The Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), known for its sustainability certification labeled as the “blue tick,” faces criticism for allegedly fostering a misleading image of ethical fishing practices. A recent study revealed that significant labor violations have occurred on fishing vessels that the MSC has certified as sustainable.
According to researchers, approximately 20% of the vessels where crew members reported labor abuses to the International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) over the past five years were involved in fisheries carrying the MSC certification. Among these reported incidents, ten were linked to serious crimes, including forced labor, human trafficking, and coerced criminal activities.
In total, the study identified 80 instances of labor exploitation across 72 MSC-certified vessels in 25 fisheries worldwide, spanning from haddock fisheries in the North Sea to tuna fisheries in the Pacific. The most frequently reported issues included unpaid or delayed wages, excessive working hours, physical violence, harassment, denial of medical care, and debt bondage.
The ITF, which funded the research, suggested that the documented cases likely underrepresent the actual situation, as the analysis was based solely on ITF data from 354 vessels. Reports of labor abuses are also commonly submitted to national unions, maritime organizations, and various regulatory bodies.
While the MSC has maintained that it is primarily an environmental organization without the capacity to assess social standards, Chris Williams, the ITF fisheries coordinator, expressed concern that this stance may obscure labor abuses, potentially misleading consumers about the true nature of the products they purchase.
Each of the 462 reported cases refers to labor violations on individual vessels, which may encompass multiple forms of abuse. For example, on one ship, all 26 crew members were reported to be owed wages, but this was categorized as a single case of abuse.
The study also highlighted repeat offenders; for instance, a North Sea fishing vessel was reported for three instances of wage withholding and one case of debt bondage over five years, all while being certified under the MSC’s blue tick program.
Dr. Jessica Sparks, co-author of the report titled “Slipping Through the Net: Labor Abuses in MSC-Certified Fisheries,” indicated that the findings raise serious concerns about the MSC’s policies, which may hinder the identification and enforcement of labor standards within seafood supply chains.
The MSC has made efforts to combat forced and child labor in fisheries, positioning itself as a supportive ally for those seeking to enhance labor conditions. The council has pledged to prohibit the certification of fisheries that have faced successful prosecutions for forced or child labor.
However, Sparks pointed out that this policy has limitations, as prosecutions for such offenses are relatively rare and the MSC’s definition of unacceptable practices is narrow, potentially overlooking a wider array of exploitative conditions.
She noted that in her 13 years of experience, she could recall only one or two instances of human trafficking leading to forced labor prosecutions. “The MSC claims it does not certify for social issues, yet it enforces pre-eligibility criteria for certification,” she remarked, emphasizing that this creates a false perception of ethical sourcing without effective measures to address or rectify labor abuses.
In 2022, the International Labour Organization estimated that around 128,000 workers are trapped in forced labor on fishing vessels globally.
The researchers based their findings on a dataset of 462 reported abuse cases compiled by 15 trained ITF inspectors across 354 distinct vessels, which were then cross-referenced with a list of MSC-certified fishing vessels obtained from the MSC’s Track a Fishery website and other publicly accessible resources.
In response to the allegations, an MSC spokesperson stated, “We acknowledge that MSC’s policies do not replace the human rights due diligence responsibilities of businesses, and we do not claim to provide social assurance.” The spokesperson added that tackling the issues of forced and child labor in the seafood industry requires a collaborative effort across the sector.
Regarding the pre-entry requirements that prohibit fisheries with convictions for forced or child labor, the spokesperson explained that, as an environmental organization without a social assurance mandate or labor assessment capability, such convictions offer a clear and legally sound basis for identifying forced labor. The MSC also discontinued the use of third-party social audits, which were deemed ineffective by an expert panel, and is developing a third-party online information portal to enhance transparency in line with the panel’s recommendations.
