TRAINING & WORKSHOP ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND WORKING CONDITIONS ON BOARD IN FISHING VESSELS based on ISO19011:2018, 8 - 9 December, General Santos, The Philippines

TRAINING & WORKSHOP ON SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY AND WORKING CONDITIONS ON BOARD IN FISHING VESSELS based on ISO19011:2018, 8 - 9 December, General Santos, The Philippines

The Fishing Industry Association (PNG) Inc. (FIA PNG), in collaboration with the specialised consultancy organisation, Seafoodmatter, is continuously delivering a workshop on social responsibility and working conditions on board fishing vessels. The training aims to increase the number of qualified Social Auditors within our members. This provides attendees with the tools available on the market to ensure that tuna are captured in a legal, safe, free, and ethical manner. The training & workshop takes place in person from 8 to 9 December at the GreenLeaf Hotel, General Santos, The Philippines. A total of 24 representatives from the FIA PNG members: RD fishing group, Frabelle fishing group, Trans-Pacific Journey, TSP Marine Industries, Bluecatch Fishing Corporation, Starcki Corporation, Win Far Fishery Group, Fair Well Fishing, and IFC were registered to attend.

The Training & Workshop on FISH Standard For Crew

The Training and workshop is based on the ISO 19011:2018 standard and constitute a guide for the audit management system and its application on internal audits, in which it evaluates social and work aspects on-board.

This training action deals with the social and labour aspects that must occur within the framework of human, labour rights and ethical behaviour and is aligned with the 2030 Agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG). In short, it is about acquiring adequate knowledge about the regulations, tools, and controls available to evaluate the practices and conditions in an activity as particular as fishing.

The workshop covers in detail the aspects that must be considered to create the trust that the tuna products that reach the next step in the supply chain after capture have been obtained in legal, safe, free, and ethical conditions. The workshop is based on ILO Convention 188, F.I.S.H for Crew Standard, Human Rights Conventions, Human Rights at Sea, Fisheries Crime from the UN drugs and crime department guidance, Copenhagen declaration, and Social Accountability Tools available online.

Several group exercises based on real cases were discussed, as well as short tests, group discussions about ISO19011:2018 techniques, and FISH standard requirements that included non-conformities and scoring. It was a comprehensive a robust training of 16 hours plus a 1-hour test.

FIA PNG members as a Group achieved the certification of FISH for Crew, which recognises the good practices of fishing companies with their crew, in October 2022, and it was granted in February 2023.

Currently, FIA PNG members are searching to have their own individual FISH certification per fleet to manage in a better manner the risk, cost/investment, and positive impact on working and living conditions.

The FISH standard for Crew requests that internal auditors should have an ISO19011:2018 training as part of the auditor’s competencies.

Main benefits of the workshop

On the other hand, the benefits of doing this training are extensive. On the one hand, it allows for an exhaustive knowledge of the labour schemes on the conditions on board in the fishing sector. It also seeks tools to assess suppliers (fishing vessels) about possible human rights abuses in the value chain.

A similar workshop has also been carried out in person by the FIA PNG COO, and Seafoodmatter trainer, Marcelo Hidalgo, in Australia, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Mauritius Islands, Ecuador and Spain.

The FIA PNG appreciates the collaboration, support, and assistance of the TSP Marine Industries in convening this training and workshop.