organizations and updates on labor rights from regional management
bodies. The training also covers the necessary documentation and
procedures for working with recruitment agencies in destination countries.
Agencies that show continuous improvement can receive a certification,
which can be shared with Taiwanese recruitment companies to help ensure
they collaborate with qualified agencies.25
(2) Transparency of Information
Taiwanese agencies are generally unfamiliar to migrant fishers,
appearing only to give them allowances on board and collect their
signatures. At other times, the agency remains unresponsive even when
contacted. Indonesian fisher Muhamad said, “I rarely see the agency. You
only meet them when the boat docks.”
Do these fishers know who their “real” employer is or other crucial
work-related information? Muhamad explained, “Although I’ve been
working on the boat for a long time and know its name, we honestly don’t
know the name of the company or the boat owner.” Filipino fisher Reyne
added that the boat owner visits when they dock but remains unfamiliar to
him: “The boat owner comes to welcome us when we arrive, but I don’t
really know him because there’s no interaction.”
The Fisheries Agency has implemented some reforms for foreign
fishers hired overseas to improve transparency in the recruitment process.
“Before signing the contract, we require intermediaries or employers to
show fishers a fishers’ rights video,” explained Lin Ding-rong. “We made
sure this video is available in six languages so that fishers from different
countries can understand it. Of course, a standardized contract is an
important document for fishers to understand their rights and obligations.
We use many different forms of media to ensure that fishers are wellinformed, aiming for complete transparency.”
25
NHRC (March 13, 2023). “Interview Record with FCF Assistant Manager Chiang Hui-sung.”
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