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Date: April 30, 2024 Tue
Time: 3:41 am
Time: 3:41 am
Results for migrant labor
7 results foundAuthor: Wilcke, Christoph Title: Domestic Plight How Jordanian Law, Officials, Employers, and Recruiters Fail Abused Migrant Domestic Workers Summary: Despite significant legal reforms in recent years, the chances of a migrant domestic worker (MDW) having all her human rights respected and protected in Jordan are slim, if non-existent. Domestic Plight records systemic and systematic abuses, in some cases amounting to forced labor, experienced by some of the 70,000 Indonesian, Sri Lankan, and Filipina MDWs in Jordan. Abuses included beatings, forced confinement around the clock, passport confiscation, and forcing MDWs to work more than 16 hours a day, seven days a week, without full pay. MDWs who escaped or tried to complain about abuse found little shelter and agencies forcibly returned them to abusive employers. Jordanian officials provided little help, including prosecutors, who rarely applied Jordan’s anti-trafficking law to MDWs. The report traces abuse to a recruitment system in which employers and recruitment agencies disempower workers through deceit, debt, and blocking information about rights and means of redress; and a work environment that isolates the worker and engenders dependency on employers and recruitment agencies under laws that penalize escape. Jordanian law contains provisions, such as allowing confinement and imposing fines for residency violations, which contribute to abuse. The Convention Concerning Decent Work for Domestic Workers, which the International Labour Organization adopted in June 2011 with Jordan’s support, could change that. Human Rights Watch calls on Jordan to promptly ratify and implement the convention by changing laws and practices that restrict MDWs freedom of movement, such as clauses sanctioning their confinement in the house, and blocking them from returning home unless they pay fines. Labor inspectors should investigate and fine employers who violate Jordan’s labor code and prosecutors should more forcefully pursue cases of forced labor for exploitation. Details: New York: Human Rights Watch, 2011. 117p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed October 4, 2011 at: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/jordan0911webwcover.pdf Year: 2011 Country: Jordan URL: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/jordan0911webwcover.pdf Shelf Number: 122987 Keywords: Forced Labor (Jordan)Human RightsMigrant Labor |
Author: Zhang, Sheldon X. Title: Looking for a Hidden Population: Trafficking of Migrant Laborers in San Diego County Summary: Although labor trafficking has received much attention in recent years, there is limited empirical research into the depth, breadth, and scope of the problem. The scarcity of reliable estimates on labor trafficking activities has long caught the attention of major international organizations and government agencies. Both policy makers and advocacy groups recognize that anti-trafficking campaigns cannot gain much credibility without the support of empirical evidence, and more importantly, reliable statistical estimates. However, empirical research on labor trafficking is no easy undertaking. It is expensive and faces major methodological challenges. Taking advantage of recent advances in sampling methodology as well as unique access to unauthorized migrant workers in San Diego County through a partnership with a community organization, this study attempts to answer some of the basic questions confronting current anti-trafficking discourse. The overarching goal of collecting empirical data that can produce valid estimates on the scope of labor trafficking activities was divided into the following two objectives: 1. To provide statistically sound estimates of the prevalence of trafficking victimization among unauthorized migrant laborers in San Diego. 2. To investigate the types of trafficking victimization experienced by these laborers. Details: San Deigo, CA: San Diego State University, 2012. 155p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed December 4, 2012 at: https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/240223.pdf Year: 2012 Country: United States URL: https://www.ncjrs.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/240223.pdf Shelf Number: 127118 Keywords: Bonded LaborHuman Trafficking (California, U.S.)Illegal MigrantsLabor TraffickingMigrant Labor |
Author: New Zealand. Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) Title: Temporary Migrants as Vulnerable Workers: A Literature Review Summary: The vulnerability of temporary migrants in the labour market is a policy issue that has received attention from a mix of international agencies (eg, the International Labour Organization (ILO), United Nations (UN) and European Union) and those responsible for migrant welfare locally (governments and non-governmental organisations). This report reviews the available international and New Zealand research on temporary migrants' vulnerability and exploitation in the workplace. In particular, the review highlights research gaps and whether there are effective interventions that mitigate the vulnerability of temporary migrant workers. There is considerable and growing literature on immigration to New Zealand on the nature of labour market flow composition through to the process of settlement and labour market outcomes for a variety of migrant groups. In the wake of the 1986/87 changes to immigration policy and another round of changes just after 2000, immigration has become a significant contributor to labour supply. However, much of the focus has been on permanent migration and its outcomes. As this review makes clear, temporary migration - which has become a much more substantial characteristic of the New Zealand migration system, including labour supply - has received much less attention. This report discusses the issue of vulnerability in terms of labour market engagement and whether some migrant workers are especially vulnerable in terms of their work situation or experiences. Vulnerability is especially connected to the precariousness of employment, although not all temporary migrant workers are vulnerable and not all suffer from disadvantages in the workplace. That said, literature shows that low skill and education levels contribute to vulnerability in the workplace and that being a migrant exacerbates this vulnerability. Details: Wellington, NZ: Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, 2014. 142p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed April 10, 2014 at: http://www.dol.govt.nz/research/migration/pdfs/temporary-migrant-workers-literature-review-march2014.pdf Year: 2014 Country: New Zealand URL: http://www.dol.govt.nz/research/migration/pdfs/temporary-migrant-workers-literature-review-march2014.pdf Shelf Number: 132061 Keywords: Migrant LaborMigrants Undocumented Immigrants |
Author: Human Rights Watch Title: Summary: At least 146,000 female migrant domestic workers—perhaps many more—are employed in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Female domestic workers from the Philippines, Indonesia, India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Ethiopia, and elsewhere face severe abuse and exploitation by employers and labor recruitment agencies. “I Already Bought You”: Abuse and Exploitation of Female Migrant Domestic Workers in the United Arab Emirates documents how the UAE’s visa sponsorship system (known as kafala) ties migrant workers to employers and how the exclusion of domestic workers from labor law protections leaves migrant domestic workers at risk of abuse. The report exposes barriers preventing abused domestic workers from obtaining remedy, including lack of shelters, penalties for “absconding” workers, and justice system failings. Based on interviews with 99 female domestic workers, recruitment agents, employers, and others in the UAE, the report documents abuses that domestic workers face—passport confiscation, non-payment of wages, lack of rest periods and time off, confinement to households, excessive work and working hours, food deprivation, and psychological, physical, and sexual abuse. In some cases the abuses amounted to forced labor or trafficking. The UAE has an increasingly influential role in the international labor arena. In 2014, it joined the governing body of the International Labour Organization. At home, however, it maintains the exploitative kafala system, has failed to adopt a bill pending since 2012 on domestic workers’ rights, and has yet to ratify key international treaties on migrants’ and domestic workers’ rights. Human Rights Watch calls for the reform of the kafala system and the introduction of labor law protections and other measures to fully protect domestic workers’ rights. Details: New York: HRW, 2014. 85p. Source: Internet Resource: accessed November 10, 2014 at: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/uae1014_forUpload.pdf Year: 2014 Country: United Arab Emirates URL: http://www.hrw.org/sites/default/files/reports/uae1014_forUpload.pdf Shelf Number: 134018 Keywords: Domestic Workers (U.S.)Forced LaborHuman Rights AbusesHuman TraffickingMigrant Labor |
Author: Verite Title: A Verite Assessment of Recruitment Practices and Migrant Labor Conditions in Nestle's Thai Shrimp Supply Chain Summary: Seeking to better understand the risks of forced labor and human trafficking in the Thai seafood industry, Nestle contracted Verite to conduct a focused investigation of six production sites in Thailand - three shrimp farms (one in Mahachai and two in Surat Thani), two ports of origin (Ranong Fish Port and Mahachai Fish Port), and one docked fishing boat (in Ranong Fish Port). These sites were identified by a third-party supply chain mapping consultant as being linked with the fishmeal (or fish feed) used as feed input in farms producing whole prawns for Nestle. Verite assessed these and a number of other worksites in the same supply chain. The three-month assessment focused on forced labor and trafficking risks in the recruitment, hiring, employment and living conditions of foreign migrant workers in the targeted vessel-to-marketplace shrimp and fishmeal supply chain of one of Nestle's key suppliers. The findings of this assessment are largely consistent with those of Verite's prior research and other assessment work in the Thai seafood sector, as well as with reporting done by media and other organizations. B. Key Findings Verite found indicators of forced labor, trafficking, and child labor to be present among sea-based and land-based workers engaged in the production sites covered by the assessment. - Workers interviewed by Verite had been subjected to deceptive recruitment practices that started in their home countries, transported to Thailand under inhumane conditions, charged excessive fees leading to debt bondage in some cases, exposed to exploitative and hazardous working conditions, and, at the time of assessment, were living under sub-par to degrading conditions. - Workers reported that they were not provided with adequate information about the terms of their work at the point of their recruitment and, often, the actual conditions of the work were severe, including excessive overtime, no days off, and few protections against working hazards. A few workers reported having been 'sold' to a boat captain or being transported by a broker to a port, with the only alternative to joining the crew being to buy back the contract. - Verite found few and typically inadequate mechanisms for age-verification of workers, and identified underage workers engaged in sea-based work. - Grievance mechanisms for sea-based workers and most land-based workers were largely absent, with little to no communication available to fishers while at sea. - Compounding these issues, workers often lacked appropriate documentation, which would have lent them some level of protection against threats of detention, deportation, and denunciation to the authorities. Even when workers did have appropriate documentation, withholding of passports and personal documents by employers was found to be a common practice. - Pay practices for sea-based workers often resulted in employers withholding workers' total pay. Workers had no means of verifying if they were receiving the wages owed them, and could not leave their employment without potentially facing financial penalties. - Workers also reported intimidation, harassment, and verbal and physical abuse. Freedom of movement was restricted for fishers even when not at sea. Land-based workers reported constant surveillance and intimidation by the local authorities. - Verite found the use of an illegal substance among workers on fishing boats to be rampant; supervisors/crew leaders were fully aware but did not restrict use, as the substance kept workers awake and able to perform long work hours. Details: Amherst, MA: Verite, 2016? 22p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed March 21, 2016 at: http://www.verite.org/sites/default/files/images/NestleReport-ThaiShrimp_prepared-by-Verite.pdf Year: 2016 Country: Thailand URL: http://www.verite.org/sites/default/files/images/NestleReport-ThaiShrimp_prepared-by-Verite.pdf Shelf Number: 138352 Keywords: Debt BondageForced LaborHuman TraffickingMigrant Labor |
Author: Wilkinson, Mick Title: Forced labour in the UK and the Gangmasters Licensing Authority Summary: Migration and trafficking for forced labour has been fuelled over the past decade by global inequalities and by poverty, conflict and environmental degradation in developing countries. The process has been encouraged by the increase in demand by employers for low-cost, "flexible' labour in the increasingly free-market economies of developed countries, and by consumer demand for cheap goods and services. There is a demand in the UK for cheap, mobile, flexible labour across a range of sectors, including care, construction, cleaning, hospitality and catering, and food production. Surveys have consistently found that UK employers prefer to employ migrant workers, because they consider them to be hard-working and reliable, and willing to work unsociable hours. Many businesses now depend upon them, as do entire sectors of the economy - both private and public. Studies sponsored by the Home Office, the International Organisation for Migration, the Institute for Public Policy Research, and the Royal Society for Arts have all argued a net benefit to the UK economy of the order of $2bn-$3bn per annum. Such are the benefits to British industry, that the-then Director-General of the CBI, Sir Digby Jones, called in April 2005 for the government to resist any thoughts of a cap on immigration, arguing that every one per cent increase in immigration generated a 1.5 per cent increase in national wealth. He added: If it was not for immigrant labour, especially in leisure, in tourism, in agriculture, in construction, then frankly many of our businesses would not have the workers we need.- The so-called "demographic time bomb" both in the UK and other western European countries, with ageing populations, means that those active in the labour market represent a diminishing proportion of the workforce and those beyond retirement age constitute a growing proportion. The implications for the dependency ratio of economically inactive to economically active people are clear, and this is reflected in an increasing dependence on migrant workers. In short, the UK needs migrant workers. In order to meet that demand, over the past two decades UK governments have developed a programme of "managed migration". This actively encourages the flow of temporary migration in the interests of the UK economy, by expanding existing temporary worker schemes and adding new programmes. As a result, the number of work permits issued to foreign-born workers rose from 40,000 a year in the mid-1990s to over 200,000 a year in 2004. That process culminated with the Worker Registration Scheme in 2004, to facilitate the arrival of A8 Accession state nationals. Alongside this, since the early 1980s there has been a drive, across the major Western economies, to reduce business regulation to a minimum. UK governments have played a very significant role in this, both at home and in Europe. In 1973, the UK government introduced the Employment Agencies Act, under which all labour providers had to register and comply with legal standards. However, under the Conservative government of John Major, a more liberal labour policy introduced the Deregulation and Contracting Out Act 1994, through which the system of agency licensing was abolished and action against exploiters became primarily dependent upon the complaints of victims. In June 2008, a research team led by Dr Mick Wilkinson at the Contemporary Slavery Research Centre, the Wilberforce Institute, Hull University, was commissioned by Oxfam to conduct an independent evaluation of the GLA and the Act. Their remit was to: Review the operation of the GLA and Act; Assess the strengths and shortcomings of both in protecting the employment rights and wider rights (eg. to safe housing) of migrant and other vulnerable workers; and Make recommendations on how the Act could be strengthened and extended and the Authority improved to protect migrant and vulnerable workers more effectively. Details: Hull, UK: Contemporary Slavery Research Centre (CSRC), The Wilberforce Institute, University of Hull, 2010. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed May 5, 2016 at: http://www2.hull.ac.uk/fass/pdf/WPGLAreport.pdf Year: 2010 Country: United Kingdom URL: http://www2.hull.ac.uk/fass/pdf/WPGLAreport.pdf Shelf Number: 138949 Keywords: Forced LaborHuman TraffickingMigrant LaborMigrants |
Author: Environmental Justice Foundation (EJF) Title: Slavery at Sea: The Continued Plight of Trafficked Migrants in Thailand's Fishing Industry Summary: In the last two years, nothing has changed on the issue of human trafficking in fisheries... It just stays the same. Nothing new, no improvements – because the problems are still there. Kyaw Lin Oo, interpreter for victims of human trafficking Thailand is the third largest seafood exporter in the world, • with seafood exports valued at $7.3 billion in 2011. The European Union imported more than $1.15 billion (€835.5 million) worth of seafood from Thailand in 2012, while the value of imports by the United States exceeded $1.6 billion in 2013. The Thai fishing industry remains heavily reliant on -- trafficked and forced labour. It is clear that rising overheads, exacerbated by the need to spend more time at sea for smaller catches due to over-fishing and chronic mismanagement of the fishery will continue to encourage these abuses. As boat operators have looked to cut costs, working -- conditions and wages have suffered, causing many workers to turn away from the industry and forcing some employers to rely on criminal trafficking networks to meet the labour shortfall. NGOs, international organisations, governments and -- industry have identified the Thai seafood sector as an area of high concern for forced and trafficked labour. Thailand has spent four consecutive years on the Tier 2 "Watchlist" of the US Department of State's Trafficking in Persons report and now faces a mandatory downgrade to Tier 3 in 2014 if the major issues are not adequately addressed. To address a series of criticisms made by observers, -- Thailand's Ministry of Social Development and Human Security (MSDHS) released the 2013 National Action Plan to Prevent and Suppress Human Trafficking (NAP). The document itself is broad in scope and undermined by vague objectives. EJF investigations have revealed evidence that the Thai Government is falling far short of critical commitments made in the action plan. Investigations in 2014 document the continued prevalence -- of trafficking in the Thai fishing industry, with operators now taking greater precaution to avoid detection, including transhipping trafficked workers at sea. Corruption remains a major obstacle to efforts to -- combat human trafficking in Thailand. EJF investigations uncovered evidence of continued police collusion in the trafficking and exploitation of migrant workers aboard Thai fishing boats. Further, EJF's investigations reveal that local officials often provide protection and even assistance to unscrupulous brokers and business owners engaged in the trafficking and abuse of migrant workers. The case of the 14 men rescued from a port in Kantang -- first reported in EJF's 2013 "Sold to the Sea report" reveals serious structural failings in how Thai authorities deal with human trafficking victims and cases more generally. After nearly a year in a Government shelter and little progress on their case, the victims told EJF in 2014 that they are frustrated and now more focused on returning home than pursuing their case. Without determined action at the highest levels of -- Government to identify and successfully prosecute criminals, corrupt officials and unscrupulous business operators, alongside the introduction and enforcement of comprehensive measures to regulate Thailand's fishing fleets and recruitment practices, violence, exploitation and slavery will remain an ongoing feature of Thailand's seafood industry. Details: London: EJF, 2014. 40p. Source: Internet Resource: Accessed December 9, 2016 at: https://ejfoundation.org/sites/default/files/public/EJF_Slavery-at-Sea_report_2014_web-ok.pdf Year: 2014 Country: Thailand URL: https://ejfoundation.org/sites/default/files/public/EJF_Slavery-at-Sea_report_2014_web-ok.pdf Shelf Number: 145617 Keywords: Fishing IndustryForced LaborHuman TraffickingIllegal FishingMigrant LaborWildlife Crime |