Twenty-six rescued from slave-like labor in Northeast Brazil

Twenty-six people working in slave-like conditions in two ranches in rural Mirador, Maranhão state, Northeast Brazil, have been rescued by labor inspectors and the Federal Police. The team inspected establishments on the morning of June 27, and held interviews with the workers the next day, representatives from Ministry of Labor and Social Security reported.

The auditors found that three victims under the age of 18 worked “in complete informality, with no social protection, having been recruited by a middleman in the rural area of the municipalities of Colinas, Mirador, and São Domingos do Azeitão.”

The victims were found to sleep in hammocks under canvas shacks, which offered no protection against the weather. They had no access to sanitary facilities, and meals were prepared on makeshift stoves on the ground. In addition, they drank warm, unfiltered water and had no protection equipment against the sun.

The amount to be paid by the two employers stood at approximately BRL 44 thousand, as calculated by the labor inspectors.