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Migrant workers in US seafood industry exposed to forced labor conditions
Source: The Guardian
Migrant workers in US seafood industry exposed to forced labor conditions
National Guestworker Alliance study finds undocumented and H-2B visa
workers are often exploited, including verbal abuse and threats of exposure
to authorities
Jana Kasperkevic in Washington
Wednesday 8 June 2016 18.44 BST
The use of migrant workers in the US seafood supply chain has led to the creation of exploitative conditions that are equivalent to forced labor, according to a report released on Wednesday.
The report was released by the National Guestworker Alliance (NGA) and is based on previous findings as well as interviews with 126 seafood processing workers in New Bedford, Massachusetts, and a range of in-depth case studies.
In order to succeed in a highly competitive global market, US seafood processors have increasingly come to rely on temporary labor. Such workers include H-2B visa laborers as well as undocumented workers. Their immigration status makes these workers vulnerable to exploitation. The NGA found that these workers were unlikely to report abuse on the job due to threats from employers not to hire them in subsequent seasons and sponsor them for H-2B visa. Undocumented workers have been threatened with immigration enforcement.
“This new research exposes a reality that workers know all too well,” said Daniel Castellanos, former H-2B guest worker and a co-founder of the NGA. “Seafood processing workers are routinely subjected to severe forms of exploitation by companies producing cheap seafood for major retailers and food distributors like Walmart. And when they speak out or try to resist abuse, they are punished severely for it.”
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National Guestworker Alliance study finds undocumented and H-2B visa
workers are often exploited, including verbal abuse and threats of exposure
to authorities
Jana Kasperkevic in Washington
Wednesday 8 June 2016 18.44 BST
The use of migrant workers in the US seafood supply chain has led to the creation of exploitative conditions that are equivalent to forced labor, according to a report released on Wednesday.
The report was released by the National Guestworker Alliance (NGA) and is based on previous findings as well as interviews with 126 seafood processing workers in New Bedford, Massachusetts, and a range of in-depth case studies.
In order to succeed in a highly competitive global market, US seafood processors have increasingly come to rely on temporary labor. Such workers include H-2B visa laborers as well as undocumented workers. Their immigration status makes these workers vulnerable to exploitation. The NGA found that these workers were unlikely to report abuse on the job due to threats from employers not to hire them in subsequent seasons and sponsor them for H-2B visa. Undocumented workers have been threatened with immigration enforcement.
“This new research exposes a reality that workers know all too well,” said Daniel Castellanos, former H-2B guest worker and a co-founder of the NGA. “Seafood processing workers are routinely subjected to severe forms of exploitation by companies producing cheap seafood for major retailers and food distributors like Walmart. And when they speak out or try to resist abuse, they are punished severely for it.”
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Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/business/2016/jun/08/us-seafood-workers-abuse-immgration-temporary-labor