The European Parliament has published a study, written by Blomeyer & Sanz, on the training and certification of fishers relating to health, safety, and sustainability on board. This study aims to compare the practices and standards for the training and certification of fishers in different Member States (MS), and it highlights the divergence between MS and the complexity and risks that this generates.

Unlike the maritime transport sector, there is no single EU standard for the training and certification of fishers relating to health and safety on board. Member State safety training and certification requirements for fishers are complicated and vary significantly between Member States. This complexity is an obstacle to the free movement of fishers and it makes it harder to comply with statutory training and certification requirements. It may be contributing to illegal labour, and worker exploitation in the fishing sector.