Media engagement on forced labour and fair recruitment

Journalists have a voice that many workers do not. They can shine a light on abusive practices and the denial of fundamental human and labour rights. They can alert their readers or viewers to the abuses. They may help to change public opinion, and even policies, so that life becomes better for workers.

The ILO and its partners have been engaging with the media to support the production of quality reporting on forced labour and fair recruitment issues, creating or strengthening networks of specialized journalists, as well as building partnerships with those institutions who have the capacity and mandate to take forward media training and outreach. These media engagement activities are aimed at:

• Combatting the toxicity of the debate on migration, forced labour and recruitment in both origin and destination countries as well as at the global level;
• Fostering the prevention of deception through the promotion of transparent, documented and ethical journalism on forced labour and fair recruitment issues.

Main resources

This toolkit provides information and advice to media professionals on how to report accurately and effectively on forced labour and fair recruitment. It includes the Media-friendly glossary on migration.

• Available in Arabic, English, French and Spanish
• Adapted to the national context in Nepal (English and Nepali), Mongolia (English and Mongolian), Nigeria (English), Pakistan (English), Sri Lanka (English, Sinhala and Tamil), Uganda (English), Uzbekistan (English and Uzbek), Viet Nam (English, Vietnamese), Tunisia (Arabic), Ghana (English) and Côte d'Ivoire (French).
• Adapted to the regional context in Eastern Europe and Central Asia (Russian) and in SADC region (English)

The use of the right terminology is key for quality reporting, to avoid stigmatization and positively influence the debate on migration.

• Available in English, French and Spanish.
• Adapted to the national context in Madagascar (French), Nepal (English), Uganda (English), Uzbekistan (English , Uzbek and Russian), Vietnam (English and Vietnamese), Ghana (English) and Côte d'Ivoire (French).
• Adapted to the regional context in the Middle East (English, Arabic).

This glossary serves as a guide for journalists, researchers, practitioners and others who conduct trainings or write about women’s labour migration and violence against women.

Available in English, Bahasa Indonesia, Bahasa Melayu, Khmer and Thai.