KATHMANDU, Jan 4: Two chiefs of a Nepali enrollment organization suspected of abusing powerless laborers by charging them thousands of pounds in expenses have been given a Slavery and Trafficking Risk Order (STRO).
According to a statement issued by Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority on Tuesday, Doncaster Magistrates’ Court endorsed the application from the Gangmasters and Labor Abuse Authority (GLAA) for an interval STRO against Resham Gurung and Pravin Rimal at a hearing on Wednesday December 21. The arrangement is in place for 18 months.
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The GLAA has suspended permit of Gurung, 65, and Rimal, 56 who are recorded as chairmen of Adept and Agile company based in Nepal, meaning it can now not at this time supply workers into the UK controlled segments of horticulture, cultivation, shellfish gathering, and any related handling and packaging.
Workers told the GLAA that they had paid job-finding fees of up to £13,000 to Adept and Agile while they were still in Nepal. Some had taken out loans to pay the fee, while others said that they had put up their homes or businesses as security for the loan.
“The GLAA will always stand up for the protection of workers’ rights across the labor market. Allegations that vulnerable people are being charged thousands of pounds in job-finding fees before even arriving in the UK are a cause for concern for our agency,” quotes GLAA Chief Executive Elysia McCaffrey in the statement as saying.
GLAA Investigating Officer Dale Walker informed “We are committed to protecting communities from the harm caused by modern slavery and human trafficking. Securing this interim order is a significant step which allows us to monitor the activities of the two defendants for the next 18 months while our investigations are ongoing.
STROs are respectful orders issued to restrict the exercises of people who pose a genuine risk of something else committing servitude or trafficking offenses.
