Slave Labor: Prevention Is The Best Approach

With the worldwide evolution of labor laws, the concept 'slave labor' also changed - or got expanded - and it now applies to all types of forced labor, even to persons in situations analogous to slavery. Would a duly implemented and operated complaint channel help companies avoid slave labor problems?

When addressing the issue of slave labor, many people recall the stories taught in History books, which concluded with the 1888 Lei Áurea ("Golden Act"). The fact is that, with the worldwide evolution of labor laws, the concept 'slave labor' also changed, and it now applies to all types of forced labor.

The focus of labor legislation is always to ensure decent working conditions and the workers' well-being and integrity. To the same extent, the further away from the rules, the more prone to slavery a job will be. To avoid any confusion, Brazil - which is a signatory to the American Convention on Human Rights, the Pact of San Jose of Costa Rica, and International Labor Organization Conventions 105 and 29, in which it undertakes to abolish all forms of forced or compulsory labor - makes al definitions and sanctions clear in the law. The Criminal Code, for example, defines slave labor, or a similar condition, as one in which workers are subject to forced labor or strenuous workdays. Under these conditions, penalties range from two to eight years in prison, and this may be doubled if the crime is committed against children and adolescents or because of discrimination based on race, color, ethnicity, religion, or origin. In another article, the Code also defines as a crime to obstruct, based on fraud or violence, any right guaranteed by the labor legislation. In this case, the penalty ranges from one to two years of prison, along with a fine and the penalty corresponding to the violence perpetrated. Identifying companies connected to slave labor There are few cases of Brazilian companies punished for having a direct or indirect connection with slave labor. In addition to being accountable for the legal acts, these companies are part of the widely disseminated Dirty List - a registry created by the Inter-Ministerial Ordinance, of the Ministry of Labor and Employment and the Secretariat of Human Rights of the President of the Republic. A review is carried out on a semiannual basis to update the Register of Employers that have subjected workers to conditions analogous to those of slave labor. Companies added to the list are monitored by the Labor...