Thai Union convenes employers and recruiters in Taiwan to strengthen responsible fisheries practices

BANGKOK, Feb. 26, 2026 – As standards for labor rights and transparency continue to evolve across global seafood supply chains, Thai Union Group PCL, a global seafood leader, co-hosted one of the first multi-stakeholder workshops in recent years in Taiwan to bring fishing companies and Taiwan-based recruitment agencies together to strengthen responsible recruitment practices.

The session, convened with key stakeholders in Kaohsiung, a major port city in southern Taiwan, brought together nearly 70 participants from across the supply chain.

Attendees included representatives from the Taiwan Fisheries Agency, distant-water fishery associations, fishing companies, vessel owners, and Taiwan-based recruitment agencies.

Responsible recruitment is widely recognized as an important safeguard for worker welfare, particularly in cross-border hiring systems where recruitment processes can involve multiple parties and inconsistent practices can create gaps in protection. Using real-life fisher experiences as case studies, the workshop identified practical ways for companies and recruiters to improve oversight and documentation throughout the hiring process.

It was designed around three objectives: strengthening shared awareness of responsible recruitment risks with case studies; building practical understanding through tools and methods; and aligning understanding of internationally recognized principles, including the Employer Pays Principle.

The program explored key recruitment and employment stages—such as candidate sourcing, contract communication, wage payment—and how due diligence tools can support clearer documentation, stronger oversight, and more consistent implementation across partners. In cross-border recruitment systems, even small gaps in communication or documentation can create avoidable risk for workers.

By convening employers and recruitment partners in the same forum, the workshop helped establish a shared baseline for implementation and stronger alignment on day-to-day practice.

“By engaging directly with key actors, we are developing a due diligence framework that ensures international requirements are adopted and monitored across the supply chain,” said Kimi Lee, Responsible Sourcing Consultant at Thai Union Group.

“This work is ultimately about driving collective industry effort to identify and implement practical solutions to systemic challenges,” said Sammie Ho Dumas, Senior Director, Sustainability and Social Impact at Thai Union Group.

The initiative is part of Thai Union’s broader and on-going efforts to support human rights and worker welfare across its operations and supply chains under its SeaChange® 2030 sustainability strategy. By investing in partner alignment and practical capability-building, Thai Union aims to support continuous improvement across complex seafood supply chains, alongside wider efforts to strengthen responsible sourcing and transparency.

Read more at https://www.seachangesustainability.org/en/for-people/safe-decent-equitable-work