Last month, a Point Cook couple in Victoria was charged for allegedly enslaving a woman in their home. Fairfax papers reported that a healthcare worker had raised the alarm with authorities after noticing the woman was ‘exhibiting indicators of human trafficking’. Such a disturbing headline is, shockingly, an increasingly common occurrence. In 2021, a Mount Waverly couple was found guilty of enslaving a woman in their home and were subsequently jailed for ‘crimes against humanity’. The 2021 case marked the first time a case solely about domestic servitude was aired in an Australian court.
So what’s happening here? These incidents of domestic slavery underscore a growing problem across Australia. According to the Australian Federal Police, in the financial year 2022-23, reports of modern slavery and human trafficking rose to 294 cases, compared to 224 in the previous year. Further, a Global Slavery Index report found the number of people living in modern slavery in Australia had more than doubled in the past four years, owing in part at least to a spike in numbers of migrant workers to ease labour shortages. Another explanation may be that as the crime of human trafficking, including forced marriage, becomes more known, more reports are made. International human rights group Walk Free estimated 41,000 people are living in modern slavery in Australia. Of all the metrics used to gauge the ill-health of the nation, surely this is the most dire.
Over the last few years, slavery has been a growing part of the national conversation. This is reflected in the budget when Labor committed more than $30 million over four years towards efforts to combat modern slavery. Yet to most Australians, it remains relatively obscure.
Defining Modern Slavery
‘Modern slavery’ covers a range of exploitative practices, from human trafficking, forced labour, and domestic servitude to forced marriage and debt bondage. What connects these practices is the grim reality of individuals being exploited through force, fraud, or coercion.
Today, most manifestations of modern slavery in Australia are not in the shocking headlines about domestic servitude. Rather, slavery is concealed within supply chains of everyday goods and services, notably batteries, clothes, coffee, tea and chocolate. Forced labour has been revealed in domestic contexts, including construction, cleaning companies, meat processing plants, and agriculture.
'Many modern slavery crimes including sexual exploitation, and forced labour occur within a complex intersection of issues including visa rorting, unregulated overseas student schemes, and international organised crime. While these practices continue to be exposed and combatted, the increasing prevalence of other modern slavery practices such as domestic servitude and forced marriage have also come to the fore.'
In Australia, forced marriage is the highest reported form of modern slavery, followed by sexual exploitation, forced labour, domestic servitude and child trafficking. The Australian Institute of Criminology estimates that for every case that is reported, four more cases are not.
Many modern slavery crimes including sexual exploitation, and forced labour occur within a complex intersection of issues including visa rorting, unregulated overseas student schemes, and international organised crime. While these practices continue to be exposed and combatted, the increasing prevalence of other modern slavery practices such as domestic servitude and forced marriage have also come to the fore. The 2017 report ‘Hidden in Plain Sight’, covered the broad scope of the issue locally, fuelling efforts to further formalise Australia’s response to what report author Chris Crewther described as ‘some of the greatest crimes of our time.’
Recognizing and responding
In light of its growing prevalence, the Australian government has taken measures to combat modern slavery. And Australia’s response, while nascent, has shown a promising start.
In the early 2000s, the Federal Government took some significant steps establishing the Support for Trafficked People Program, a program currently tendered out to the Red Cross. In 2008 the Federal Government established the National Roundtable on Human Trafficking and Modern Slavery; this Roundtable, now in its fifteenth year, brings together civil society, departmental officers and federal government Ministers and has played a significant role in identifying issues and promoting collegial action to find a resolution.
Coming into force in 2019, the Modern Slavery Act was a landmark achievement. This legislation requires businesses with an annual revenue of over $100 million to report on the risk of modern slavery in their supply chains, with the aim of promoting transparency. Companies must publish their statements detailing their activities on a searchable online database, inviting public scrutiny. By making statements publicly available, there is also an invitation for public pressure on companies to improve.
The Act has, to some extent, shifted corporate attitudes towards slavery, initiating the process of accountability and sparking a wider conversation. The Modern Slavery Act, along with the Attorney General’s Department’s National Action Plan, and specialized human trafficking teams within the Australian Federal Police form an institutional framework. There is also a long-standing community of anti-slavery organisations in Australia which have been instrumental in advocating for policy changes and improved support for victim survivors for decades.
Gaps and Future Direction
However, despite this progress, there are areas that demand attention. While the 2018 Modern Slavery Act had bipartisan support, it did not provide robust mechanisms to prevent the import of slavery-tainted goods, as was done in the United States when they seized containers full of medical gloves manufactured by forced and indentured labour. Significantly, the Act had a built-in review clause. Recognising these gaps, a review of the Modern Slavery Act, led by Professor John McMillan, was released this year, highlighting suggestions for changes to the Act including penalties for businesses who fail to address any identified modern slavery in their supply chains, and a lower income threshold for business.
‘Victims and survivors have told us they need to access support without involving police. They were frightened of the police; they were anxious for their own or their family’s safety; they were worried about their immigration status.’
Moreover, the recent inclusion of an anti-slavery commissioner in the Labor budget is a significant step forward. Backed by $8 million over four years, the commissioner will support the community to improve supply chain transparency, ensuring that companies do more than just self-report risks. Civil society advocates for a commissioner do not, however, want the role to be confined to supply chain oversighting; these groups are calling for a broader interpretation of the role to include such responsibilities as preventing, detecting, investigating and prosecuting slavery and trafficking offenses and supporting victims.
In addition, the allocation in the 2023 federal budget of $23 million over four years will provide additional support for victim-survivors of modern slavery, crucially allowing individuals to seek help without police involvement. Government support for victims of modern slavery is available only through a referral by the Australian Federal Police, which to many, has been a barrier.
Informed by victim-survivors, anti-slavery organisations have been petitioning for seventeen years for an additional way for victims to access government support. Christine Carolan, Executive Officer of ACRATH (Australian Catholic Religious Against Trafficking in Humans), highlights the need for this approach. ‘Victims and survivors have told us they need to access support without involving police. They were frightened of the police; they were anxious for their own or their family’s safety; they were worried about their immigration status.’
In addition to the support of government and law enforcement, victim-survivors need advocacy and protection from civil society and non-profit organisations. The scale of modern slavery in Australia necessitates a reflective approach to advocacy work, where those most affected are listened to, and their input shapes more impactful responses. This is happening, and that’s reflected in the budget changes and the extra pathway to reporting.
While substantial strides have been made to combat modern slavery in Australia, there’s still much work to be done. Continued funding and collective effort from the anti-trafficking community will be vital, because effectively addressing, and ultimately eradicating, modern slavery will require a combined effort from all facets of society.
It’s a problem that depends on widespread community awareness for a truly effective response. Thankfully, that seems to be changing.
To report or discuss a modern slavery or human trafficking concern, call the Australian Federal Police on 131 AFP (131 237).
Melissa Halliday is a community development advisor at ACRATH (Australian Catholic Religious Against Trafficking in Humans)
Main image: Woman standing in a city street. (Getty Images)