Latest Forced labor News
20 richest countries account for over half of 50 million people in 'modern slavery,' report says
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The world’s 20 richest countries are fueling forced labor and account for over half the estimated 50 million people living in “modern slavery,” according to a report released Wednesday. The report by the Walk Free foundation, a rights group that focuses...
California lawmakers on reparations panel challenge assumptions about payments to Black residents
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — As California lawmakers hail the work of a historic panel that has delved into reparations proposals for African Americans for nearly two years, a state senator on the task force is warning Black residents to not assume that large cash payments are on the way. ...
Japan, South Korea partnership funds to go to chips, energy
TOKYO (AP) — Top business leaders from Japan and South Korea announced Wednesday they will use a fund meant to underscore the two countries' burgeoning ties to strengthen their cooperation in energy, industry and other sectors. Japan Business Federation, known as Keidanren, and...
Study: China's squid fleet avoids Peru to dodge new port law
A port regulation adopted by Peru to combat illegal fishing by Chinese squid vessels appears to have backfired and driven the world's largest overseas fishing fleet deeper into the shadows, increasing the risk of forced labor, according to new research. Peru in 2020 began requiring...
Lawmakers ask SEC to assess Shein supply chain before IPO
NEW YORK (AP) — A bipartisan group of two dozen lawmakers is asking the Securities and Exchange Commission to put the brakes on an initial public offering by Chinese fast fashion retailer Shein until it verifies it does not use forced labor from the country’s predominantly Muslim Uyghur...
The man in a hurry: King Charles III rushes to make a mark
LONDON (AP) — King Charles III is a man in a hurry. After waiting nearly 74 years to become king, Charles has used his first six months on the throne to meet faith leaders across the country, reshuffle royal residences, stage his first overseas state visit and hold a sleepover at...
3 charged human smuggling, forced labor
BOSTON (AP) — Three members of the same family were charged in what federal prosecutors say was a scheme to smuggle Brazilian immigrants into the U.S. to work at two Massachusetts restaurants where they were forced to work long hours and threatened with harm. Jesse James Moraes,...
Boston pizza shop owner facing more forced labor charges
BOSTON (AP) — The owner of two Boston pizza shops already facing a forced labor charge for allegedly coercing an employee not legally in the U.S. to work long hours while subjecting him to abuse and threats has been indicted on additional charges, federal prosecutors said Wednesday. ...
Their stories were lost to slavery. Now DNA is writing them
CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) — In the 1700s, a boy was born into slavery in Colonial America. He spent his life working in the coastal city of Charleston, South Carolina. And when he died in middle age, he was buried alongside 35 other slaves. That's the likely history that researchers...
Pizza shop owner accused of abusing workers denied bail
BOSTON (AP) — A Boston pizza shop owner accused by federal authorities of abusing employees who were not legally in the U.S. has been ordered held without bail by a magistrate judge who cited the defendant's “history of violence and threats.” “At this juncture, the evidence...
