March 14, 2025 — Canned seafood giant Bumble Bee knowingly sources its tuna from fleets that use physical violence and negligence to entrap workers and force them to fish in inhumane and horrific conditions in order to maximize company profits, four fishermen from rural Indonesia claim in a complaint filed in San Diego federal court on Wednesday.
“These men were looking for good jobs so they could provide for their families and build a future. Instead, they allege, they were trapped — isolated at sea, beaten with metal hooks, not getting enough food, working around the clock — and facing financial penalties if they tried to leave. The complaint outlines how each of them asked to be released, but were kept on board against their will — and in some cases didn’t take home a single penny for their labor,” plaintiff attorney Agnieszka Fryszman, partner at Cohen Milstein, said in a statement.
A man from rural Java identified in the suit as Akhmad claims he signed a contract that promised him $300 a month to join a fishing ship. But $200 a month was deducted for his first eight months at sea, which amounted to one-third of the contract’s period, to repay his recruitment and administrative costs. Another $50 was deducted for his living expenses, which left him with only $50 a month to support himself and his family.
That wasn’t it though, according to him and three other workers in their complaint. His family was also threatened with “punishment,” fines and debt if he left the ship early.