Funnels of unfreedom: Time-spaces of recruitment and (Im)Mobility in the trajectories of trafficked migrant fishers

Sallie Yea, Christina Stringer, Wayne Palmer

Research output: Contribution to journalArticleResearchpeer-review

6 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

The recruitment and deployment of migrant fishers in distant waters (DW) fisheries has emerged as a significant site for the production of unfree labor relations. We trace the recruitment and deployment geographies of migrant fishers from the Philippines to the vessel, conceptualizing the time-spaces of the journey as a significant site for producing unfree labor. We argue that labor brokerage not only establishes the conditions of the labor contract and financialization of migration in the migrants’ home country but is also an ongoing process that intensifies unfreedom through the journey to deployment across multiple sites and temporalities. We conceptualize this movement into exploitative laboring situations as “funnels of unfreedom.” The production of unfreedom through the geographies of recruitment, harboring, and transportation to the destination is one strategy by which DW fleets can reduce costs. The relevance of this discussion extends to other sectors where complex labor brokerage geographies constrain migrant worker choices and fortify unfreedom in labor relations.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)291-306
Number of pages16
JournalAnnals of the American Association of Geographers
Volume113
Issue number1
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2023
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • distant water fisheries
  • human trafficking
  • labor recruitment
  • migration trajectories
  • the Philippines

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