Human trafficking thrives in times of crisis and uncertainty, when the needs of the most vulnerable among us are often overlooked. Congress recently passed the $2 trillion coronavirus relief legislation, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act), H.R. 748. Lawmakers are already at work on a fourth major legislative package (“Phase Four”) to respond to the COVID-19 outbreak. The CARES Act provided significant new resources for education, early care, housing, nutrition, and services; however, it fell short in some significant ways. Due to underlying vulnerabilities, those most at risk of, and victim to, human trafficking and labor exploitation will experience disproportionate impacts as a result of COVID-19 in the short, medium, and long-term. As a result, the current funds allocated for human trafficking services and prevention are insufficient to protect the marginalized from sexual abuse and severe labor exploitation. Low-wage workers, including documented and undocumented immigrants; runaway and homeless youth; those fleeing domestic violence. and sexual assault; and previously identified victims of human trafficking who need ongoing support and access to additional resources are being left behind. Notably, the legislation to date has failed to provide support to immigrant workers, including undocumented workers, many of whom are providing essential services but are at greater risk for forced labor and other forms of human trafficking during this pandemic.

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Labour Risks in the Thai and Indonesian Fishing Industries: A Practical Guide for Responsible Sourcing
Guidance

Prepared by Lisa Rende Taylor, Jarrett Basedow, Mark Taylor, and David Visser. In collaboration with Coventry University, Issara contributed to Fish for Export: Working in the Wild Capture Seafood Industry in Indonesia and distilled additional f...Read More

Reflecting on the year that was: Lessons from the covid frontlines
COVID-19 resourcesPublications

Covid-19 has had a devastating impact on those most vulnerable to forced labour and human trafficking. Around the world, communities already suffering from poverty and exploitation have borne the brunt of the pandemic and its economic fallout. Th...Read More

Preventing and tackling child sexual exploitation and abuse (CSEA): A model national response
Guidance

At the Abu-Dhabi Summit in 2015, governments and organisations agreed to establish and deliver, in their own countries, a coordinated national response to online child sexual exploitation, guided by the WePROTECT Global Alliance Model National respo...Read More

Appropriations Guide
Online ToolsGuidanceGood Practices

This regularly updated website includes links to different reports and guides produced by the Alliance to End Slavery & Trafficking (ATEST), all of which provide funding recommendations to Congress to fight human trafficking. You can...Read More