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

Combatting the Trafficking of Vietnamese Nationals to Britain: Cooperative Challenges for Vietnam and the UK
Publications

The issue of Vietnamese nationals consistently having some of the highest numbers of referrals into the UK’s National Referral Mechanism (NRM) is increasingly apparent. However, this did not gather nationwide attention until the Essex tragedy of O...Read More

Modern Slavery Report 2017-18
Publications

The Modern Slavery Report highlights Crown Prosecution Service (CPS)'s efforts during 2017-18 to disrupt, prosecute and improve their response to offending. Findings show a 27 per cent rise in the number of suspects charged with modern slavery and hu...Read More

TAGS: Europe
Ensuring Access to Justice in the Context of COVID-19
COVID-19 resourcesPublications

This note provides preliminary guidance for practitioners and policy makers on key issues to consider in ensuring access to justice in the context of the COVID-19 crisis. It is divided into three sections, Preparation, Response and Recovery. While t...Read More

TAGS: Global
Technical Note: COVID-19 and Child Labour
COVID-19 resourcesGuidance

The United Nations declared 2021 the International year for the Elimination of Child Labour, an effort to eradicate this form of abuse and exploitation, a milestone in reaching the Sustainable Development Goal target 8.7. Worldwide, an estimated 152...Read More

TAGS: Global