News

March 2010

1. Country Baseline under the ILO Declaration Annual Review - Forced Labour

   11 March 2010

December 2009

1. Greetings from SAP-FL

   23 December 2009

   As we enter the new year, we would like to thank you for your continued commitment to end forced labour and human trafficking.

November 2009

1. The British Government has backed new laws to crackdown on modern day slavery

   04 November 2009

   Ministers have conceded that existing legislation fails to protect people from modern day slavery and have agreed to criminalise forced labour and forced servitude in the Coroners and Justice Bill.

2. ILO-Nottingham workshop raises urgent Chinese migrant labour issues

   04 November 2009

   Human trafficking, the exploitation of Chinese migrants in the UK and the impact of economic recession on Chinese migrant workers were among issues hotly debated by more than 70 people at a conference organised by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and The University of Nottingham.

October 2009

1. Pakistan: ILO-Ministry of Labour workshop stresses the role of Parliamentarian in the eradication of bonded labour

   23 October 2009

   Federal Minister of Information and Broadcasting Qamar Zaman Kaira said Friday that government was committed to eradicate bonded labour from the country with support of all stakeholders. He was participating in a workshop on “Role of parliamentarian” organized by ILO and Ministry of Labour.

2. Unprotected migrant workers pay a heavy price

   22 October 2009

   Protecting trafficked workers is a job for labour inspectors, and not just the police.

3. World Day for Decent Work

   07 October 2009

   As every person should be able to have a job that enables them to live a good life in which their basic needs are met, decent work is the focus for World day for Decent Work (WDDW). This is an opportunity for trade unions and organisations to join a broad global mobilisation involving a large number of people and a wide range of activities.

September 2009

1. Launch of the EU Funded Joint Programme on Human Trafficking in Zambia

   28 September 2009

   On 28th September 2009, Lameck Mangani, Home affairs Minister, launched the EU funded UN Joint Programme on Human Trafficking, together with Gerry Finnegan, ILO Representative for Malawi, Mozambique and Zambia, Lotta Sylwander, UNICEF Resident Representative and Andrew Choga, IOM Chief of Mission, at the ILO Zambia Office

August 2009

1. Bahrain: Decree 79 aims at ending sponsor system

   31 August 2009

   In 2009, Bahrain adopted the strongest sponsorship reform in the region by permitting migrant workers to change employment without their employer’s consent and in the absence of allegations of nonpayment of wages or abuse. Majeed al Alawi, the minister of labor in Bahrain, likened the kafala (sponsorship) system to slavery when justifying the reform.

2. Modern Forms of Slavery are Flourishing

   21 August 2009

   Every year on August 23, the United Nations International Day for the remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition serves to remind people of the tragedy of the trans-Atlantic slave trade of old. It also aims to raise awareness about modern day forms of slavery.

3. 

   ILO launches book on “Forced labor: Coercion and exploitation in the private economy”

   19 August 2009

   More than 200 years after a slave rebellion in the Caribbean sparked a movement that eventually led to the abolition of the transatlantic slave trade, an estimated 12 million people around the world still work under coercion in forced labour, slavery and slavery-like practices. The ILO Special Action Programme to Combat Forced Labour is marking the annual International Day for the Remembrance of the Slave Trade and its Abolition on August 23 with the release of a new, comprehensive series of case studies and policy recommendations on forced labour and modern slavery in the world today.

July 2009

1. IALI newsletter highlights the "Handbook for labour inspectors on forced labour and trafficking"

   24 July 2009

   The handbook, first launched at the IALI Conference in June 2008, is part of ILO support to IALI efforts.

2. Capacity Building for Migration Management in China - Newsletter July 2009

   24 July 2009

   Update about the ‘Capacity Building for Migration Management in China’ Project, which is co-implemented by the ILO and IOM, in close partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Human Resources and Socurity, and the Ministry of Public Security of the People's Republic of China.

June 2009

1. US Trafficking in persons report 2009: Financial crisis feeds human trade

   16 June 2009

   The congressionally mandated report provides data from 175 countries about the level of human trafficking occurring within their borders. The report cites the International Labour Organization estimate that at least 12.3 million adults and children are victims of forced labour, bonded labour and sex slavery annually

2. New ILO study on migrant workers and their vulnerability to exploitation, trafficking and forced labour in Bangladesh

   01 June 2009

   This qualitative study of returned migrants by Dr. Rita Afsar of the Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS) in Dhaka has shed new light on some of the complexities and problems faced by Bangladeshi migrant workers leaving the country to work in the Gulf States, as well as the benefits that such migration can bring.

May 2009

1. Abolishing Forced Labour in Indonesia through the Establishment of International standards for Domestic Workers

   25 May 2009

   The new ILO Global Report “The Cost of Coercion” points out that among the intensified international and national efforts to reduce and prevent forced labour, are new laws and policies at national and regional level, as well as a growing provision of social protection for those most at risk of forced labour and trafficking

2. ILO Calls for a Unified Approach to Combatting Forced Labour

   20 May 2009

   Forced labour must be vigorously tackled by government, business and unions with criminal prosecution for offenders and greater protection for victims.

3. New ILO report says “cost of coercion” to workers in forced labour surpasses USD 20 billion per year

   12 May 2009

   In a new study on the patterns of forced labour worldwide, the International Labour Office (ILO) says the “opportunity cost” of coercion to the workers affected reaches over USD 20 billion per year.

4. Zambia: From labour exploitation to forced labour: a fine line

   11 May 2009

   Forced labour is a crime that requires severe punishment. But clear guidance is needed, to determine the often thin dividing line between labour exploitation and forced labour. Zambia is one of the African countries to have taken steps both to understand the problems through research and to instigate measures to combat them. The case illustrates some of the dilemmas.

March 2009

1. Operational indicators of trafficking in human beings presented at the Conference of EU National Rapporteurs

   31 March 2009

   Resulting from a joint ILO - European Commission project, four sets of operational indicators of trafficking (adults and children for labour and sexual exploitation) have been presented during the Conference of EU National Rapporteurs on Trafficking in Human Beings "Joint Analysis, Joint Action" in Prague on 31 March 2009