Modern slavery and the employment relationship: Exploring the continuum of exploitation

Abstract

The term ‘modern slavery’ constitutes a broad non-legal umbrella term that refers to a range of abusive practices including, but not limited to, forced labour, bonded labour, human trafficking and child slavery. While the most severe forms of labour exploitation represent instances of modern slavery, focusing on labour abuses more broadly is also important as it is not always clear at what point non-compliance with labour standards seeps into cases of criminal exploitation. This Special Issue focuses on what the large- and small-scale risk factors are that can cause working conditions to deteriorate, on how people can become trapped in exploitative conditions and on what can be done to prevent and remedy labour abuses. It does this by exploring the macro-level, specifically by examining global value chains and the labour exploitation within the global production regime; by exploring the meso-level, by focusing on the market-based character of business and human rights regulation; and by looking at the micro-level by examining labour regimes on factory floors and in private residences.

The consequences of heroization for exploitation.

“…The findings herein advance a nascent literature on psychological determinants of exploitation. Decades of research in sociology, economics, and industrial relations have documented trends in exploitation across industries, communities, and cultures (e.g., Been & de Beer, 2022; Bennett, 1991; Boersma & Nolan, 2022; Boswell & Dixon, 1993; Connolly et al, 2014; Kaur, 2010; Limoncelli, 2009; Liu et al, 2010; Loyens & Paraciani, 2023; Sakamoto & Kim, 2010). However, social psychology and organizational behavior have lagged behind these other disciplines.…”

The employer perspective on wage law non‐compliance: State of the field and a framework for new understanding

“…Second, given our goal of understanding the real‐world behaviors and decision‐making processes of employers in relation to wage law compliance, only articles which reported on primary research involving employers as subjects and which offered insights about why they breached wage laws were included. Articles primarily concerned with slavery, human trafficking and forced labor were excluded, as they are a discrete form of employer criminal exploitation (Boersma & Nolan, 2022). Finally, because of our interest in generating knowledge about the phenomenon of employer non‐compliance with established wage laws in developed countries, only studies from OECD‐member countries with state‐mandated minimum wages were included.…”

Unfreedom in labour relations: from a politics of rescue to a politics of solidarity?

“…Contestation over these definitions have led some to suggest that viewing unfreedom (or exploitation) as falling along a "continuum" may offer novel insights into what produces "slavery" -and that this might point towards alternative responses (Skrivánková, 2010;Barrientos et al, 2013;Fudge and Strauss, 2014). This perspective has gained significant traction (e.g., Boersma and Nolan, 2022). We, too, have attempted to engage in debates around how best to conceptualize labor unfreedoms -including a particular focus on acknowledging workers' agency (Rogaly, 2008;Waite et al, 2015).…”