AAP
Labour trafficking is under-reported in Australia and the government is keen to do more to stamp it out, Home Affairs Minister Brendan O'Connor says.
Mr O'Connor said a report released on Tuesday by the Australian Institute of Criminology noted just a handful of actual prosecutions.
That included the case of a young woman brought to Australia from the Philippines by a Queensland couple.
She was allegedly enslaved through a combination of unpaid labour, ongoing sexual assaults, verbal threats and abuse, exploitation of her vulnerability, control of her movements, and confiscation of her passport.
The case is now awaiting retrial.
Mr O'Connor said human trafficking was not common in Australia, and the AIC report showed it was under-reported.
"But it is nonetheless a shocking crime that degrades people and subjects them to great personal risk for the gain of criminals," he said in a statement.
"People can be trafficked around the world for labour-intensive occupations, sexual servitude or as domestic workers.
"The Gillard government is keen to do more to combat human trafficking."
"It's important that we learn more about human trafficking in our region so that we can find the best ways to tackle this crime and protect people from becoming victims."
Mr O'Connor said this report is the first of a series to be released ahead of the National Roundtable on People Trafficking on November 24.
In the report, human trafficking consultant Fiona David said labour trafficking included practices such as slavery, forced labour and servitude.
Trafficking of women for the sex industry is generally accepted as a distinct and separate form of crime.
Ms David said the precise size of the labour trafficking problem in Australia remained unknown and the number of cases reported to federal agencies was very small.
She said research confirmed there had been cases of unreported and perhaps unrecognised labour trafficking.
"Cases of unreported or unrecognised labour trafficking exist in an environment that includes significant numbers of cases involving unlawful conduct perpetrated against migrant workers," she said.
That includes underpayment or non-payment, sexual harassment, deception or fraud about working conditions and about sponsorship for permanent residency.
"Some of these cases presented one or two features that are widely considered to be indicators of trafficking," she said.
Labour trafficking under-reported in AustSource: The Age
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