A coalition of labor rights groups yesterday protested outside the Ministry of Labor in Taipei calling for a crackdown on unsafe fishing practices, after 13 migrant fishers were reported missing this month in fishing accidents.
Many migrant fishers are banned by their employers from wearing life jackets while working, because the jackets’ bulky size could slow them down, Yilan Migrant Fishermen Union secretary-general Allison Lee (李麗華) said during the protest.
The problem could be easily solved by choosing lightweight inflatable life jackets over plastic foam ones, but most employers are unwilling to pay the price difference, she said.
A plastic foam life jacket costs only a few hundred New Taiwan dollars, while an inflatable one costs NT$3,000 to NT$6,000, she said.
Although there are no official statistics on the number of migrant fishers who have drowned on the job, since 2017 the union has handled nearly 10 cases where crew members fell overboard and drowned, she said.
This month alone, two fishing boats carrying a total of 15 people were reported missing after allegedly colliding, she said.
On Aug. 18, the Jin Long Tai No. 6, registered in Suao Township (蘇澳), went missing, along with its Taiwanese captain and eight Chinese and Indonesian fishers.
On Aug. 6, the Chiuan Yi-Tsai No. 1, registered in Wushi Harbor (烏石港), went missing with a Taiwanese captain and five Indonesian crew aboard.
Taolani, one of the Indonesians missing with the Chiuan Yi-Tsai No. 1, had just returned to work on the boat after breaking a finger last month, Lee said.
Taolani took only one week off for his injury, despite a doctor advising three weeks’ rest, because his employer said he should be able to work with one hand, she said.
“He suffered so much from the injury, and then again for what happened after that,” she said. “His family are very anxious now.”
While the ministry regularly conducts labor inspections on fishing boats, it only visits those moored in harbors, Serve the People Association director Lennon Wong (汪英達) said.
Moreover, most ministry inspectors are not proficient in foreign languages and only speak to the Taiwanese employers or employees, he said, adding: “Such labor inspections are useless.”
Under occupational health and safety laws, fishers must wear life jackets whenever there is a risk of falling overboard, said Chen Jhih-ci (陳志祺), an official at the ministry’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
Employers who ban their employees from wearing life jackets in that situation must pay a fine of NT$30,000 to NT$300,000, and could face up to three years of prison, he said.
Last year, the ministry coordinated 150 checks and handed out five fines totaling NT$150,000, including three that were for employers failing to make employees wear life jackets, he said.
Further coordination with authorities, such as the Fisheries Agency, would be conducted to improve safety measures for commercial fishers, he added.
Additional reporting by CNA
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