Living Wage

The objective of ASC’s living wage strategy is that ASC certified farms and feed mills pay their workers a living wage. 

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.”

ASC will achieve this through requirements on wage measurement, wage benchmarking and supporting producers to develop a wage improvement plan. ASC is initially focussing on measurement and improvement, recognising that the journey to paying a living wage is long and involved and will engage with key stakeholders in industry, civil society, and government to build support for an enabling environment that supports a broader uptake of living wage.

Achieving a living wage across ASC certified facilities in all producer countries is a long-term goal. Each of the 50+ countries where ASC certified farms and feed mills are located differs in terms of minimum wage requirements and the gap between prevailing and living wages. At the same time, each species has different price and retail structures that should be considered, and producers are not expected to absorb increased labour costs suddenly and without support.

With the upcoming release of the Farm Standard, ASC will introduce a standardized methodology to measure and compare actual wages to local benchmarks. As data is collected and ASC better understands the wage gaps by country and species, ASC will continue to research appropriate strategies and tools to assist producers in closing gaps, which may include partnerships with retailers and other supply chain partners.

ASC’s methodology and approach is aligned with the principles outlined in the International Labour Organisation (ILO) agreement on living wages, endorsed on March 13, 2024.

Activities

ASC is an active member of the Global Living Wage Coalition (GLWC). We use the GLWC definition of living wage and collaborate closely with other member certification schemes to advocate and raise awareness on living wage. As members of GLWC, we also  support the work of the Anker Research Institute on living wage and use Anker Research Institute living wage benchmarks..

In December 2022, ASC began a pilot project together with IDH – using the Salary Matrix, an online wage measurement tool developed by IDH – to analyse and verify living wage gaps on aquaculture farms in three target countries. The goals of this pilot were to better understand wage gaps and wage drivers in aquaculture, understand the cost and complexity of this tool, and collect feedback from farms and auditors on ASC’s draft living wage requirements.

The first phase of this pilot wrapped up in August 2024. Results showed that the Salary Matrix, while initially challenging for some farms in the pilot, is a potentially effective tool for measuring wage gaps with the right support. ASC will recommend its use for wage measurement and reporting in the ASC Farm Standard, working with partners, including IDH to provide necessary resources and training. A summary of key activities and findings can be read here.

ASC is now in a second phase of work with IDH to develop additional localized training materials and roll out further training on the tool.

Stakeholder consultation

In January 2023, ASC established a Technical Working Group on Living Wage, which provided input into draft living wage indicators and a wage measurement methodology for the Farm Standard. Draft living wage indicators and methodology went out to public consultation in September 2023 and revised indicators were included in a final round of public consultation in April 2024Indicators have now been finalised and will be released with the ASC Farm Standard in 2025.

Contact person: Jean Johnson

Funder