To announce the formal launch of the Responsible Sourcing Tool (RST) Facilities Services toolkit, Verité and the US Department of State – JTIP hosted a public webinar on January 31st, 2023. In attendance were more than 250 participants from over 30 countries, representing a wide variety of business sectors, government agencies, social auditing firms, NGOs, and industry associations.     

Presentations were made by Michael Vaudreuil, Senior Director and lead of Verité’s Enterprise HRDD Practice Group; Amy O’Neill Richard, Senior Advisor on Trafficking in Persons for U.S. Dept. of State-JTIP; and Lydia Long, Verité Senior Director.  

The session covered perspectives from the U.S. Department of State, Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons, as well as definitions and discussion of indicators of human trafficking and forced labor in business operations and global supply chains. The webinar also showcased details on human trafficking risks in the Facilities Services Sector, including the presence of foreign migrants, deception in recruitment, low-skilled and low-paying jobs, and worker-paid recruitment fees. 

Participants also were presented with the outline of effective due diligence approaches, using the framework of the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights and the OECD Due Diligence Guidance for Responsible Business Conduct.  

The webinar recording is publicly available below and here. 

YouTube video