Countries shall ratify ILO C188 and protect the rights of fishers worldwide A recording of the social partners’ event on ILO “Work in fishing” Convention is now available to watch online. News 30 Nov 2020
The fishing sector joins forces with the international community to call for wide ratification of ILO C188 ETF and Europêche hosted a webinar on the ILO C188, in collaboration with the ILO, the European Commission and representatives of important fishing nations such as France, the Netherlands, Denmark and the United Kingdom. High-ranked panellists widely called for the ratification and implementation of the ILO C188 and its EU equivalent, EU Directive 2017/159. Press Release 20 Nov 2020
EU must put in place effective measures to ban imports from fleets with evidence of labour abuses There is growing evidence that the fleets scoring worst in global IUU fishing are also the ones where more cases of forced labour and human rights and labour abuses are observed. To stop imports of fish products from countries that are violating environmental as well as labour standards to the EU, European Social Partners of the fisheries sector adopted a resolution, urging the Commission to take appropriate actions. News 11 Nov 2020
Fishing capacity ceilings have to be reviewed to bring the sector closer to social and environmental sustainability Social partners call for a revision of the current fishing capacity rules to allow for improvements in safety and working conditions and move the industry closer to the European Green Deal goals. News 10 Nov 2020
Joint letter to Commissioner Sinkevičius on entry/exit scheme and fishing capacity measurements resource 10 Nov 2020
Draft guidance on social responsibility in fish value chains delayed after pushback ETF, Europeche, and LDAC addressed a letter to FAO, urging the organisation to continue with the process of creating guidance on social responsibility in fish value chains. News 6 Nov 2020
Without fishers, there’s no fishing At a plenary meeting, the EU Social Partners in the Fisheries Sector – Europêche, Cogeca and ETF – welcomed the presentation of the parliamentary draft report “Fishers for the future: Attracting a new generation of labour to the fishing industry and generating employment in coastal communities” of the MEP Manuel Pizarro. While acknowledging the report as an important step in the right direction, social partners call on the policy-makers to recognize the key social dimension of fishing, thus improving the health and safety of fishers and attracting youth to the sector. Press Release 5 Nov 2020
COVID-19: Social partners call for crew changes of fishers in West Africa ETF, Europeche and Cogeca addressed a letter to the relevant authorities of Senegal and Ivory Coast to ask for their cooperation and support in facilitating the repatriation of fishermen stranded in West Africa. News 23 Jun 2020
Fuel de-taxation is fundamental for keeping jobs in fisheries In light of the WTO negotiations on fishery subsidies, ETF joined Europêche, Cogeca, EAPO and AIPCE-CEP in presenting their case against the fuel de-taxation schemes in fisheries. Statement 25 Mar 2020