Vulnerability, Exploitation and Migrants ― Insecure Work in a Globalised Economy

Exploitation at work is not new, but the past few decades have seen a growth in extreme exploitation; the consequence of globalization, the on-going economic crisis and related policies of austerity. Migrants of all kinds often find themselves at the sharp edge of such experiences. This edited collection explores the lives of the rapidly growing numbers of migrants, examining issues of vulnerability and exploitation in the labour market, and drawing on material from across the world. It does this through a far-reaching analysis of lived experiences of exploitation in different geographical contexts. In cataloguing these experiences, the book investigates global neoliberalized economies and emergent labour and product supply chains; states' management of migrants' mobility and the structural production of immigration statuses; characteristics of enclave economies for migrants and their co-ethnic/co-language networks; and national/international responses and interventions designed to tackle migrant exploitation. Global exploitation processes, the book argues, require global responses.

Louise Waite is Associate Professor at the University of Leeds, United Kingdom. She researches issues of unfree/forced labour.
Gary Craig is Professor of Social Justice at Durham University, United Kingdom. He researches extensively on 'race'.
Hannah Lewis is Critical Human Geography Research Fellow at the University of Leeds, United Kingdom. She has interests in migration and forced labour.
Klara Skrivankova is Programme Coordinator for Anti-Slavery International, United Kingdom, and is one of the leading authorities on trafficking and forced labour in Europe.