Human trafficking is much more common than people realize. It happens in various places, including hotels, restaurants, nail salons, and construction sites. Traffickers often target people who are vulnerable for a variety of reasons, including lack of a social safety net and economic hardship. Training should avoid using images that sensationalize the issue or re-traumatize audiences. It should also use person-centered language to reflect that individuals who experience trafficking are, first and foremost, people.
Increased Ability to Respond
Human trafficking is a complex issue that requires everyone to work together to stop it. Awareness training is one tool that can help. While most people know how common this problem is, they may need to learn what to look for or how to respond if they encounter it professionally. Human trafficking awareness and prevention course equips learners with the knowledge to identify warning signs and act if they suspect someone is being exploited.
The course includes practical examples based on real-life situations and is designed to be customized for the industry or specific job role. For example, a hotel worker could be trained to recognize the warning signs of sex trafficking by looking for guests who defer answers to others or seem to have control over their documentation. The course also guides screening and assessing young people and dispelling myths and misconceptions that can make it more difficult to recognize potential victims.
Increased Awareness
Human trafficking is a complex problem; training helps workers know what to look for. This includes learning the signs of human trafficking, understanding the types of trafficking, and identifying victims and traffickers. It also teaches the different types of collaborations necessary to combat this issue.
In addition, healthcare practitioners can learn how to recognize and respond to human trafficking and exploitation in the patient setting. This is especially important because 90% of victims will come into contact with a healthcare practitioner during their trafficking experience. Training can help people recognize if someone is a victim and encourage them to speak up. This is essential to combating human trafficking, as victims are often silent because they don’t think anyone will listen. Bystander intervention training can also empower employees to take action if they see potential problems. This can include speaking up to their managers and asking for assistance from law enforcement.
Increased Ability to Recognize Potential Victims
Human trafficking involves using force, fraud, or coercion to obtain a commercial sex act or labor. It affects individuals worldwide and can occur across state or country borders. Victims can be any age, gender, race, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, religion, disability or education level. Exploiters can be individuals or operate within organized criminal networks, such as brothels and massage businesses.
Training can help staff recognize if someone may be a victim and understand how to respond appropriately in the workplace. It’s also a great way to dispel common myths, such as the notion that trafficking occurs only in cities or that all victims are women and children.
Increased Ability to Support Victims
Human trafficking is a multi-billion dollar industry and global issue that impacts people of all ages, genders, and backgrounds. It can occur in developed and developing countries, with most victims being women and children. However, men and individuals with disabilities can also be victims. The focus group participants stressed that specialized training should be provided to professional figures such as social workers, health care professionals, teachers, and attorneys who may interact with trafficking victims directly. Such training should be designed to prevent the stigmatization and re-traumatization of victims by using language, images, and stories that respect their ongoing trauma and sensitivity. Whether you’re an anti-trafficking worker, law enforcement officer, educator, or missionary, these courses provide the knowledge to identify the warning signs of human trafficking and how to respond trauma-informedly.
