In this study, RTI International investigates immigrant workers and labor trafficking in the construction and hospitality sectors in four communities, including Denver, Colorado, the focus of this brief.
This brief provides an overview of key findings from an RTI International survey of workers, with a focus on findings specific to Denver, Colorado. The objective of this study was to explore how the recruitment, control, concealment, and needs of labor trafficking victims vary across industries in two sectors: construction and hospitality (i.e., restaurants, bars, hotels, and resorts). The overall study included primary data collection activities in four communities: Denver Metro Area, CO; Summit County, CO; Chicago Metro Area, IL; and New York Metro Area, NY. Although law enforcement and community interest in human trafficking has increased tremendously since passage of the Trafficking Victims Protection Act in 2000, most anti-trafficking efforts by law enforcement and community-based organizations have focused on sex trafficking. Labor trafficking, when prioritized at all, is often conceptualized as a single phenomenon; the variation in industries in which labor trafficking occurs and the variation in victim experiences within these industries are sorely overlooked. The lack of sector-specific knowledge about labor trafficking victimization limits the extent to which law enforcement, regulatory agencies, health officials, and community-based advocates can identify and respond to this crime.
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