Combating
Labor Trafficking
Enhancing awareness to root out modern-day slavery.
There are many ways TAT’s partners in the U.S. and Canada can fight human trafficking — or modern-day slavery — as part of their everyday jobs. Survivors of labor trafficking report interacting with the transportation industry throughout their victimization, including by taking public transit, visiting truck stops or gas stations, riding the school bus, hitchhiking, getting their driver’s license, etc. While companies have legal and ethical obligations to eliminate modern-day slavery from their operations, professional drivers may encounter this crime at transportation hubs, on the road and in homes and businesses. They can help identify victims inside warehouses, restaurants and other locations, where few people see the “back of the house,” and are uniquely positioned to help companies ensure they do not have modern-day slavery occuring in their supply chains.
$236 BILLION
in illicit profits annually
- 27% through labor trafficking ($64 billion)
- 73% through sex trafficking ($172 billion)
Source: International Labor Organization
50 MILLION
victims of modern-day slavery globally
- 27.6 million victims of human trafficking*
- 63% labor trafficking
- 23% in sex trafficking
- 14% in state-imposed forced labor
- 22.4 million in forced marriage
Source: International Labor Organization
* Note: ILO terminology differs from U.S. and Canadian law. Terms based on the most equivalent ILO definition are used here.
Understanding Labor Trafficking: Know the Signs
To effectively prevent and disrupt labor trafficking, understanding the experiences of survivors and the methods employed by perpetrators is critical. Everyone should have basic knowledge about the exploitation spectrum and the similarities and differences between labor exploitation and labor trafficking. It’s also important to be aware of the many ways sex trafficking and labor trafficking overlap, including the vulnerabilities traffickers prey upon.
Labor Exploitation
Labor exploitation is a broad term used to explain a variety of unfair forms of work, where an employer benefits from unethical or illegal treatment of their employees.
versus
Labor Trafficking
Labor trafficking is an extreme form of exploitation that involves the use of force, fraud and/or coercion.
Labor exploitation can escalate into labor trafficking.
The key difference is that human trafficking involves force, fraud and/or coercion, while victims of labor exploitation are not threatened or physically harmed by their employer.
Examples of Labor Exploitation
- Working extremely long hours (over 12 hours a day, 7 days a week for many victims)
- Lack of access to necessary rest, breaks, healthcare
- Unable to take time off when sick, unsafe road conditions, etc.
- Unsafe and/or unsanitary working conditions
- Working without proper permits or certifications
- Withholding or delaying paychecks, statements, tax returns
- Businesses or services provided that aren’t “on the books” (and therefore aren’t recognized or monitored)
- Not having access to necessities (e.g., food, toiletries) that were promised as part of the job housing/lodging
Components of Labor Trafficking (Force, Fraud, Coercion)
- Physical and sexual assault
- Confinement, isolation and/or control of movement
- Lying about conditions of work or laws, customs, norms, etc.
- Falsely expressing romantic interest or friendship
- Debt bondage
- Threats (arrest, deportation, physical, psychological, financial)
- Instilling fear about bystanders, the public or law enforcement
- Deprivation of food, water, sleep
Red Flags of Labor Trafficking
- Signs of physical or emotional exhaustion or deterioration
- The same employee working consistently extended hours and days
- Employers berating workers or physically holding them in a way that is forceful
- Employer accompanying and speaking on behalf of the employee
- No mandatory break and/or lunch in a workplace
- Workers getting dropped off in a single mode of transportation to a work site
- Unsafe or unsanitary working conditions
- Employers possessing workers’ documents
Vulnerabilities
Sex and Labor Trafficking
Migration Status
Racial discrimination
Poverty
Single Parent Household
Disabilities
Substance dependent
Court-involved
Runaways
Homeless
LGBTQ2IA+
Communication barriers
History of abuse
TAT partners with the transportation and energy industries, as well as law enforcement and government agencies, to ensure their workforces understand the crime of human trafficking and know how to report or investigate it effectively.
Evaluate and mitigate risks.
Companies should evaluate the risks of human trafficking most relevant to their business and develop a plan to prevent, detect and respond to it. This includes implementing an anti-human trafficking policy and educating all employees.
Train your employees.
Training is one of the most important steps companies can take to prevent and disrupt human trafficking. TAT offers free human trafficking training resources, including videos, wallet cards, an app, sector-specific toolkits, and supplemental backgrounders.
Talk to your kids.
Traffickers target individuals they can manipulate and control. Youth are especially susceptible, because traffickers take advantage of people without prior employment experience or who are new to navigating the job application process. To help protect youth from labor exploitation and labor trafficking, talk to them about job hunting and appropriate employer-employee relationships.