TAT Header with Trademark
Human Trafficking in the News
Star Caberet ordered to pay $1 million in damages 
to teen hired as dancer at age 15
The operators of a now-closed Beaverton strip club must pay $1 million in damages to a teenager subjected to sexual harassment after she was illegally hired to dance nude at the business when she was 15, Oregon's labor department announced Thursday.

Hotel staff train against trafficking 
The Iowa Network Against Human Trafficking and Slavery and the Nebraska Coalition on Human Trafficking recently teamed up to do the Iowa Hotel/Motel Training Project, which was announced by Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds in a Sept. 19 press release. "[Iowa Trafficking Network] estimates at least 50 percent of sex trafficking takes place in hospitality venues, often without the knowledge of management and staff," the release said. 

Sex trafficking bill imposes hefty charge on johns
Brown County, Wis. --  As the number of local cases of sex trafficking grows, state lawmakers are weighing a new way to combat the problem: money. New legislation in Madison would create a hefty surcharge for convicted traffickers. The money would be used to help victims and fund future police operations.
Truckers Against Trafficking receives highest image award  from the American Trucking Associations

Tony Bradley, president of the Arizona Trucking Association, accepted the award on TAT's behalf. Pictured from left:  Steven Spencer, HireRight (award sponsor), Bradley and Kevin Burch, ATA immediate past chairman, Jet Express, Inc.
Nominated by the presidents of 22 state trucking associations, Truckers Against Trafficking (TAT) was named one of the 2017 recipients of the Mike Russell Trucking Image Award by the American Trucking Associations (ATA) on Monday, Oct. 23 at the ATA's Management Conference and Exhibition in Orlando, Florida.
 
Other award recipients included the Arkansas Trucking Association, Load One and Herschel Evans, Holland Inc.
 
Tony Bradley, president of the Arizona Trucking Association and the person who prepared the nomination for TAT, received the award for TAT from Elisabeth Barna, ATA's chief operating officer and executive vice president of industry affairs.
 
"Since its inception, Truckers Against Trafficking has become a catalyst for change and has helped promote the trucking industry, training professional truck drivers and members of the trucking industry to be Everyday Heroes," wrote Bradley in the nomination. "They are making a difference and improving the image of the trucking industry. While doing research for this nomination, it occurs to me that several past recipients of the Mike Russell award received their award, in part, for their partnership with TAT."
 
The Mike Russell Trucking Image Award celebrates companies, organizations and individuals who creatively generate positive awareness of the trucking industry. Without the support of these leaders, the benefits of an improved image of the trucking industry would not be possible. Submissions are evaluated by an expert impartial panel of judges based on:
  • Creativity - What innovative or novel ways has the nominee promoted the image of trucking over the last year?
  • Frequency and Reach/Impact - Efforts should reach a significant and relevant audience.
  • Execution - All communications in the campaign should reflect the highest standards of quality and professionalism.
 
Kendis Paris, TAT executive director, said, "From the beginning, we asked the trucking industry to become part of the solution for the crime of human trafficking; and this is no easy thing. It requires they recognize their own intersections with victims, buyers and traffickers and turn those encounters into opportunities to report this crime. They have done just that. Truckers, industry executives, manufacturers, truck stop operators, CDL instructors and so many more have stepped up in immeasurable ways, and, as a result, lives are being changed. No one does this work for the recognition, and yet TAT is incredibly honored to receive the Mike Russell Image Award, because it was industry members, our fellow changemakers, who nominated us for it. It is our humble privilege to serve alongside them each and every day in combating this crime, and for this award, and for all of their efforts on a continual basis on behalf of victims everywhere, we thank you."

To read a news article about the award, click here.
Freedom Drivers Project provides education, awareness on tour of East Coast Volvo facilities

On a first-of-its-kind tour of Volvo facilities across four states, Oct. 16-20, the Freedom Drivers Project (FDP) drew hundreds of Volvo employees through its doors, while Helen Van Dam, FDP director, trained additional employees through brown bag/lunch and learn meetings.

When asked why it makes sense for Volvo, as an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM), to take part in fighting human trafficking, Kurt Hollinger, vice president of sales, said, " You look at what we really specialize in on the Volvo product line. We really excel on the truckload products -- the sleepers - for the over-the-road guys that are spending a lot of time out on the road and at truck stops. So, it just seems like a natural fit with one of our largest customer bases ... and I think it's important for us to work with and educate them on what can be done out there to combat this issue."
At every stop, the FDP attracted large groups of employees.
 
The FDP began the tour in Greensboro, North Carolina at the Volvo Trucks North America Headquarters. At the lunch and learn, TAT, the North Carolina Highway Patrol, and Volvo shared about joint efforts to combat human trafficking.


TAT announces new corporate sponsor levels


The work of fighting human trafficking takes resolve, strategy, dedicated people, resources and money to continually expand the reach of the efforts as well as provide ongoing funding to the work already underway. New research completed by the International Labour Organization and its partners (see article this newsletter) reveals the scale of the crime continues to grow and there is no room for relaxed efforts, either abroad or nationally.
 
To that end, while TAT gratefully acknowledges we couldn't have accomplished what we already have without the work and funding of our present partners and sponsors, for the work to continue and reach more broadly into the trucking industry, as well as expand into other critical sectors of transportation, such as busing, and throughout North America, which includes Mexico and Canada, we need more dedicated sponsors, and increased sponsorship funding. To that end, we have created new levels of corporate sponsorships and ask that you please examine them and thoughtfully consider where you, your company or your organization could join us in the work to fight this crime that destroys so many lives:
Freedom Driver -- $100,000 and over
All of the Diamond benefits, plus extensive TAT promotion across multiple platforms (website, newsletter, social media, radio) announcing you as a Freedom Driver and overall strategic partner; the development of an internal email campaign for your employees showing the impact of your company investment; and a standing banner displaying your logo at all Freedom Drivers Project events.
Diamond -- $50,000 and over
All of the Platinum benefits, plus co-branding our informational brochure with your logo, and a Freedom Drivers Project media event at a location of your choice.
Platinum -- $25,000 and over
All of the Gold benefits, plus your logo and a short description of your participation with TAT displayed as one of the scrolling slides on a monitor inside the trailer for one year; and your company promoted through media outlets when the press is in attendance at speaking events.
Gold -- $10,000 and over
All of the Silver benefits, plus your company publicly thanked at speaking events as a strategic partner and your logo included in our monthly newsletter.
Silver -- $5,000 and over
All of the Bronze benefits, plus your logo displayed on the Freedom Drivers Project for one year and your logo included in our annual report.
Bronze -- $2,500 and over
All of the Copper benefits, plus social media promotion.
Copper -- $1,000 and over
Your logo hyperlinked on the sidebar of our site, plus your logo, link, and 100-word description on our Sponsor page.
 
*All sponsorships and the according benefits are considered active for one year.
 
TAT has over 30,000 followers on Twitter, over 164,000 Likes on Facebook, and a growing Pinterest and Instagram presence. We participate in speaking events across the country nearly every week, and our media engagement has included pieces on CNN, BBC, NPR, Fox News, Forbes, The Washington Times, Huffington Post, MSNBC, as well as many local media outlets across the nation. We have also been featured in nearly every major trucking publication in the United States. 
New research reveals human trafficking numbers increasing worldwide

NEW YORK (ILO News) - New research developed jointly by the International Labour Organization (ILO) and the Walk Free Foundation , in partnership with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), has revealed the true scale of modern slavery around the world. The data, released during the United Nations General Assembly, shows that more than 40 million people around the world were victims of modern slavery in 2016. The ILO have also released a companion estimate of child labor, which confirms that about 152 million children, aged between 5 and 17, were subject to child labor.  
 
The new estimates also show that women and girls are disproportionately
affected by modern slavery, accounting for almost 29 million, or 71 per cent of the overall total. Women represent 99 per cent of the victims of forced labor in the commercial sex industry and 84 per cent of forced marriages.

The research reveals that among the 40 million victims of modern slavery, about 25 million were in forced labor, and 15 million were in forced marriage.

Child labor remains concentrated primarily in agriculture (70.9 per cent). Almost  one in five child laborers work in the services sector (17.1 per cent) while 11.9 per cent of child laborers work in industry. 

Upcoming Events

Nov. 2 - Oklahoma Safety Management Council, Oklahoma City, OK, Kylla Lanier, TAT deputy director, presenting

Nov. 2  -  Transportation Legislative Review Committee, Denver, CO, Kendis Paris, TAT executive director, presenting

Nov. 5-9  -  Dreamforce Conference, San Francisco, CA, Laura Cyrus, TAT operations director, and Helen Van Dam, FDP director, attending 

Nov 14-15 - XPO Logistics Carrier Safety and Operations meetings, Aurora, IL, Laura Cyrus, TAT operations director, presenting

Nov. 14-16  - American Trucking Associations Safety, Security and Human Resources Conference, Memphis, TN, Kylla Lanier, TAT deputy director, with table

Nov 17 - Quest Liner and FoodLiner Manager's meeting, Dubuque, IA, Laura Cyrus, TAT operations director, presenting

Nov. 29  - Coalition build, Kennedy, TX, Esther Goetsch, CB specialist, and Tajuan McCarty, TAT field trainer, presenting, and FDP attending 

Nov. 30 - American Trucking Associations Law Enforcement Roundtable, Washington, DC, Kendis Paris, TAT executive director, presenting

Nov. 30 -  Wisconsin DOJ Conference, Madison, WI, Kylla Lanier, TAT deputy director, presenting 

Nov. 30 - Idaho State Police, Boise, ID, Helen Van Dam, FDP director, presenting
Truckers Against Trafficking 
PO Box 816 | Englewood, CO 80151

STAY CONNECTED: