Migrant Worker Abuse Cases Rise Sharply in 2025, India Most Affected

Migrant worker abuse cases have escalated in 2025 by 37% globally in the first half of the year in reported cases. In a report issued by the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre (BHRRC), 445 cases were documented in January to June compared to 324 in the same period in 2024. The majority of cases involved workers from India, with those from the Philippines and Bangladesh also making the list.

The abuse cases are connected by the report with 327 identified firms, whose locations are in some countries like the United States, United Kingdom, and Taiwan. India had the most number of impacted migrant workers, recorded in 49 cases. The Philippines accounted for 38, and Bangladesh had 37.

Abuse cases mostly took place in countries like the UK (45), Saudi Arabia (41), Taiwan (38), and the United States (37).

US companies dominated the list, with 80 companies represented. Most prominent among them were Meta (8 cases), Starbucks (7), Levi Strauss (7), and VF Corporation (7). Meta was seen in cases of treatment of migrant content moderators who are employed by third-party contractors in Colombia, Germany, Ghana, and Kenya. Abuse of its platforms for exploitative recruitment is also included on the list of allegations.

A court case in Brazil revealed the existence of forced labor among internal migrant workers in seven coffee plantations connected to Starbucks' supply chain. Both Levi Strauss and VF Corporation traced their involvement to Taiwanese suppliers who were accused of exploiting Southeast Asian migrant workers.

Sixteen percent of listed companies were linked to more than one case of abuse, with the most common occurrences among U.S. companies. Most frequent violations cited were wage theft (145 cases), denial of access to remedy (115 cases), and unsafe working conditions (107 cases).

The agri-food industry recorded the largest number of cases of abuse, a total of 118, in farms, fishing boats, food processing, packaging, and distribution. Farms and fishing boats alone accounted for 83. Some of the abuses cited by this industry comprised wage theft (55 incidents), working conditions that were dangerous (35), and denial of access to a remedy (30). A case in point was a complaint filed by a Guatemalan migrant who claimed he was deprived of medical treatment after sustaining a pelvic injury on a Canadian farm.

The construction industry followed with 75 cases, and 34 of those were worker death cases—twice the number registered during the period in 2024. A majority of the deaths took place in India and Saudi Arabia. In Saudi Arabia, 22 fatalities were reported within 13 cases. In India, 48 fatalities resulted from just 8 incidents. Most of these included cases were infrastructures for the works on the 2034 FIFA Men's World Cup, such as constructions of stadiums and megaprojects like NEOM, Qiddiya, and the Jeddah Superdome.

The report pointed out persistent problems of corporate accountability and inaction or inadequate investigation of violations. Most of the firms did not provide redress or compensation to the impacted workers. BHRRC called upon governments and companies to enhance human rights due diligence procedures and ensure an enforcement system to avoid repetition of abuse as well as bring justice to workers.

The body went on to say that additional sector-specific and regional data can be provided on request.

Source: Business & Human Rights Resource Centre
Credit: Original reporting by Nirmal Menon, July 20, 2025