ILO publications

2008 

• Forced labour and human trafficking: Guidelines for labour officers in Zambia - [pdf 412 KB]
  To win the war on forced labour, labour inspectors and other law enforcement officers need the right tools. They need to have a stronger grasp of the concepts, and indicators of possible forced labour situations. This is the role that these guidelines will play.
• Handbook for employers and business – Booklet 1 Introduction and Overview - [pdf 270 KB]
  This new handbook provides guidance material and tools for employers and business. Part 1 presents information about relevant international standards, recent figures and data, and forms of forced labour in the global economy alongside excerpts of international Conventions and Protocols.
• Handbook for employers and business – Booklet 2 Employers' Frequently Asked Questions - [pdf 741 KB]
  A quick reference guide for managers, human resource personnel and others, that answers FAQs from employers. The guide addresses topics such as prison labour, forced overtime and debt bondage in an easy-to-use format.
• Handbook for employers and business – Booklet 3 Guiding Principles to Combat Forced Labour - [pdf 103 KB]
  A set of principles based on ILO standards and jurisprudence to guide business action against forced labour and trafficking.
• Handbook for employers and business – Booklet 4 A Checklist and Guidance for Assessing Compliance - [pdf 294 KB]
  A checklist designed for social auditors and other practitioners for use in enterprise-level assessments. The tool includes questions as well as policy guidance and technical advice on how to conduct assessments.
• Handbook for employers and business – Booklet 5 A Guide for Taking Action - [pdf 185 KB]
  Presents some of the key measures that companies and employers' organisations can take to address forced labour at enterprise, national and industry levels, and in global supply chains.
• Handbook for employers and business – Booklet 6 Tips for Taking Action - [pdf 116 KB]
  A set of practical reference guides that identify some of the concrete measures and benefits that companies can take to address forced labour and trafficking.
• Handbook for employers and business – Booklet 7 Case Studies - [pdf 347 KB]
  Selected examples of company and industry action that indicate the variety of approaches business actors can take in addressing forced labour at the workplace and in supply chains.
• Investigating forced labour and trafficking: Do they exist in Zambia? - [pdf 7229 KB]
  This research project was undertaken in response to an approach by the Zambian Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MLSS) to the International Labour Office (ILO) to request assistance to look into the possible existence of forced labour practices in Zambia. ...
• Forced labour and human trafficking: handbook for labour inspectors - [pdf 2269 KB]
  The handbook is a tool for training. It seeks both to inform labour inspectors of the facts and trends of modern forced labour and the challenges before them, and to promote discussion as to how labour inspectorates worldwide could be harnessed more effectively to global efforts against forced labour and trafficking.
• Human Trafficking And Forced Labour - Case studies and responses from Portugal - [pdf 6909 KB]
  The objective of the book is to study the phenomena of labour exploitation and forced labour to which immigrants and, in particular, victims of human trafficking, are subjected in Portugal. It also sheds light on the treatment of Portuguese emigrants in select destination countries.
• ILO action against trafficking in human beings - [pdf 1279 KB]
  In its many projects and advocacy activities, the ILO addresses trafficking from a labour market perspective. It thereby seeks to eliminate the root causes, such as poverty, lack of employment and inefficient labour migration systems. ILO led responses involve labour market institutions, such as public employment services, labour inspectors and labour ministries. ...
• Forced labour and trafficking in Europe: how people are trapped in, live through and come out - [pdf 362 KB]
  The paper is based on ILO research carried out between 2003 and 2007. It summarizes largely qualitative research from ten European source, transit and destination countries. It is therefore the result of a collective effort of researchers from many countries. ...
• Temporary Contract Labour in the Gulf States: Perspectives from two countries of origin - [pdf 422 KB]
  A summary paper based on studies commissioned by the International Labour Office for the Gulf Forum on Temporary Contractual Labour

2007 

• Guide to Private Employment Agencies: Regulation, Monitoring and Enforcement - [pdf 635 KB]
  This Guide provides guidance to national legislators in drafting legal frameworks in line with ILO Convention No. 181 and Recommendation No. 188. It is rich in many examples of country legislation from both developed and developing countries.
• General Survey concerning the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29), and the Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105)
  The Survey by the Committee of Experts of the national legislation and practice on forced labour. In spite of the universal condemnation of forced labour and the adoption of constitutional and legislative provisions abolishing it, forced or compulsory labour practices unfortunately continue to exist and many people around the world are still subjected to it.
• Directions for national and international data collection on Forced Labour - [pdf 229 KB]
  This paper provides some ideas and directions as to how the existing gaps in our understanding of the quantitative dimensions of forced labour could be reduced.
• Methodologies for global and national estimation of human trafficking victims: current and future approaches - [pdf 124 KB]
  This paper provides a detailed comparison of the methodologies used by the ILO and the US government for computing global estimates, discussing strengths and weaknesses of both methods.

2006 

• Globalization and the illicit market for human trafficking: an empirical analysis of supply and demand - [pdf 241 KB]
  This working paper studies the determinants of trafficking for forced sexual exploitation, at a cross-country econometric analysis.
• Moldova and Ukraine project flier - [pdf 1121 KB]
  project flier for the project "Elimination of human trafficking from Moldova and Ukraine through labour market based measures" (2006 - 2008)