Glenn Simmons

Stepping Through the Looking Glass: Researching Slavery in New Zealand’s Fishing Industry

Qualitative researchers may encounter unforeseen risks when undertaking fieldwork; however, such risks are not widely addressed in the management and international business literatures. Furthermore, risks to participants and their families, and translators, is also an important phenomenon seldom explored in the literature. In this article, we reflect on our investigations of slavery in the foreign charter vessel sector of New Zealand’s fishing industry. Third parties threatened and intimidated many of those involved in our research, for example, through direct confrontation and surveillance. We contend that methodological awareness around risks and coping strategies needs further development, particularly in the management and international business literatures. Knowledge of potential risks and coping strategies can help mitigate consequences and, by doing so, enhance research designs.

Labour standards and regulation in global value chains: The case of the New Zealand Fishing Industry:

Building on the concept of polarity in global value chains, we explore how the nature of the governance of a global value chain can evolve and how contingencies can reshape governance arrangements. A case-study of the New Zealand fishing industry highlights how parties inside and outside the global value chain came to contest labour standards, laying the base for credible regulation. In 2011 through a series of convergent events, migrant crew on board South Korean fishing vessels, hitherto exploited, abused and isolated, emerged as a significant actor to bring about a clear transition in the governance of a multipolar global value chain. In this paper, we analyse the series of events which led to regulatory change and consider whether the dynamics from the case offer lessons for improving labour standards and regulation in global value chains more generally.

Evidence of bias in assessment of fisheries management impacts

Melnychuk et al.’s comments in PNAS (1) that successful fisheries management requires the “capacity to limit fishing pressure” and “scientists are generally unanimous in calling for stronger management” echo comments made in many earlier publications. However, their conclusions about specific fisheries and management approaches lack credibility.