Australia enshrines protection against modern slavery

While traditional practices such as physical restrictions and captivity persist, other practices such as debt bondage and conditions that rob workers of human dignity have evolved. Today, the chains that illegally bind many workers to the labour they perform are more often psychological than physical.

The ILO protocol ratified by the government this week modernises the 1930 Forced Labour Convention. Its ratification will ensure that Australia’s policies and actions to address forced labour remain effective.

Among other things, the protocol addresses the increased use of forced labour connected to the private sector and the responsibilities of nation states to make compensation and rehabilitation available to survivors.

It also emphasises education, especially among vulnerable groups such as migrant workers, and education of employers to prevent forced labour.

The protocol stresses the importance of due diligence in the public and private sector, and it underlines the need to address the root causes that heighten modern slavery risks. For example, the payment of (excessive) recruitment fees is a pervasive problem.

Sime Darby Plantation, one of the world’s largest producers of palm oil and a company whose products have been banned by the United States over allegations of forced labour, just announced a plan to reimburse workers $12.16 million. Such company responses are rare, however, and are often a response to long-term campaigns by civil society organisations seeking justice for exploited workers.

The protocol seeks to provide greater clarity and consistency to such reparations.

Incremental Progress in the Fight Against Modern Slavery

With the Modern Slavery Act and the National Action Plan to Combat Modern Slavery already in place, surely this means that Australia is taking appropriate steps to address modern slavery without the need for any new laws?

While public reporting helps to raise awareness, a recent report found that in the first year of reporting, 77 per cent of the companies reviewed had failed to comply with the basic reporting requirements and 52 per cent had failed to identify obvious modern slavery risks.

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While some companies are making progress in better understanding and identifying modern slavery risks, there is significant room for improvement.

Education and increased awareness are useful, but this is not enough to address the problem. Unfortunately, neither the Modern Slavery Act nor the National Action Plan provide clear guidance on how survivors of forced labour can be supported.

The protocol dictates that nation states should assist in “rehabilitating” survivors and ensure that they do not suffer reprisals for their involvement in forced labour. Further, it demands that survivors should have access to remedies, including compensation.

This survivor-centric focus of the protocol is critical and a valuable addition to Australia’s current initiatives.

The protocol has now been ratified by 57 of the 187 ILO members. Australia’s ratification makes it only the fifth nation in the Asia-Pacific region to do so.

This is significant, as the Asia-Pacific region is said to have the second highest prevalence of modern slavery in the world.

Martijn Boersma is Associate Professor, Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking at The University of Notre Dame Australia.

Professor Justine Nolan is the director of the Australian Human Rights Institute, UNSW Sydney.