Sector of labour exploitation: Manufacturing

Victims exploited in the manufacturing sector account for around five per cent of victims trafficked for forced labour.

53 per cent of victims exploited in the manufacturing sector are female, and the remainder are males (47%). 60 per cent of these victims are aged 30 or older, while another four per cent are children. These victims mainly originate in Eastern Europe (57%), Central America (17%), South-East and South Asia (13% and 3%, respectively).

51 per cent of victims exploited in manufacturing are exploited in Eastern Europe, while some others are exploited in North America (31%) and South-East Asia (9%). Most of these victims are trafficked within their region of origin (68%) and are controlled with threats, debt bondage and withheld earnings, and restrictions on finance, movements, medical care and necessities, each accounting for about 65 per cent.^[1]

68 per cent of victims exploited in manufacturing are recruited by ‘others’.^[2] Most of them are trafficked for a year or less (60%), and some others are trafficked for between one and two years (32%).

^[1] It is important to note that trafficked persons can be subjected to multiple types of exploitation and means of control, so percentages may not add up to 100.

^[2] Indicates a notable relationship with the recruiter that does not fit other categories like family or friends. This may include brokers, contractors, employers, or smugglers. See the Global Synthetic Dataset Codebook for a detailed explanation.