A new law is meant to protect workers from human trafficking violations. It requires the Examining Board of Psychology, Medical Quality Assurance Commission, and the Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Marriage and Family Therapist and Social Worker Advisory Committee to work with the Office of Crime Victims Advocacy (OVCA) to share information on human trafficking. This includes methods of recognizing victims, services available to victims and where to report potential trafficking situations.

Human trafficking is modern day slavery. It involves forcing or coercing people to provide labor or commercial sex. Human trafficking occurs when a person uses violence, deception, or threats to force or coerce another person to provide labor or commercial sex. The abductor prevents the victim from leaving the situation. Human trafficking also occurs when a person recruits, harbors, transports, provides, or obtains another person knowing that force, fraud, or coercion will be used to exploit the other person for labor or commercial sex.

Who are the victims?

• About half of all human trafficking victims are children.
• Many victims have first suffered other crimes such as sexual assault, sexual abuse or domestic violence.
• People offered a better life through employment, marriage, education or life in a more prosperous country.

You can contact the Washington State Office of Crime Victims Advocacy at 1.800.822.1067. For more information, please visit the OCVA Web site.