Key elements of deal to protect migrant fisherman not enforced, group claim

An organisation representing migrant fishermen on Irish boats has claimed that almost three months after it reached agreement with the Government on better protections for the fishers, key elements of the deal have not been acted upon.

The International Transport Workers Federation said the settlement it reached with the Government in April was aimed at addressing, what it described as, severe labour trafficking and human rights abuses caused by the Atypical Work Permit scheme.

That scheme, introduced in 2015, was supposed to ensure those covered by it could no longer be underpaid, overworked or otherwise exploited by boat owners.

However the ITF said the scheme was actually being used to actively exploit, mainly African and Asian, fishermen by holding the fear of deportation over them as the permits are held by the boat owners.

Earlier this year the ITF, armed with testimony from dozens of fishermen and the fact that gardaí had identified 26 suspected victims of trafficking in the industry, took the Government to court over its alleged failure to actively monitor the scheme and how it was being administered.

The sides went into mediation and agreed a number of changes to the permit scheme including, the right to move job without the consent of their sponsoring employer; the ability to obtain a copy of their contract and information on their rights in their native language and English; and the right to be informed of how to lodge a complaint when their rights are violated.

The Government also pledged to transpose an EU Directive governing maximum hours of work, minimum hours of rest and staffing requirements aboard commercial fishing vessels by November 15.

However, according to the ITF little has changed since the deal was struck.

Ken Fleming, ITF Coordinator for Britain and Ireland pointed out that earlier this week, Ireland was again placed in tier 2 of the US State Department’s Trafficking in Persons (TIP) Report due to its failure to meet minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking.

The TIP report pointed out that last year the NGO had to provide fishers it assessed as victims of labour trafficking with material support and assistance, as well as legal advice and representation, without public funding.

“The Government’s continued failure to demonstrate a clear commitment to tackle trafficking in human beings is not acceptable,” said Mr Fleming.

“The Government begin by taking action today to implement the agreement reached between the ITF and various Government Departments in April 2019.

The Atypical Work Permit Scheme, designed to prevent trafficking, had precisely the opposite effect. Despite that, it took for the ITF to bring the Government to court in order to obtain its agreement to reform the Scheme.

"Yet there’s still no sign of any meaningful reform on the ground.

"It’s time the Taoiseach intervened to ensure victims of human trafficking are provided with adequate protections and to stop our country’s reputation being dragged through the mud by modern-day slave drivers.”