January was National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month. Our business partner, the DoD, defines human trafficking as “a crime in which force, fraud or coercion is used to compel a person to perform labor, services, or commercial sex. It affects all populations: adults, children, men, women, foreign nationals, and U.S. citizens, and all economic classes.” This month and every month, SOC joins the fight to end modern-day slavery.
We take this human rights issue seriously—our first value is Safety. The nature of our integrated security work puts us in a powerful position to impact change and to take action though both our human trafficking policies and global mission execution. We have updated our training and established committees to review our supplier processes. Additionally, SOC mandates Human Trafficking Compliance Plans for our various task orders. All of these critical measures are aimed to help fight the ongoing issue—40.3 million people are victims of human trafficking worldwide (International Labor Organization).
As part of our commitment to help combat and end Global Trafficking of Persons, we also make available to employees and others the Global Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-844-888-FREE and help@befree.org. This is how to report if you suspect or witness any forms of illegal trafficking in the areas where we conduct business.
As part of our commitment to maintain the highest standards of safety in the environments we work, please continue to be on watch—especially our employees and partners in the field. If you see something or sense something, say something. The Department of State offers an additional 15 Ways You can Help Fight Human Trafficking. Awareness is the first step, followed by action, to end the horrific exploitation and trafficking of humans. Together we are making a difference.
—Steve Selfridge, President, SOC
