Forced Labour Crimes Increase 50 Percent in Australia

An Uzbek man carries cotton buds as he walks through a cotton plantation in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, on Oct. 23, 2021. Vyacheslav Oseledko/AFP via Getty Images

Domestic and overseas workers in Australia have been told to take precautions against forced labour and exploitation due to a sharp increase in reported crimes.

According to the latest data from the Australian Federal Police (AFP), there have been 178 reports in the past five years, up nearly 50 percent compared to the previous period.

Forced labour occurs when people are coerced, threatened, or deceived into working against their will and are not allowed to quit and leave their employment.

A person can also be a victim of forced labour if he or she is subject to physical and psychological abuse, poor working conditions or debt bondage–a situation in which an employee believes they owe their employer a large debt and must work to pay it off.

AFP Commander Helen Schneider cited visa status, lack of knowledge about Australian worker rights, cultural barriers, and social isolation as the reasons why migrant workers fell victim to forced labour.

“Criminals may use deceptive methods to target vulnerable individuals looking for seasonal or temporary work in Australia before exploiting them into forced labour,” she said.

Ms. Schneider also noted that some sectors, such as agriculture, construction, hospitality and manufacturing, had the highest risk of forced labour and exploitation.

“Seasonal work in Australia includes a range of legitimate jobs such as deckhands, fruit pickers and packers, farmhands, labourers, and vineyard workers,” she said.

“Unfortunately, criminals do take advantage and exploit workers looking for temporary work.

“As demand for seasonal and casual workers increases during the warmer months, we urge individuals to be aware of the indicators of forced labour and ask their employers to provide appropriate documentation and contracts before accepting job offers.”

The AFP gave the example of a Victorian man who was sentenced to three years and six months imprisonment for forced labour offences in January 2024.

The man coerced a migrant worker to work 14 hours a day at a confectionery business for two consecutive years using threats of deportation.

The worker also received a below minimum wage of $10 (US$6.5) per hour, with inconsistent payments.

AFP Urges Witnesses to Report Forced Labour Crimes

Due to the seriousness of the issue, Ms. Schneider called on people who witnessed forced labour to report the crime, saying it was an important step to ensure the safety of victims.

“Some victims of forced labour may view their new working conditions as preferable to those in their country of origin–even though the conditions are extremely exploitative,” she said.

“This means some victims may feel unwilling or unable to report crimes out of fear of retribution by perpetrators, social isolation and financial dependence on offenders.”

The commander also stated that the AFP would work with state and territory law enforcement agencies and non-government organisations to combat forced labour and exploitation.

AFP’s announcement comes after a 2023 report by Walk Free, an international human rights group based in Perth, showed that Australia had around 41,000 modern slaves.

The report found that the number of modern slaves in Australia had doubled since 2018, raising alarm about the exploitation of workers in the country.

On average, there were 1.6 cases of slavery per 1,000 people in Australia, which was the second lowest rate in the Asia-Pacific region and behind Japan.

If you suspect that you or another person is experiencing or at risk of forced labour or exploitation, call 131 AFP (237) or report via the AFP website.