The estimates herein are the result of a collaborative effort between the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Walk Free Foundation, in partnership with the International Organization for Migration (IOM). They benefited from inputs provided by other UN agencies, in particular the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).In the context of this report, modern slavery covers a set of specific legal concepts including forced labour, debt bondage, forced marriage, other slavery and slavery like practices, and human trafficking. Although modern slavery is not defined in law, it is used as an umbrella term that focuses attention on commonalities across these legal concepts. Essentially, it refers to situations of exploitation that a person cannot refuse or leave because of threats, violence, coercion, deception, and/or abuse of power.

While some of the forms of exploitation covered by this research are specific to countries directly involved in conflict child soldiering and organ trafficking to treat wounded fighters the remaining types of trafficking in human beings have many points in common in conflict and post conflict periods. Recruitment methods, psychological control techniques and the forms of exploitation do not depend on particular geographic zones.

The purpose of this text is to comprehensively present the issue of human trafficking to the reader. While it is intended for upper level undergraduate and graduate students in a variety of disciplines, professionals working in any number of fields including law enforcement, human services or health care will find it informative and useful as well. In addition, the book is a “must read” for concerned citizens interested in human rights and how to make a difference in their communities.The book is divided into three sections, each of which addresses different aspects of human trafficking. The two chapters in the first section provide an overview of the issue and contextualize it within a human rights and historical framework. The second section comprises five chapters and provides the reader with more detailed information about trafficking from a variety of academic disciplines. The third section focuses on the antitraficking movement and addresses international responses to the problem as well as considerations for working with victims. Also in the final section is a chapter written from the perspective of a former agent with the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation, which is geared toward training law enforcement. Finally, the text closes with a chapter about how trafficking is being addressed and how individuals, larger social groups, and organizations can get involved in putting an end to the crime and to helping survivors.

Since its inception in 2002, the Bali Process on People Smuggling, Trafficking in Persons and Related Transnational Crime (Bali Process) has effectively raised regional awareness of the consequences of people smuggling, trafficking in persons and related transnational crime, and also developed and implemented strategies and practical cooperation in response. 48 member countries and international organizations, as well as a number of observer countries and international agencies, participate in this voluntary forum. The policy guides aim to provide an overview of international and regional standards for the identification and protection of victims of trafficking, drawing extensively on examples of good practices from Bali Process member countries. In line with the recommendations of the Fifth Ministerial Conference in April 2013, these policy guides are the second set of Bali Process Policy Guides falling within the thematic areas of the Bali Process and on issues of particular concern to Bali Process members. They are voluntary, non-binding and intended for use as reference tools by a range of domestic agencies in Bali Process Member States.

Almost half of the total number of migrant workers in the world today are women. It is important to acknowledge that labour migration may benefit them through economic and socio-cultural empowerment, however, due to their dual vulnerability as migrants and women, they are still disproportionately exposed to a variety of risks arising from their mobility. At every stage of their migratory experience, women migrant workers may be more exposed to human rights violations such as discrimination, exploitation and abuse compared to their male counterparts. This publication presents the approach IOM takes toward the protection and empowerment of women migrant workers. By displaying key IOM activities in that area, the report seeks to better inform policy makers, practitioners and the public of the vulnerability of these women and of good practices for the protection of their human rights throughout the labour migration cycle.

This brochure presents an overview and introduction to human trafficking and the role that business can play in addressing it. It explains in practical terms what human trafficking is, why it is an issue for business and what companies large and small can do to take action against it. Divided into two parts, this brochure presents a section that gives an overview of the key issues linking human trafficking and business; and a series of case studies that highlight the practical actions companies are taking to fight this abuse.

Global assessments suggest that a substantial proportion of labour migrants ends up in situations of extreme exploitation, some of whom are identified as victims of human trafficking. Because large numbers of migrant workers fall into a “grey area” between trafficking (as defined by international and national law) and exploitative labour situations, there is good reason to explore the differences and similarities between the health needs of those who have been identified as trafficked compared to other migrants working in the same labour sector who have not. It is urgent to understand present-day occupational health and safety risks, forms of abuse and exploitation in different sectors and common hazardous working and living conditions to improve prevention and response strategies. This is among the first studies to explore and compare the influence of occupational and other risk exposures on people’s health and well-being and compare the experiences of migrant workers and victims of trafficking across sectors and regions. Our multiregion qualitative study on exploitation and harm experienced by individuals in the textile sector in Argentina, and artisanal gold-mining in Peru and construction sector in Kazakhstan, found important commonalities in the health hazards and financial, social and legal challenges across sectors and regions. In total, we interviewed 71 people; of these, 18 were formally identified victims of trafficking and 53 were migrant workers.

Migrant workers often experience precarity in their migration journeys, and the state structures and programs designed to ‘protect’ migrants have the potential to increase migrant vulnerability to exploitation; financial exploitation, enduring physical harm, rights abuses or various forms of coercion. The increased use of managed migration programs to control migrant flows have introduced a thriving private sector migration industry which facilitates the employment and migration needs of migrants in sending countries, and caters to government and industry (employer) requirements in receiving countries. Migrant workers can be subject to economic exploitation and even violence at the hands of private intermediaries, employers and government authorities. This vulnerability is exacerbated by migrants’ limited access to information and support networks in countries of destination and insufficient levels of social protection and gaps in the governance frameworks in countries of origin.In addition to these common risks, women migrant workers (WMWs) face gendered and specific forms of exploitation and human rights abuses associated with gender norms and stereotypes. Their labour is highly concentrated in devalued, gendered and often invisible labour sectors that are plagued by labour abuse (including excess hours and poor pay), physical and psychological abuse and sexual violence.

The brochure contains messages on the risks of human trafficking and promotes safe migration behaviour. It also contains contact information of relevant State Agencies in the referral mechanism for the prevention of trafficking as well as assistance to trafficked persons, including the national counter-trafficking hotline numbers and relevant web portals.