet, one of the world’s largest distant water fishing fleets. Recruiters, boat owners, captains, and job brokers often use debt-based coercion to exploit migrant fisherman in forced labor on South Korean-flagged or owned vessels. Reports estimate nearly 4,000 migrant workers, mainly from Indonesia, are employed on these vessels. South Korean distant water fishing vessels frequently use at-sea trans-shipment of catches and can often stay at sea for a year or longer without visiting a port, limiting the ability of workers to report exploitation to authorities or to safely leave their exploitation. Recruitment agencies and job brokers often charge fishermen excessive recruitment fees, sometimes as much as $15,000, increasing their vulnerability to debt-based coercion. Employers often hold the first three months of wages of migrant fishermen on distant water vessels to serve as a “deposit” that they are unable to receive back until the completion of their contract. Such workers can be forced to work excessive hours, up to 18 hours per day, with limited rest hours or days off, abused physically and verbally by boat captains, subjected to salary deductions, provided inadequate food and water, or forced to live and work in unsanitary conditions. NGOs reported recruitment agencies, captains, and skippers retain coastal and distant water fishermen’s passports to prevent them from leaving their employment. The use of oral agreements to determine rest days, instead of formal labor contracts, increases fishermen’s vulnerability to trafficking. |
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Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch Seafood Social Risk Tool Profile |
Evidence identified at the seafood industry level of human trafficking and forced labor in the past five years, in fishing (distant water and coastal water fleets) and fish farming. Abuses are prevalent in the DFW, particularly tuna longline vessels, but have also been detected in the coastal water fleet. South Korean DWF squid vessels have been linked to human traffickign and forced labor. |
| Additional civil society organization reports documenting human rights abuses: |
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| Risk Factor | Status | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Flag of Convenience (International Transport Workers Federation) | No | Flags of Convenience are connected to the occurrence of human trafficking and forced labor in fishing. Vessels registered to Flag of Convenience states may lack a legitimate connection to the flag state and may be subject to less rigorous management and oversight by the flag state. |
| Active yellow or red card for failing to tackle illegal fishing (European Union) | No | The European Union gives countries yellow and red cards for failing in their requirements under international law to take action against illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing. There is evidence linking IUU fishing to an increased risk of human trafficking and forced labor on board fishing vessels. |
| Failure to ratify key treaties and international labor conventions |
Ratifying key treaties and international labor conventions indicates a country’s commitment to uphold international standards.
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