The ITF represents fishers to advance our rights, safety and working conditions. We work to create a fairer, safer, and more sustainable future for fishers globally. We do this through organising fishers and building union capacity, strategic campaigning and collective bargaining, and holding governments, employers and companies along seafood supply chains accountable for the safety, pay and labour standards of all fishers involved in catching their products.
Fishers and our oceans are under greater pressure than ever before, and fishing is one of the most exploitative industries in the world. Overwork, low pay, and unsafe working conditions are rife throughout the industry, and forced labour or slavery at sea is still commonplace. Seafood companies continue to prioritise profit above all, leading a race to the bottom and exacerbating conditions that are devastating for our oceans and many fishers.
The ITF Fisheries Section works to eliminate labour rights abuse and exploitation through organising, collective bargaining, collective action, and solidarity with fishers globally. The ITF Fisheries Section consists of 91 affiliated unions in 59 countries, representing over 146,000 members.
Our vision is a world where fishers everywhere can:
Our goal is to raise standards in the fishing industry and stop the race to the bottom that exploits fishers, and damages our oceans and fish stocks. It is time for fishers to share equally in the massive that global seafood companies make off of our labour.
We work on several fronts to achieve our vision by:
Our objectives across all of our work include:
The ITF Fisheries Section Committee works democratically to decide the issues we focus on. The Committee brings together affiliated unions from all regions, as well as women and young workers representatives. We fight to achieve global justice for fishers through global solidarity, by building regional and global connections, and by engaging with governments, employers, other global and national trade unions, civil society and environmental organisations.
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Contact us |
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SECTION COORDINATOR Rossen Karavatchev |
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FISHERIES EXPERTS Chris Williams Michael O'Brien |
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The ITF Fisheries Section has 91 affiliated unions from 59 countries representing 146,000 fishers worldwide.