The global spread of COVID-19 has prompted unprecedented measures to contain the virus, including the temporary shutdown of business and widespread restrictions on movement. Around the world, travel plans and workplaces have been disrupted and work habits changed. Yet throughout the pandemic, it has been business as usual for some offshore call center agents in Tunisia and Morocco, who continued handling calls and queries on behalf of multinational companies to serve the needs of clients and customers abroad. This briefing summarizes some of the key human rights risks to workers in this sector, and considers the steps taken by ten call centers operating in and six clients outsourcing services to Tunisia and/or Morocco to protect workers amidst the crisis. We found that the pandemic has exacerbated systemic risks of economic hardship, psychological strain – due to long hours under constant surveillance, verbal abuse and stress – and introduced new risks linked to health hazards amid the virus. Similar concerns have been reported in other parts of the world, including South Korea, the US and Brazil, underscoring the endemic, transnational nature of these risks, which have long been a reality for many call center workers. The briefing also outlines recommendations for companies to address these

Disconnected: The COVID-19 Pandemic and Call Center Workers‘ rights in Tunisia and Morocco - Business and Human Rights Resource Centre, 2020 DOWNLOAD

post

page

attachment

revision

nav_menu_item

custom_css

customize_changeset

oembed_cache

user_request

wp_block

wp_template

wp_template_part

wp_global_styles

wp_navigation

wp_font_family

wp_font_face

acf-taxonomy

acf-post-type

acf-field-group

acf-field

ai1ec_event

exactmetrics_note

Sexual exploitation of children in travel and tourism
Publications

ECPAT International is a global network of civil society organisations working together to end the sexual exploitation of children (SEC). ECPAT comprises member organisations in over 100 countries who generate knowledge, raise awareness, and advocat...Read More

Modern Slavery Reporting: Weak and Notable Practice
Publications

Under the Short Guides on Modern Slavery Reporting, CORE has developed this short guide aimed at providing an overview of o selection of weak and notable reporting practice from statements published to date. A random sample of modern slavery statem...Read More

An explorative study on perpetrators of child sexual exploitation convicted alongside others
Publications

The Independent Inquiry into Child Sexual Abuse (‘the Inquiry’) was set up in March 2015 and aims to consider the extent to which state and non-state institutions in England and Wales have failed in their duty of care to protect children from se...Read More

TAGS: Europe
G20 Labour and Employment Ministerial Declaration
Publications

The G20 ministers committed to taking action to improve occupational safety and health through the country-level and collective measures, taking into account each country’s national context, including by promoting responsible business practices and...Read More

TAGS: Global