What is Modern Slavery?

These activities are defined in the Modern Slavery Act and refer to when a person or group holds another person(s) in slavery or servitude or requires them to perform forced or compulsory labour.

Slavery, Servitude, Forced or Compulsory Labour consists of:

1. The means – being held, either physically or through threat of penalty e.g. threat or use of force, coercion, abduction, debt bondage, deception, abuse of a position of vulnerability. N.B. there does not need to be a means used for children.
2. The service – the victim(s) provides a service e.g. manual labour, domestic services, begging.

Human trafficking is considered a form of modern slavery, however the element of movement makes it distinct.

Human trafficking consists of: 

1. The act – what actions are taken: recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring and receiving of victims(s). N.B a person may be moved internally e.g. from Doncaster to Sheffield.
2. The means – how it’s done: including but not limited to threats of force, coercion, abduction, debt bondage, deception, abuse of a position of vulnerability. N.B. there does not need to be a means used for children.
3. The purpose – why it’s done: refers to the type of exploitation which takes place.

Human Trafficking is also often confused with ‘smuggling’ as they both involve movement of people. However, they are some distinct differences with smuggling:

An individual may experience multiple forms of exploitation or abuse. The most common forms of exploitation include, but are not limited to:

Sexual exploitation – this includes sexual abuse, forced prostitution and forms of child sexual exploitation.

Labour exploitation – victims are forced to work long hours for little or no pay in various industries including, but not limited to, construction, agriculture, hospitality, waste and fishing.

Forced criminality – victims are compelled to commit crimes to benefit other persons e.g. shoplifting, cannabis cultivation, fraud.

Domestic servitude – victims live and work in their ‘employer’s’ household and are forced to work long hours undertaking a variety of domestic tasks for very little or no pay. This is one of the most difficult forms of exploitation to uncover due to its hidden nature.

Organ harvesting – the surgical removal of parts of the body, sold for huge profits. Whilst it is rare in the UK, it still happens.