Employers in central Italy arrested for exploiting migrants
Three people have been served house arrest warrants and a residency ban in the town of Prato, Tuscany. They allegedly exploited dozens of migrant workers.
workers rights
Southern Italy: Union sounds alarm after Malian worker run over by car
The farmhands' union Ubs in Calabria has denounced yet another road accident involving a migrant worker. The Union stressed that that the security of foreign workers is not safeguarded.
Luxury yacht builders used 'slave labor' in northern Italy
Police have arrested eight people and seized over €900,000 in assets in northwestern Italy. The suspects are accused of exploiting migrants workers building luxury yachts. Dozens of Bangladeshi workers were allegedly threatened, beaten, insulted and underpaid.
Italian associations call for hiring foreign health workers with work permit
Three associations in Italy have called on authorities to hire foreign doctors and nurses with regular Italian work permits. The associations argued it's illegitimate to exclude foreign doctors from civil service exams during the coronavirus pandemic.
Hotlines to report labor exploitation launched in Sicily
Three unions in the Italian city of Catania have set up two hotlines to report cases of exploitation of day laborers and gangmastering. Many farmworkers in the region are migrants.
Migrants in Italy: 220,000 workers applied for regularization
Since a new decree went into effect in Italy this summer, 220,000 migrants have applied to get temporary papers, according to Deputy Interior Minister Matteo Mauri. Meanwhile, he also said that the exploitation of undocumented farmworkers in the Foggia region had to be stopped.
Italian unions lash out at new EU migration pact
The Italian trade unions CGIL, CISL and UIL have criticized the proposal for a new pact on migration and asylum presented by the European Commission, underscoring that the initiative ''upholds the mainly security-based approach'' on migration.
Lebanon abolishes 'slave-like' system for foreign domestics
Lebanon is abolishing its sponsorship system for domestic workers, which many have likened to slavery. According to local media, the decision is "an enormous step" in the fight for human rights.
Lombardy NGO rescues migrants from gangmasters
An NGO based in the northern Italian region of Lombardy has rescued two migrants who were exploited by gangmasters. Kali, a 23-year-old Indian man, and Irina, a 27-year-old Romanian woman, became victims of gangmasters after they migrated to Italy. They were aided by ''Lule,'' an organization in Lombardy that helps victims like them.
Gangmasters exploited migrant workers near Milan, farms seized
A court has confirmed that the seizure of properties belonging to a farming company in Italy was legal. Its leaders allegedly exploited and abused African farmworkers. The migrants reportedly had to work 12 hours a day, without a day off, for €4.50 an hour. They were also subjected to racist insults and not provided protective gear against the coronavirus.
Malpractice, fraud and blackmail: Italy's treatment of undocumented workers
A move by the Italian government set to provide thousands of undocumented farm workers and home carers with legal papers is failing to meet its goal of freeing people from criminal and exploitative practices.
Migrant workers still exploited in southern Italy, says NGO
The labor exploitation of migrant farmworkers in Piana di Gioia Tauro, in Italy's southern region of Calabria, continues amid conditions aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic, medical aid organization MEDU claims in a new report.