Florida Leading the War on Human Trafficking

By David Langham

Back in 2014, I wrote Where did it Come From, Where is it Going, and How Huge is it? It was published twice, but neither publication is available online at this time. The article addressed the sheer volume of workers’ compensation in America. As a matter of fact, workers’ compensation has begun to celebrate centennials in various states; in its modern American form it is reasonably recent, although the concept of compensating for injury literally dates back thousands of years, perhaps to 2050 B.C. according to some. 

The “How Huge is it” question came from a quote written by Judge Mills of the Florida First District Court of Appeal, who said: 

“Workers' compensation is a very important field of the law, if not the most important. It touches more lives than any other field of the law. It involves the payments of huge sums of money. The welfare of human beings, the success of business, and the pocketbooks of consumers are affected daily by it.”

And, I set out in 2014 to determine just what “huge” might mean.  I found that “in 2011, $60.21 billion in medical and indemnity benefits were paid. That year, the overall net premium written for workers’ compensation was $37.5 billion.” Each is a great deal of money, certainly worthy of the label “huge.” In short, workers’ compensation is a huge enterprise, or community, that is made up of a great many professions and occupations. It touches every business in the country, directly or not. 

I got to thinking about the “billions” on July 25, 2019 when I tuned in for a WorkCompCentral program presented by Jeanine Zukerman titled Human Trafficking and Workers’ Compensation. That is not a new topic; in April 2019 I wrote Domestic Violence, Human Trafficking, and Workers' Compensation on WCC’s Work Comp World. I suggested then that we might all be well served to learn more of the problem, and particularly how to spot it. 

Well, July 25, I got an eyeful of the problem. Ms. Zuckerman presented a slew of disturbing facts and statistics. She told us that human trafficking generates about $32 billion annually. Note how close that is to the $37.5 billion in workers’ compensation net written premium discussed above. Think on that, human trafficking in our modern world is similar in revenue to the vast and wide world of workers’ compensation. 

Ms. Zuckerman provided various examples of how, where, and why people are trafficked and exploited. Honestly, that was not surprising. My eyes were opened to much of that when I worked on penning Domestic Violence, Human Trafficking, and Workers' Compensation. I frankly find it a little difficult to be shocked or surprised about this topic any more. But, after the how, where, and why, she cautioned us that we cannot stop learning about those points. She explained that those who perpetrate trafficking are constantly, persistently, and imaginatively evolving. This is a topic that can be studied, learned, but perhaps never mastered. 

Ms. Zuckerman reminded us that the perpetrators may include family members, friends, organized crime, adult entertainment, and Internet predators. She acknowledged that a significant segment of those trafficked are involved in prostitution, pornography, and worse. But, she also cautioned that those are not the only industries. The point is that this human issue is multi-faceted. To participate in addressing it, we will all have to accept that it is huge, diverse, and evolving. We may have difficulty spotting victims. But, that is not the worst of it. She explained that many of the victims do not themselves realize or perceive they are in fact victims; through relationships and dependency on perpetrators, victims may be acclimated to their situation and accepted it as somehow normal or appropriate. She made a comparison to Stockholm Syndrome in this regard. Thus, they may not search or ask for help.

Much of Ms. Zuckerman’s focus was directed at the health care industry. She discussed various challenges we all face in spotting victims, but several suggestions were specifically for medical professionals. Among these were: (1) people working “excessively long or unusual hours”; (2) workers who are “unpaid, paid very little, or paid only through tips”; (3) workers recruited “through false promises” about the “nature or conditions of work” (4) workers “unable to clarify where he/she is staying”; and, people not in possession or “control of his/her own ID documents.” 

I was surprised by Ms. Zuckerman’s explanation that trafficking awareness information is often posted on women’s bathroom stalls. She described that for many victims, the bathroom stall may be the only time they are alone. That was another sign or signal she mentioned, if a person is perpetually accompanied by someone, someone who resists being separated from them, that person may not be a diligent protector, but a “handler.” Whether in a medical setting, a discovery deposition, or a hearing, one might ask to exclude someone’s companion. The reaction to such a request might tell one something of the situation?

Ms. Zuckerman focused on legislative efforts in Florida. When I penned Domestic Violence, Human Trafficking, and Workers' Compensation, a bill was mentioned as being considered in the Legislature. It was focused on training community members to spot the “warning signs and red flags.” Well, Ms. Zuckerman was proud that Florida in fact passed a bill, which July 1 became law.  That bill, HB851 included “findings,” essentially facts the Legislature found compelling or important on the topic. 

First among those: “Florida is ranked third nationally in human trafficking abuses.” At first blush that was surprising. But, Florida is the third most-populous state. According to one source, the top two states are California (1) and Texas (2), the two most populous states in that same order. Second, it found that “the crime of human trafficking is a gross violation of human rights.” And, notably, “the Legislature deems it critical to the health, safety, and welfare of the people of this state to prevent and deter human trafficking.” In short, the Florida Legislature recognizes the scope and magnitude of this travesty and concluded that Florida “is in critical need of a coordinated and collaborative human trafficking law enforcement response.” 

This law is about raising and directing funding at this problem. It is about a quasi-public organization to develop, implement, and deploy training and education (the lack education is discussed in Domestic Violence, Human Trafficking, and Workers' Compensation). The new organization will be a not-for-profit corporation. Its Board of Directors will be appointed by legislative leaders, the Attorney General, and the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. 

The training that it and the Florida Department of Legal Affairs is directed to develop is to be focused, to be about “best practices for reporting,” and about “intervention and treatment for survivors.” And, they are not fooling around, the material, per the bill language, must be “ready for statewide dissemination by not later than October 1, 2019.” The training will include definitions of forms of trafficking, specific information on identification of potential victims, and responsibilities in reporting. I am hopeful that there will be many organizations, public and private, that elect to voluntarily distribute this information. It seems to me that the more effort the better. 

The bill establishes a “Solicitation for Prostitution Public Database.” Someone convicted of soliciting prostitution (or who pleads no contest) shall have their identity published in this database. If the convicted solicitor is not subsequently convicted for a period of five years, the information will be “automatically removed” from the database. There are provisions that allow removal from the database in certain circumstances. The person’s listing shall include her/his “full legal name,” address, “a color photograph,” and the offense of which convicted. Note that this is not a law enforcement database, but a “public” one. There will be repercussions potentially from this publicity. 

By January 1, 2021 each Florida licensee in the following professions must complete a “1-hour continuing education course on human trafficking”: acupuncturists (chapter 457); medical doctors (chapter 458); osteopathic physicians (chapter 459); chiropractors (chapter 460); podiatrists (chapter 461); optometrists (chapter 463); pharmacists (chapter 465); dentists and hygienists (chapter 466); nursing home administrators, occupational therapists, respiratory therapists, dieticians (chapter 468); massage therapists (chapter 480); or physical therapists (chapter 486). The list or professions covered by this requirement does not include nurses (chapter 464), midwives (chapter 467), psychologists (chapter 490) or counselors/psychotherapists (chapter 491). It is not known why those professions were not included. 

By January 1, 2021, each of the mandated licensees listed will be required to post a sign “in a conspicuous place accessible to employees.” In a “32-point type,” in English and Spanish, the sign must say: 

"If you or someone you know is being forced to engage in an activity and cannot leave, whether it is prostitution, housework, farm work, factory work, retail work, restaurant work, or any other activity, call the National Human Trafficking Resource Center at 888-373-7888 or text INFO or HELP to 233-733 to access help and services. Victims of slavery and human 406 trafficking are protected under United States and Florida law."

Perhaps this might evolve into a requirement for posting in a conspicuous place accessible to patients and customers. In any event, this will begin a process of raising awareness of what is occurring and of the State effort to begin addressing it. 

The bill contains specific changes to licensure of massage businesses, public lodging establishments (requiring the same “if you know someone” sign above, also in an employee-accessible area),  

Attorneys are also not covered by the new statute. The regulation of the practice of law in Florida is constitutionally within the authority of the Supreme Court, not the Legislature. Article V, section 15. Thus, the Legislature cannot define the requirements of continuing education for lawyers in the manner that it can regarding other professions. If there is to be similar education mandated for attorneys regarding the identification and reporting of human trafficking, that would be dependent upon the Court mandating it through The Florida Bar. 

However, there is absolutely nothing that precludes anyone from becoming better informed. There are opportunities such as the recent WCC webinar. There are a variety of excellent resources on the Internet. There is one focused on nursing. There is a video promoted by a coalition of business interests. There is information from the government. There are various associations with free resources.  

With or without some licensure or education mandate, any (all) of us can learn more and each become a small part of addressing what is a huge problem. Any of us can raise awareness in our professions, workplaces, civic organizations, and elsewhere. We are a huge community. There is benefit to information and education. Hopefully the new Florida law will be both an inspiration to us all, and a start towards substantively addressing a huge problem.