There has been growing concern regarding the working conditions and safety of migrant fisher workers in the UK. The fishing industry is vital: the workers on which is relies are of central importance to government, retailers and producers.

Labour exploitation in the fishing sector is not simply a matter of individual bad actors; it is underpinned by legal and regulatory gaps. These gaps facilitate poor labour standards, limited inspections, and a lack of meaningful enforcement at sea.

Addressing these issues requires urgent reform. To achieve that, an understanding of the existing entry and immigration rules for migrant fishers is essential. From that understanding, we can make effective recommendations on how all workers employed in British vessels can access rights as workers.

FLEX’s latest report “Unravelling the nets: An examination of the seafarer visa policies and their impact on migrant fishers in the UK” addresses this knowledge gap by providing an in-depth analysis of the seafarer and fishing-related visa and entry clearance policies in the UK, and their specific impact on migrant fishers.

Alongside this report, FLEX has also produced a Policy Summary, which summarises the policy context and what changes must be explored as a matter of urgency.

Report Launch Event and Policy Deep Dive

To launch this essential new report, FLEX is hosting a Report Launch event at Parliament.

This will be 18:00 – 20:00 on Tuesday 20th January, House of Lords Committee Room 1. We’ll be joined by parliamentarians, regulators and sectoral experts.

This will involve a presentation of the FLEX’s new report, before a panel discussion about the report, policy context and how we can address these issues in the fishing sector.