{"id":112074,"date":"2023-07-25T07:24:38","date_gmt":"2023-07-25T12:24:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/PERSIAN-HERITAGE.COM\/?p=112074"},"modified":"2023-07-25T07:24:38","modified_gmt":"2023-07-25T12:24:38","slug":"modern-slavery-gangmasters-exploit-care-worker-shortage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/PERSIAN-HERITAGE.COM\/en\/2023\/07\/25\/modern-slavery-gangmasters-exploit-care-worker-shortage\/","title":{"rendered":"Modern slavery gangmasters exploit care worker shortage"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\"\"BBC \u2014 The number of modern slavery cases reported within the UK care industry has more than doubled in the past year.<\/b><\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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There were 109 potential victims, exploited for personal or financial gain, between January and March – twice as many as the same period in 2022.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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BBC File on 4 obtained the figures from the government-approved anti-slavery helpline, run by charity Unseen.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Investigators trying to protect workers from being exploited say the care industry is now a “top priority”.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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The Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) – whose role is to protect workers from labour exploitation across the UK – told us there were 17 ongoing care sector investigations and that it was looking at more than 300 pieces of intelligence.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Unseen says the rise in calls about the care sector in the past 12 months is because the government has made it easier for overseas social care staff to work in the UK post-Brexit – and fill thousands of job vacancies.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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As the supply chain gets bigger, there’s more chance for exploitation – says the charity.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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In the year to March, the government had issued 102,000 skilled worker, health and care visas to foreign workers – that’s up 171% on the previous year. In a statement, it told File on 4 that more than \u00a317.8m had been spent policing modern slavery since 2016.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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It’s very rare to hear from a victim of modern slavery in person, but one woman who came to the UK on a work visa – and was forced to work gruelling hours as a carer – has told us her story.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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\"Terri<\/picture><\/span><\/div>
Image caption,<\/span><\/p>\n
Terri was recruited as a home carer after replying to an advert in her own country<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n
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Still frightened of her former employers, we’re calling her Terri to protect her identity.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Recruited by an agency in her home country in Africa, Terri was offered work in the UK as a domiciliary carer. The agency told her it would arrange her work visa and transport.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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She was interviewed in person, took an English test, and had to provide proof of her work experience. She was promised a job as a care assistant in the UK through a care company. She was told she would earn up to \u00a329,000.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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For Terri, who was in an abusive marriage, the job was the perfect opportunity to escape with her three children.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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“Butterflies were going through me, it was one of the best days of my life,” she says.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Terri brought her mother with her to the UK, so she could look after Terri’s children. Although Terri would be provided with somewhere to stay through the care company, depending on where she was asked to work, the children and their grandmother went into private rented accommodation.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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Terri told us she found her work hours gruelling – up to 20 hours a day – and that she often worked seven days a week. The car she had been promised to travel between clients did not materialise, so she had to walk to appointments.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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When Terri eventually received her wages from the company two months later, it worked out at less than \u00a32 an hour, which is illegal. Care workers (aged 23 or over) must be paid at least the National Living Wage of \u00a310.42 – for their time at appointments, plus travel time to and from the office.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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