Policy recommendations developed for businesses and authorities to tackle labour exploitation

The two brand new policy briefs developed in the EU-funded FLOW-project by the European Institute for Crime Prevention and Control (HEUNI) and partners outline key recommendations that would enhance capacity of businesses and authorities to detect, investigate and prevent labour exploitation.

According to Anna Markina, a Research Fellow of Criminology at the School of Law of the University of Tartu, in recent years, cases of labour trafficking and exploitation have been uncovered around the world, as well as in Europe in sectors such as construction, restaurants, cleaning and agriculture. “Everything may seem legal on paper but in reality, exploited migrant workers might work long hours in poor conditions, which are below national standards, and they have little or no possibility to change their situation,” said Markina.

Outsourcing of work or services through subcontractors/suppliers or use of temporary workers in flexible employment relationships heighten the risk of labour exploitation. “To protect the rights of migrant workers both businesses and law enforcement and inspection authorities have the responsibility to address the risk of labour trafficking and exploitation and ensure exploited workers have access to remedy,” she added.

The “New tools for businesses to improve commitment to end labour exploitation and trafficking in local labour supply chains” policy brief outlines how challenges businesses face navigating complex supply chains can be solved and describes the multiple ways how various companies may be affected by labour exploitation. Besides key standards and legislation that dictate activities regarding social responsibility and human rights, the policy brief includes concrete tools business representatives can use to take preventative steps.

The “How to uncover labour trafficking and exploitation? The route to a successful investigation” policy brief focuses on what challenges law enforcement faces when investigating labour exploitation offences and provides solutions to address the existing gaps.

The policy briefs are available as electronic publications and can also be downloaded from the HEUNI website under the "Project materials" topic block (see right side of the page).

The FLOW project continues until the end of 2020 and we strongly encourage interested professionals to reach out and get access to extra materials and get training on the topic.

The project partners are the University of Tartu School of Law, European Institute for Crime Prevention and Control (HEUNI) from Finland, the Center for the Study of Democracy (CSD) from Bulgaria and Ministry of Interior of Latvia.

Further information: Anna Markina, Research Fellow of Criminology, School of Law, University of Tartu, +372 5557 3302, anna.markina@ut.ee