How the Hermit Kingdom forces its people to work in Chinese factories

Boston Globe

26-07-2025

The video was part of hundreds of hours of footage and other documents obtained by The Outlaw Ocean Project demonstrating
that the Chinese government has been
using North Korean workers to process seafood, in violation of UN sanctions. Much of the seafood processed in these plants is sold to consumers in the US, in violation of
These revelations, which are part of the final episode of the newly released second season of The Outlaw Ocean podcast, have raised pressing questions about the source of the seafood on our tables, and have sent global seafood companies
At the risk of espionage charges and execution, two dozen North Korean workers, most of them women, agreed to talk to Outlaw Ocean Project reporters about working in Chinese seafood plants. These workers recounted rampant sexual assaults, violence, constant monitoring, and zero access to the outside world. The podcast is available on all major streaming platforms. For transcripts, background reporting, and bonus content, visit
Global attention on the illegal use of North Korean labor has spiked recently because of Russia's deployment of
China officially denies that North Korean workers are in the country, but The Outlaw Ocean
investigation has identified at least 15 seafood-
Some of the social media footage pulled from China featured people openly discussing the presence of these workers. 'They are easy to distinguish,' a resident of Dandong — a Chinese city on the border with North Korean
— wrote in a comment on Bilibili, a video-sharing site. 'They all wear uniform clothes, have a leader, and follow orders.'
In a video taken at a plant called Dandong Yuanyi Refined Seafoods, 15 women perform a synchronized dance in front of a mural commemorating 'Youth Day,' a North Korean holiday. The video features a North Korean flag and the caption, 'North Korea in Donggang cold storage [with] little beautiful women.' (The company did not respond to requests for comment.)
As a result of The Outlaw Ocean investigation, several seafood companies severed ties with plants connected to the North Korean workers. The
The investigation pulled back a curtain, revealing a hidden world where forced labor props up global supply chains and international laws are systematically ignored. There has been real progress in tracing these networks, exposing the complicity of corporations, and challenging the illusion of clean audits and ethical sourcing.
But despite sanctions, public outcry, and growing awareness, the practice continues, driven by demand and enabled by deliberate ignorance. Until enforcement matches the scale of the abuse, North Korean workers will keep paying the price for the seafood we consume.