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Living Wage
Through its living wage strategy, ASC works towards the goal that ASC-certified farms and feed mills pay their workers a living wage that enables them and their families to afford a decent standard of living.
A living wage is defined by the Global Living Wage Coalition as “the remuneration received for a standard workweek by a worker in a particular place sufficient to afford a decent standard of living for the worker and her or his family. Elements of a decent standard of living include food, water, housing, education, health care, transportation, clothing, and other essential needs including provision for unexpected events.”
Achieving living wages across ASC-certified facilities is a long-term goal. ASC-certified farms and feed mills span more than 50 countries, each with different wage levels, labour regulations, and economic realities. At the same time, each species has different price and retail structures that should be considered. Producers cannot be expected to close living wage gaps abruptly or without broader value chain support.
ASC’s approach focuses on wage measurement, transparency and continuous improvement. In the near term, the focus is on building the frameworks and capacity needed for measuring wages and improving them over time.
Recognising that living wages are a shared responsibility, ASC seeks to engage industry, civil society, and governments to create the enabling conditions necessary for sustainable and scalable wage improvements.
Living wage in the ASC Farm Standard
The ASC Farm Standard introduces clear requirements and a standardised methodology for measuring and comparing actual wages to local living wage benchmarks. As data is collected and wage gaps are better understood across countries and species, ASC will identify and pursue strategies to support their gradual closure. This may include collaboration with retailers and other value chain partners to promote shared responsibility and sustainable wage improvements.
Our methodology and overall approach is aligned with the principles set out in the International Labour Organisation (ILO) agreement on living wages, endorsed on March 13 2024.
Read more about why living wages are important, what ASC is doing about it and what aquaculture can learn from other sectors in this three-part blog series:
Activities
ASC is an active member of the Global Living Wage Coalition (GLWC), adhering to its definition of a living wage and collaborating closely with other member certification schemes to advocate for living wage and develop strategies for wage improvement. ASC also collaborates with the Anker Research Institute and uses its living wage benchmarks.
Between 2022 and 2024, ASC ran a pilot project with IDH, to analyse and verify living wage gaps on aquaculture farms in three countries using the Salary Matrix. The project aimed to better understand wage gaps and drivers in aquaculture, assess the tool’s cost and complexity, and collect feedback from farms and auditors on ASC’s draft living wage requirements.
Results from the pilot showed that the while the Salary Matrix posed initial challenges for some farms, it is a valuable tool for measuring wage gaps when combined with proper support. The ASC Farm Standard therefore strongly recommends its use.
ASC is supporting farms in implementing living wage requirements through targeted capacity building and practical guidance. This includes developing tailored training materials, webinars, and self-study modules that explain key living wage concepts and clarify how a wage gap can be identified through the Salary Matrix. Through training, pilot activities, and direct engagement, ASC is enabling producers to apply the methodology correctly and build internal capacity for ongoing wage measurement and improvement planning.
Stakeholder consultation
In January 2023, ASC established a Technical Working Group on living wage, which provided input into the development of living wage indicators and a wage measurement methodology for the ASC Farm Standard. The indicators and methodology were open for public consultation in September 2023, and revised indicators underwent a final round of public consultation in April 2024. The finalised indicators in the ASC Farm Standard are a result of these consultations.
Contact person: Annabel Mulder
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