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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
Business
Michael Sainato

‘A fishing accident blinded me but I was forced to keep working’: abuses faced by workers who catch our fish

Workers unload fish from the boat before transporting to a fish market on July 13, 2016 in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
Workers unload fish from the boat before transporting to a fish market in July 2016 in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Photograph: Billy HC Kwok/Getty Images

Labor groups and government officials are pushing to rein in rampant abuses of workers in the fishing industry, where migrant laborers are frequently subjected to slavery and violence from employers.

One out of every five fish is caught through illegal, unreported and unregulated fishing in conditions where abuses of workers are common, according to a United Nations estimate. About 128,000 workers are thought to be currently trapped in forced labor on remote fishing vessels around the world, according to the International Labour Organization.

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