The International Labour Organization’s (ILO) new report Understanding working conditions of fishers in Indonesia: Evidence from the 2024 Survey on Decent Work in Marine Fishing, presents findings of Indonesia’s first-ever Survey on decent work in marine fishing. Indonesia is one of the largest fishing nations in the world employing more than two million people.
The survey was conducted from November 2023 to September 2024 and covered a sample of 3,396 fishers in 18 ports. The survey measures working conditions on marine fishing vessels, including key indicators of decent work such as recruitment patterns, employment status, earnings, working time and the prevalence of child labour and forced labour, among others. The report also provides ten practical recommendations to advance decent work in the fishing sector in Indonesia.
The ILO Country Director in Indonesia and Timor-Leste indicated that “the report that is launched today provided evidence-based findings that show there is room for improvement to create decent work onboard Indonesian fishing vessels. At the same time, the report shows some good measures taken by the Indonesian government, workers as well as employers’ organizations to start addressing the challenges. All together should be seen as reflective knowledge that can guide Indonesia towards a more vibrant fishing industry with stronger labour protection for workers in the sector.”
Interesting facts
- ·Fishing is one of the most hazardous and physically demanding professions in the world (because of the natural dangers of the sea and its isolated nature which makes workers vulnerable to exploitation, forced labour and abuse).
- The industry faces a high level of informality (hiring often occurs informally) and there are significant gaps in enforcing fair recruitment standards regulated in national laws and in alignment with international standards. Although there are clear laws and regulations banning recruitment fees and related costs, the reality is that many fishers are still required to cover these costs.
- According to the survey, 1,050 fishing employees in Indonesia were found to be in forced labour (representing 1.5% of the 68,375 fisher employees surveyed). Of these:
- 34.1% of fishers were subject to retention of identity documents (such as passports and seaman books).
- 28.0% were unable to voice complaints without risking job loss/deductions in their pay/or experiencing physical violence.
- 12.0% were often prevented from leaving their jobs due to debts owed to the vessel owner/captain/agents.
- 27.6% reported hazardous conditions that made them fear for their safety or health.
- 21.4% faced demands for abusive working hours that they had not previously agreed to.
- 17.5% faced degrading conditions regarding the availability of food/water on the vessel.
- Some fishers, mainly on large vessels with more complex recruitment processes, experienced deceptive recruitment, where they were unaware that they would be working on a fishing vessel, and felt that brokers/recruiters/vessel owners/captains took advantage of them.