Worker exploitation can hide in plain sight. Here’s how to ensure an ethical summer holiday |
If they haven’t already, many Australians will soon head off for summer holidays. But behind every smooth check-in, cocktail or airport gate smile is one of more than an estimated 270 million tourism workers – about 8.2% of the global workforce.
These workers – cleaners, cooks, waiters, porters and cabin crew – often labour around the clock to make holidays feel effortless for everyone else. But too often there’s a dark reality hiding behind this idyllic picture.
Our team at the University of Tasmania specialises in researching the ways worker exploitation and modern slavery can appear in the tourism industry.
Drawing on our ongoing research, here are some of the places hidden exploitation can surface in tourism, and steps you can take to help ensure you have an ethical summer holiday.
Hotel guests love coming back to an immaculate, freshly made-up hotel room. But meeting that expectation often relies on housekeepers working long, demanding shifts, sometimes with unjust wages or harassment.
Global hotel chains often struggle to monitor workplace standards across different countries with different laws and standards.
Australian cases reveal how exploitation can stay invisible. For example, in 2017, a Sydney cleaning company was fined A$447,300 for exploiting 51 workers. In its ruling, the Federal Court said some workers were treated as “slaves”.
One modern slavery expert interviewed in our research recalled a “green” hotel where staff appeared to work extreme hours without overtime, suggesting eco-labels can........