European Anti-Trafficking Day: committee calls for greater protection of migrant workers against labour exploitation
On the eve of European Anti-Trafficking Day (18 October 2024), PACE’s Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons, meeting in the Slovenian Parliament, made the following declaration:
“The committee stresses the importance of resources dedicated to training police officers, legal professionals, doctors, social workers and counsellors, as well as research and prevention efforts to combat human trafficking, particularly in cases of labour exploitation. Migrant workers remain a group especially vulnerable to trafficking and exploitation in precarious and irregular work situations. It is imperative to enhance protection including through effective support and assistance mechanisms accessible to them.
In this effort, the committee reiterates the important role of parliamentarians in ensuring concrete follow-up to Recommendation CM/Rec(2022)21 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on preventing and combating trafficking in human beings for the purpose of labour exploitation.
This issue will feature prominently on the agenda of the round table co-organised by the committee and the National Assembly of the Republic of Slovenia on ‘Precarious and irregular work situations of migrant workers’ on 18 October 2024.
In 2024, the Assembly adopted a resolution on ‘The precarious and irregular work situations of migrant seasonal and domestic workers’ which lays emphasis on the importance of enlarging the personal scope of the European Social Charter so it protects all migrant workers beyond those nationals of a country party to the Charter. The resolution notably calls on member states to adopt policies to protect the rights of migrant workers and their families as regards their wages, workload, social security coverage, working and living conditions, safety measures at the workplace and social services.
Members of this committee express their firm belief in the essential role of parliamentarians to allocate sufficient resources and adopt comprehensive laws to effectively combat human trafficking. This includes prioritising support for vulnerable groups, such as migrant workers.”