A major seafood company has found “no evidence” of labor problems aboard one of its supplier's ships, despite news reports out of New Zealand that crew members walked off a ship in protest of timesheet violations.
A letter from Tom Mazzetta, founder and CEO of Mazzetta Company, described an examination of a ship run by Sanford, a supplier to Mazzetta.
In the letter, Mazzetta indicated that his company inquired with Sanford after reports from New Zealand indicated crew members walked off a Sanford ship after getting into a dispute over timesheets and hours paid. Mazzetta said the crew, according to the report, claimed they were intimidated by supervisors into not reporting all hours worked.
Mazzetta said Sanford provided documents, including vessel audit reports, in response to Mazzetta’s inquiry.
“There appears to be no evidence to support allegations of intimidation on the part of the 14 crew members who walked off the vessel,” Mazzetta wrote.
Along with the documents, Mazzetta said Sanford has promised to report any reports of labor violations, and that the supplier has hired an independent observer to be on the ship, the Pacinui, for the remainder of its trip.
“Mazzetta Company takes allegations of this nature extremely seriously,” Mazzetta wrote. “We care tremendously about the products that bear our brand name and the people that are involved, at every stage, in bringing them to market.”
