Overview
Human trafficking - modern day slavery - is not just a problem in developing nations. Estimates show that thousands of men, women, and children are trafficked in the United States each year primarily for sexual or labor exploitation. Trafficking networks often rely on legitimate businesses to sustain their operations and infrastructure.
Hotels are one of many venues that traffickers use to exploit their victims. As a result, industry leaders are increasingly recognizing the unique role they can play in preventing and disrupting this crime.
Traffickers use hotel and motel rooms when setting up encounters between victims of sex trafficking and those individuals purchasing sex. Labor trafficking is also present in both the hotel industry's workforce and in the supply chain of its products. This criminal activity presents a great risk for the safety and security of hotel businesses, as well as legitimate hotel customers. Traffickers are capitalizing on the lack of awareness around this issue within the hotel industry. All too often, they continue to exploit their victims unchecked because staff, managers, and executives do not know what to look for.
AHLA Position
AHLA believes strongly that the hotel industry must continue to do everything it can to raise awareness of human trafficking and train hotel workers on the vital role that they can play in helping victims. Partnerships we have developed in this endeavor with organizations like Polaris and ECPAT-USA have helped the hotel industry bolster its response to human trafficking.
Preventing Human Trafficking
Your Role in Preventing Human Trafficking: Recognize the Signs, developed by the by the American Hotel & Lodging Educational Institute, ECPAT-USA and Polaris, provides an overview of the issues of human trafficking, suggested protocols for responding to suspicious activity, and signs of trafficking specific to different hospitality positions (in-room staff, restaurant, lobby, and security).
Objectives of the course:
- Define human trafficking and commercial sexual exploitation of children;
- Identify individuals who are most at risk for human trafficking;
- Understand the difference between labor and sex trafficking specific to the hotel sector;
- Explain the role of hospitality employees in responding to this issue.
For more information and to order, call 1 800.349.0299 or +1 407.999.8100 or contact industrysales@ahla.com.
To host this program at an academic institution, please call 1 800.344.4381 or contact academicsales@ahla.com.
| Number of Rooms | AHLA Member Fee | Non-Member Fee |
| 1-100 rooms | $500 | $625 |
| 101-300 rooms | $750 | $950 |
| 301-500 rooms | $1,000 | $1,250 |
| 501+ rooms | $2,500 | $3,125 |
***PRICING IS FOR A ONE YEAR SITE LICENSE UNLIMITED USERS***
Ways To Get Involved
- Display the Awareness Poster in your office.
- Hand out the Human Trafficking Indicators card.
- Check out other Department of Homeland Security anti-human trafficking materials on the Blue Campaign Website.
- Learn more about your responsibilities as an employer.
- Be a conscientious consumer as you make purchases for your business. Refer to the Department of Labor's List of Goods Produced by Child Labor or Forced Labor.
- Share your ideas on how the Department and your company can help raise awareness and combat human trafficking.
- View the Child Trafficking Webinar on the AHLA Member Webinar Archive page.
We are thankful for the partnerships we have developed in this endeavor with organizations like Polaris and ECPAT-USA; these organizations do incredible work every day and have helped our industry bolster its response to human trafficking.
Talking Points
Members only resource offering high level bullet points on the key issues affecting our industry today.
Members OnlyTake Action
Make your voice heard! Here you will have the exclusive access to innovative tools that will allow you to take immediate action on important legislative initiatives through concise emails delivered instantly to your Representatives urging their support of lodging-friendly positions.
Take ActionRelated Resources
More Resources To Combat Human Trafficking:
- AHLA Webinar: The Role of Hotel Employees in Stopping Human Trafficking
- EI Human Trafficking DVD
- EI's "The Role of Hospitality in Preventing and Reacting to Child Trafficking" Course
Government Departments
- The Department of Homeland Security: Blue Campaign
- Department of State Trafficking in Persons Report
- Department of Health and Human Services Resources
- Department of Justice Resources
Organizations
- Lodging Security Officer Program
- Businesses Ending Slavery and Trafficking
- Alliance Against Human Trafficking
- The Polaris Project
- ECPAT
- International Tourism Partnership Know-How Guide and Resources to Addressing Human Trafficking
- Immigration & Customs Enforcement Human Trafficking
- National Center for Missing & Exploited Children Child Sexual Exploitation
REPORT SUSPECTED HUMAN TRAFFICKING TO LAW ENFORCEMENT: Call U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement at (866) 347-2423 or you can contact the National Human Trafficking Hotline at (888) 373-7888 or text BeFree (233733).