Thai seafood sector plans to reel back lost jobs

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FORCED LABOUR
Seafood sector plans to reel back lost jobs
Pratch Rujivanarom
The Nation


File Photo

Report says 5,000 lost jobs in outsourcing ban

BANGKOK: -- THE Thai Frozen Foods Association (TFFA) will discuss plans on Saturday to help seafood pre-processing sheds and their employees, TFFA president Poj Aramwattananont said yesterday. He was responding to a report that more than 5,000 workers had lost their jobs due to measures to promote fair labour practices.

International media reports about the use of forced labour have put pressure on Thailand's seafood industry since late last year, forcing the TFFA to ban members from employing outsource pre-processing sheds. This caused many workers to lose jobs as small firms had to close down.

Poj said his association and its member companies had not abandoned former business partners. They had been trying to help outsource firms and their employees.

"I understand and sympathise with the seafood pre-processing shop owners, as we used to work together," he said.

"In order to save seafood trade exports to Western markets, we have to have this strong policy. But we will not neglect them, for sure."

Given news reports of forced labour - notably sheds that peel shrimp, trading partners in the US and EU have taken the issue very seriously.

As a result, Poj said members of his association had been forced severe ties with smaller pre-processing sheds entirely, to make sure that Thai seafood exports were not produced with forced labour at any point in the supply chain.

"The majority of our members did not use the seafood supplied by sweatshops, and only some shops use forced or child labour. But this is enough for Western markets to turn down all seafood products from Thailand," Poj explained.

"Therefore, this action is important for the survival of the Thai seafood industry."

He said association members would meet with owners of the now-closed pre-processing sheds on Saturday. The TFFA is urging its members to hire workers who lost their jobs because of the new labour measures.

Sompong Srakaew, founder of the Labour Rights Promotion Network (LPN), said the seafood industry had taken very severe measures to tackle labour-related problems, successfully reducing forced and child labour but also negatively affecting many shops that had been operating legally.

"The measure caused shops that used forced labour to close down, and that's a good thing," Sompong said. "However, some of the pre-processing shops had already applied good labour practices regarding their employees and they were badly affected as well.

"Some of them had invested more than Bt1 million to upgrade their facilities recently, and their investment may be lost.

"As our organisation promotes just and good working conditions for migrant workers, we would like to see good practices for the workers, as well as the good businesses surviving."

In regard to fears that many foreign workers could remain unemployed because of the new measures, Sompong said he expected larger companies would hire workers when expanding lines of production to make up for the closure of the pre-processing firms.

Source: http://www.nationmultimedia.com/national/Seafood-sector-plans-to-reel-back-lost-jobs-30276215.html


-- The Nation 2016-01-06

[craigt3365]

I thought the EU was suppose to make a decision in December about issuing a red card to Thailand for the fishing industry here? Seems it's been delayed....very interesting read:

https://www.eureporter.co/frontpage/2015/12/15/eu-fisheries-decision-imminent-as-pressure-grows-on-thai-regime/

The ISEAS/NIDA report adds: “In every case, it appears that the relevant Thai authority is aware of the problems but has been negligent for years. The Thai police are notorious in their unprofessional handling even of major cases that are of international interest, let alone everyday cases that hold purely domestic interest.

Corruption, it says, is “condoned and encouraged”.

“Putting blame solely on individual politicians for corruption while ignoring the ingrained problem in social institution, especially by the military and government bureaucracy, Thais are in self-denial again.”

[Thian]

We just bought a big bag of prawns but they stink, nobody wants to eat them.

Now i would like to know where these prawns came from so next time we can avoid those.

Is there a way to know where prawns came from? From a sweetwater farm or from the sea. It would also be nice to know what they were fed.

[Oziex1]

International media reports put pressure on the industry!! How about cruel and unjust treatment of workers ended the operations of the greedy and unscrupulous.

If everything was above board why then did some lose their jobs?

[Oziex1]

We just bought a big bag of prawns but they stink, nobody wants to eat them.

Now i would like to know where these prawns came from so next time we can avoid those.

Is there a way to know where prawns came from? From a sweetwater farm or from the sea. It would also be nice to know what they were fed.

If there from Thailand and they probably are, don't buy them.

[Emster23]

I think industry is still reeling, and worried as there is no safety net..... only thing bated is breath.... maybe need to hire some hookers.... okay, enough... from me anyway

[trainman34014]

Oh dear; Thai business squeeling like pricked pigs because they can't continue with all their dirty underhand practices. Competing in a 'fair' market with above board transparent practices is unknown in Thai business practice.

[Srikcir]

"Poj said his association and its member companies had not abandoned former business partners....In order to save seafood trade exports to Western markets, we have to have this strong policy. But we will not neglect them, for sure."

Their new efforts for compliance sound insincere by going through the motions of reform but surrepticiously maintaining the same illegal business practices with the same partners.