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As the Joseph Rowntree Foundation today publishes a report on forced labour in the UK – some of it based on research in the South West.....

As the Joseph Rowntree Foundation today publishes a report on forced labour in the UK - some of it based on research in the South West - the TUC wants employers to work with unions to eradicate the practice.

Regional secretary Nigel Costley said: "We want to ensure people employed in the local food industry are treated fairly and with respect, and paid properly. Too many ministers think the vital protections that vulnerable workers need are no more than red tape, but this is an industry that is in no danger of over-regulation.

"And with workplace inspections also being cut, the problem of horrific exploitation is only likely to get worse, not better."

The report highlights the 'underwork scam' in which too many workers are recruited and then given just enough employment to meet their debt to the gangmaster, excessive productivity targets and workplace surveillance, low wages, a significant proportion of interviewees paying fees to secure work (creating indebtedness and dependence), and workers being threatened, bullied and racially or sexually abused, with some employers using the fear of dismissal to ensure workers remained compliant and deferential.

The report states: "The intensity of work in the food industry, driven by economic pressures throughout the food chain, contributes to such exploitation."

Nigel Costley said: "The food industry is an important part of the South West's economy, yet employers seem to sanction horrific exploitation. This cannot be allowed to continue."

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