Human trafficking happens everywhere, including right here in Maine. Throughout Maine, children and adults of all genders, ages, and races are forced to do farm labor, and, to that end, many other types of work, like domestic service, commercial sex work, and restaurant and hospitality service, through threats, physical and sexual violence, and psychological coercion. In the summer, farms hire more seasonal and day laborers during the harvest season, and this increase in demand for labor also puts vulnerable populations at greater risk of labor trafficking and exploitation.  

Hailey Virusso, director of Preble Street Anti-Trafficking Services (ATS), explains, “When you lack basic needs you have a higher risk of exploitation, not having a safe place to live, not having food, not having access to clean water.” Traffickers are skilled at exploiting people’s basic needs and entrapping people in dangerous and difficult situations: “The employer is paying them less than they agreed upon, maybe they’re not being paid at all, and the housing provided is substandard. They control your transportation, but the people in charge say ‘You can go! Go any time!’ You can’t truly leave.”

Thanks to funding from the Howard Buffet Foundation, Preble Street’s Anti-Trafficking Services (ATS) team has a dedicated Labor Trafficking and Exploitation Services and Identification Program that does seasonal outreach to connect specifically with survivors of labor trafficking. This happens leading up to and during the summer months, when demand is highest for farm labor and seasonal workers.