Latin America

Actions are needed to help mitigate H-2B workers’ vulnerabilities and empower them to secure their rights and pursue safe, justly compensated work in the U.S.

The Department of Homeland Security has taken an important step to protect noncitizen workers from exploitative  employers who threaten them with retaliation related to their immigration status.

It is no secret that the U.S. agriculture industry is largely sustained by a Mexican workforce, as few U.S.-born workers are willing to take these difficult and low-paid jobs. This is why Polaris has been working tirelessly with the Consulates from Mexico in the U.S. to speak directly with the Mexican community working in the U.S.

National conversation has focused on trafficking within the context of governors sending migrants seeking asylum in this country to Martha’s Vineyard and Washington, D.C. for the purpose of making a political point. 

Data from the U.S. National Human Trafficking Hotline shows that guest workers who come to this country legally are frequently exploited and victimized by forced labor and other forms of trafficking.

Nonechka means “close to you” in Nahuatl, one of the many indigenous languages spoken in Mexico. Polaris’s partner organizations distribute information via text and phone messages to inform workers about their rights and the services available where they are.

Catherine Chen, CEO of Polaris, was appointed by Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas to the Homeland Security Advisory Council. Chen joins 32 other new members on the Council, the principal external advisory body to the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

This toolkit provides an overview of the risks of labor trafficking inherent in the H-2A visa program and helps you understand how to protect your workers. By protecting your workers, you will also protect your business.

Data from the U.S. National Human Trafficking Hotline identified 4,816 likely victims from January 1, 2015 – December 31, 2020 who were in the United States and legally working under at least eight different temporary visas. The purpose of this brief is to examine the roles recruitment practices, regulations, and enforcement play in the experiences of trafficking victims who are in the United States on temporary worker visas.

Conozca y exija sus derechos y protecciones bajo la visa H-2A. Con este tipo de visa, puede trabajar legalmente en la industria agrícola en los Estados Unidos.

There was a more than 70% increase in reported likely labor trafficking victims who held H-2A visas that authorizes the work of migrant agricultural workers in the United States. In addition to other abuses, one-third of these individuals complained about being denied medical attention, while they were deemed essential by the United States Government.

A spike in the number of migrants attempting to cross into the United States from Mexico this spring has led to concerns about a surge in sex trafficking and claims that lax border enforcement is making trafficking easier. Let's lay out the facts.