Labor Trafficking

The case of Larsen Farms in Texas is only one example of how the H-2A visa system is badly broken. Farms owners should be held accountable for what happens under their watch.

The USDA notice cancelling the Farm Labor Survey will lower the salaries of H-2A workers and also leaves them at more risk of human trafficking.

The pandemic is greatly impacting Latinos and Black people in the United States as the result of systemic inequities in our society. Those inequities are the same ones that create the vulnerabilities that traffickers often take advantage of.

Most people assume that slavery in the United States was abolished in any form but the reality is that the Thirteenth Amendment contained one important exception: Prison labor. Those who have been convicted of a crime can still be forced to work in this country.

The 2020 Trafficking in Persons is primarily a tool of diplomacy, used to help engage foreign governments in efforts to make positive changes that protect vulnerable people and end exploitation. But it is also a good jumping off point for the United States to do some much needed self-examination. 

During COVID-19, temporary changes in regulations to work visas, like H-2A and H-2B, benefit employers but put workers at greater risk of human trafficking and exploitation. Lack of oversight and lack of clear access to crucial information for workers increases the imbalance of power, favoring employers.

Los cambios en los protocolos de visas temporales de trabajo debido al COVID-19 crean más desbalances de poder y ponen a los trabajadores en riesgo de trata laboral.

Some workers in the restaurant industry are now more isolated than ever due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This makes them even more vulnerable to human trafficking.

Algunos trabajadores de la industria de restaurantes ahora están más aislados que nunca debido a la pandemia de COVID-19. Esto los hace aún más vulnerables a la trata de personas.

Polaris detalla las distintas industrias que en los Estados Unidos ofrecen un terreno fértil para la trata de personas y explotación de latinoamericanos y caribeños.

In a new report, Polaris describes the industries that prey on communities from Latin America and the Caribbean for human trafficking and exploitation in the United States.

This report analyzes data from the National Human Trafficking Hotline and exposes the types of trafficking in which populations from Latin American and the Caribbean are victimized in the United States.