Author: Surekha Naresh is a fourth-year B.A LL.B (Hons) student at Tamil Nadu National Law University.
The article addresses the issues of migrant workers’ exploitation and modern day slavery in the advanced countries and the Middle East. It emphasises the factors that put migratory individuals at risk of unscrupulous practices such as the kafala sponsorship system in the Gulf States or employer-specific work permits in Europe and Canada. As in case studies including, the agricultural setting in Italy, the article brings to light the aggravating role of undocumented migrants, where these workers are faced with harsh working conditions, human trafficking, and lack of legal recourse. The study also discusses international efforts, namely, the ILO conventions and the SDGs, directed toward the betterment of the circumstances of migrant workers. However, the emphasis in the article is made on the fact that many of these challenges are still present in the aftermath of efforts made to address them, and stress the need for stricter enforcement of labour laws, better protection for workers, and cross-border approach to solving the problem of modern slavery and the development of equitable policies for migrant workers.
We can better appreciate how migrant labourers are exploited in the west, thanks to the latest scandal involving the exploitation of an Indian labourer in Italy, a developed nation. In this instance, an undocumented worker was abandoned on the streets after a dispute at the workplace where he was employed. Thus, migrant labourers are seen as something to “employ” and “toss.” Using a global slavery index, the Walk-Free foundation determined that migrant workers make up the great majority of the labour force in Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. Because of the kafala (sponsorship) system, these workers are essentially under the control of their employers and barely have labour rights. This should be concluded as modern-day slavery which involves (a) Control, (b) Involuntary, and (c) Economic Exploitation.
REGIONAL LEGAL INSTRUMENTS: BRIDGING GAPS IN PROTECTION
The primary document to rely on would be the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Clearly, Article 4 mandates that any form of slavery should be prohibited which also includes modern forms of slavery. Influenced by the UDHR, the United Kingdom established the National Referral Mechanism to identify victims of human trafficking or modern slavery. But the downfall is, the recent report suggests that NRM is overburdened with referrals and notification due to which they are not performing their duties effectively. They instead direct the affected individuals to approach the law enforcement, and it is to be understood that migrant workers are marginalized, and they will fear approaching the statutory bodies. The UK is also heavily influenced by the “Illegal Migration Act” which impedes this process.
In the beginning of the year, it was observed that Modern slavery has surged in social care since authorities eased immigration laws to cover thousands of vacancies, with a rising wave of exploitation resulting in people being ripped off or living in deplorable conditions. As a result, the act cannot function alone; other factors influence it.
The most frightening part of all of this is that developed nations serve as bastions for countries fighting modern slavery. The worst aspect is that, according to one report, Europe has created prisons in Libya to prevent migrant labourers from entering the nation. It is also noted that women from South-Asian countries were affected due to “poor integration of context-related factors, flawed assumptions about the power inequalities, including barriers preventing women from asserting their rights.” In Canada, Employer-specific work permit regimes, including certain Temporary Foreign Worker Programs expose migrant workers to modern forms of slavery since they are unable to denounce abuses without fear of deportation.
INTERNATIONAL LABOUR ORGANIZATION CONVENTIONS: COMBATTING MIGRANT LABOURERS
The International Labour Organization has important Labour standards, social protection standards and specific provisions related to migrant workers. Article 8 of the C097 says that the migrant labourers cannot be sent to their country of origin or be treated inhumanely on the ground of sickness. The recent issue in Italy stands as an example of how ineffective the convention is though Italy has ratified this specific convention. Conventions Nos. 100 and 111 also suggest that “Migrant workers have the right to equal remuneration and are protected from all forms of discrimination in employment and occupation.”
Most importantly, in the 2030 Agenda, adopted by the United Nations General Assembly recognized “the positive contribution of migrants for inclusive growth and sustainable development” in countries of origin, transit and destination. It also noted that “international migration is a multidimensional reality of major relevance for the development of countries of origin, transit and destination, which requires coherent and comprehensive responses”. The ILO, through the International Conference of Labour Statisticians has noted that in its SDG Target 17.18, by 2020 to improve their data collection in terms of migrant workers in developed countries, especially in national contexts.
SDG 10 has played a key role in promoting a better life for migrant workers. There are four important measures proposed. Firstly, “Recruitment cost borne by employee as a proportion of monthly income earned in country of destination.” Secondly, “Number of countries that have implemented well managed migration policies.” Thirdly, “Ensure equal opportunity and reduce inequalities of outcome, including by eliminating discriminatory laws, policies and practices and promoting appropriate legislation, policies and action in this regard.” Fourthly, “Adopt policies, especially fiscal, wage and social protection policies, and progressively achieve greater equality.”
But this seems like a distant reality. A report suggests that the quantity of remittances from migrant workers may be adversely affected by working circumstances, such as the lack of a signed contract before departure, pay arrears and unanticipated salary decreases, excessively long working hours, and rights deprivation at the workplace.
ITALY: SCANDAL OF MIGRANT LABOUR EXPLOITATION
The United Nations has cautioned migrant workers travelling to the United Kingdom and Europe of being duped and ending up in debt bondage.
The biggest hoax is the concept of seasonal employment. Italy, since the enactment of law such as the 1998 Consolidated Immigration Act, made employers see those seeking refuge as potential workers, and the government has worked to make it easier for migrants to enter the workforce by granting them the right to work 60 days after submitting an asylum claim. However, a lot of immigrants continue to labour without the required paperwork or formal contracts. Out of the approximately 1 million agricultural workers in Italy in 2021, an estimated 230,000 were engaged illegally in the agricultural industry. This is also termed as “agro-mafia.”
Undocumented workers are often exploited and more than 30 instances of “caporalato”, a kind of labour exploitation in which migrant workers are hired by middlemen, often other migrants, and made to labour inhumanely for Italian enterprises, have been discovered by local authorities in few agricultural sites.
The Italian Agricultural Minister addressed this matter in June 2024 and called for a greater inspection of these locations. While this sounds promising, the long-term consequences of suspending the employer’s license for engaging in this practice will negatively affect the migrant workers’ ability to support themselves if they are not rehabilitated.
THE KAFALA SYSTEM IN THE GULF STATES: LEGALIZED CONTROL
Tens of millions of migrant workers in the Middle East are governed by the kafala system, but demands for change have grown in response to rising indignation about violations of human rights, racism, and gender inequality. In the 1950s, the Kafala system grew as newly oil-rich Gulf nations looked to other countries for foreign workers to complete large-scale infrastructure projects. They need more temporary workers who can arrive at times of rapid development and go home when the economy falters because of their tiny population.
Many businesses choose to leave their workers “undocumented,” despite the fact that Article 9 of Qatar’s sponsorship legislation mandates that employers finish official processes, provide workers residency permits, and renew expired permits within ninety days. Hundreds of workers without proper licenses were encountered by researchers conducting a study in Qatar in 2013, as per a report by Amnesty International.
Second, certain businesses can create fictitious employment contracts, particularly if they have strong connections and don’t have to worry about government interference. Others have access to so-called block visas, which allow them to hire a certain number of employees based on the resources and labour needs of the firm. Businesses may profit in both scenarios by reselling those visas to other businesses or to employees directly if no job offer is made. Instead, the migrants will pay for the issuance and renewal of their visas while looking for work abroad; this is known as the “free visa.”
The recent issue of Indian workers dying in Kuwait in a fire accident sparked an outrage regarding the working conditions given to the workers. Humanising them would mean defending all of the migrant population’s rights and acknowledging their presence as more than just labour. This could only be accomplished by overthrowing the pervasive Kafala system, which is a set of laws and customs that guarantee the state and its citizens have absolute power while treating individual migrants as transients despite the near-permanent reliance on their labour.
ANALYSIS AND SUGGESTIONS
The most crucial thing to realise is that migrant workers often believe that western nations are more affluent and provide better living conditions. Better lifestyle options are desired, but better career prospects are overlooked. But none of these are given to them. One error is to have a one-sided point of view by “receiving country bias” and neglecting the effects of migration from the viewpoint of the immigrant. As a result, perceptions of migrant labour become warped. Some of the reasons for these migrant workers’ departures to other countries include the differences between the study of “forced” and “voluntary” migration.
Of course, the most important recommendation would be to have the rules more strictly enforced, particularly regarding identification, investigation, and prosecution. Better victim support programs are needed, not discouraging non-statutory body performance. They should be handed over with the assurance that they will not face reprisals or deportation. In the fight against human trafficking and contemporary slavery, more international collaboration is needed. Along with responsibility for employers, worker-friendly migration laws that safeguard the rights of migrant workers have to be implemented.
All EU countries, including those with undocumented workers, should impose mandatory health insurance policies. Reintegration and voluntary returns should be facilitated by the government. Anti-discrimination laws and social security benefits should be easier to obtain. Provide a road to legalization so that undocumented migrant workers may get social benefits, healthcare, and legal protections without worrying about being deported.
Prioritizing the defense of labour and human rights above economic interests is important for nations, especially in areas where exploitation is common, such as construction and agriculture. Replace the Kafala system in the Gulf States with a rights-based system that empowers migrant workers to freely switch employers, seek legal assistance, and acquire residence permits independent of their employers. This system should be phased out over time. By putting these suggestions into practice, we can greatly enhance the legal and practical environments for migrant workers, contribute to the abolition of modern slavery, and promote a more fair and just global labour market.
Leave a Reply