Solicitud directa (CEACR) - Adopción: 2025, Publicación: 114ª reunión CIT (2026)

Estonia

Convenio sobre el trabajo forzoso, 1930 (núm. 29) (Ratificación : 1996)
Protocolo de 2014 relativo al Convenio sobre el trabajo forzoso, 1930 (Ratificación : 2016)

The Committee takes due note of the Government’s first report under the Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention.

Article 1(1) of the Convention and Article 1(1) and (2) of the Protocol. National policy and systematic and coordinated action. Following its previous comments on the Violence Prevention Agreement for 2021–2025, which provides for measures relating to trafficking in persons, the Committee notes the Government’s indication that an overall evaluation of the activities carried out under the Violence Prevention Agreement is planned in 2025. The Government specifies that all anti-trafficking activities have been implemented or are in the process of being implemented.

The Committee further notes that, according to the website of the European Commission, the Criminal Policy Department at the Ministry of Justice holds the post of the National Coordinator for Trafficking in Human Beings in the country. Among other things, the National Coordinator coordinates the implementation of anti-trafficking policies. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results achieved through the implementation of the Violence Prevention Agreement for 2021–2025 with regard to combating trafficking in persons, as well as on the adoption and implementation of any new national policy to combat trafficking in persons and any other form of forced labour, as defined by the Convention. The Committee also requests the Government to provide information on the activities undertaken by the National Coordinator for Trafficking in Human Beings to ensure systematic and coordinated action by the competent authorities to combat trafficking in persons.

Article 2 of the Protocol. Preventive measures. Clause (d). Protecting migrant workers during the recruitment and placement process. The Committee notes that the Labour Market Measures Act of 2023, which regulates job mediation and intermediation of temporary agency work, requires undertakings engaged in these activities to submit a notification of economic activity, and prohibits them from charging fees to jobseekers or temporary workers. The Labour Inspectorate is charged with monitoring compliance with these requirements. The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the results of this monitoring, particularly those related to the irregularities identified in the placement of migrant workers, the imposition of recruitment fees, and the penalties imposed as a result.

Clause (e). Supporting due diligence. The Committee takes note of the Government’s indication that an online course on trafficking in persons and exploitation has been developed, in cooperation with the private sector, for staff of the Estonian Restaurants and Hotels Association, targeting the hospitality sector. The Committee also notes that, according to the 2023 Report of the Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA), two guidelines for companies were adopted, namely: “Navigating through your supply chain – toolkit for prevention of labour exploitation and trafficking” and “Normative Framework Guide – Responsibility of Businesses Concerning Human Rights, Labour Exploitation and Human Trafficking”. The Committee requests the Government to provide further information on the measures taken to support due diligence by both the public and private sectors to prevent and respond to risks of forced labour.

Article 3 of the Protocol. Identification and protection of victims. The Government indicates that a new Victim Support Act was adopted, in 2022. The Act provides for a Service for victims of trafficking in persons, within the Social Insurance Board, which aims to contribute to security, recovery and protection of victims of trafficking. It includes psycho-social support, legal assistance, temporary accommodation, arranging access to necessary health services, psychological counselling, and translation services. The Government further indicates that the Human Trafficking Prevention and Assistance Helpline of the Social Insurance Board received, in 2023, 431 calls, of which 30 concerned suspected victims of sexual exploitation and 55 concerned suspected victims of labour exploitation. According to Crime Statistics (official data on registered criminal offences available on the Ministry of Justice website), the Helpline received 864 calls in 2024, 90 per cent of which originated from third-country nationals.

The Government stresses that a presumed victim of trafficking is notified to the Police and Border Guard Board or the prosecutor’s office for formal identification, and that pending confirmation that the person is victim of trafficking, the services of the Social Insurance Board may be provided to the presumed victim for up to 14 days (section 24(4) of the Victim Support Act). In addition, section 4(3) of the Victim Support Act defines a victim of trafficking as a person who is a victim in criminal proceedings initiated for a crime of trafficking or a related offence. The Committee observes that the formal identification of a victim depends on the opening of a criminal proceeding and that only formally identified victims are entitled to receiving services beyond the first 14 days.

The Committee also notes that the provision of services is terminated where the person has no legal grounds for staying in Estonia (section 24 of the Victim Support Act). In this regard, section 205 of the Aliens Act provides that a “cooling-off” period of 30 to 60 days may be granted to an alien in order to allow the person concerned to decide whether he or she wishes to cooperate with the investigative authority or the prosecutor's office. According to section 203, an alien victim in a criminal procedure initiated for trafficking may be granted a temporary residence permit for participation in the criminal proceeding.

The Committee notes that, according to the 2023 GRETA Report, no recovery and reflection period were granted to victims of trafficking between 2018 and 2022, and no resident permits were issued. The GRETA also states that presumed victims who are undocumented migrants are systematically returned to their countries of origin a few days after their detection and accommodation in hotels. The GRETA further reports that in 2018–2021, 264 presumed victims of trafficking were identified, but only 28 persons were formally identified as victims of trafficking. The Committee requests the Government to provide further information on the functioning of the process of identification of victims and its link to criminal proceedings, as well as on the measures taken to prevent victims of trafficking from being returned to their countries of origin without receiving proper protection and assistance and information on their rights (including in relation to recovery and reflection periods and residence permits). The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the victims of trafficking identified, including on those who have benefited from the above-mentioned services and who have been granted recovery and reflection periods, as well as temporary residence permits. Please also provide information on the protection granted to victims of other practices of forced labour which do not constitute trafficking in persons.

Article 4 of the Protocol. Paragraph 1. Access to effective remedies, including compensation. The Government indicates that, according to section 38 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, the victim has the right to file a civil action, through the Prosecutor’s Office, within ten days following the presentation of the criminal case. The Government adds that workers also have the right to recourse to the labour dispute committee of the Labour Inspectorate. The labour dispute committee received 2,297 labour dispute petitions in 2023, most of which concerned financial issues. According to Crime Statistics, the Human Trafficking Prevention and Assistance Helpline received 55 calls in 2023 and 42 in 2024 where a petition was submitted to the labour dispute committee for the payment of unpaid wages and holiday compensation.

The Committee further notes that, in addition to these mechanisms, the Victim Support Act of 2022 provides for the possibility of State compensation for victims of violent crimes, including trafficking in persons (section 36). The crime must have been reported within 15 days of its commission, and the victim must cooperate with the authorities (section 37). The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the number of victims of trafficking in persons as well as on the number of victims of other forms of forced labour who have claimed and obtained compensation through: (i) civil action under the Code of Criminal Procedure; (ii) State compensation under the Victim Support Act; and (iii) the labour dispute committee.

Paragraph 2. Absence of prosecution or penalties for unlawful activities that victims have been compelled to commit. The Government indicates that there are no specific provisions relating to non-punishment in the Penal Code, but refers to the following provisions:

• 1. section 29 of the Penal Code regarding necessity, which provides that an act is not unlawful if the person commits the act to avert a direct or immediate danger;
• 2. sections 202 and 205 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which provide for the possibility of termination of criminal proceedings when: (i) there is no public interest in proceedings, negligible guilt and remediation of the harm caused by the criminal offence; and (ii) the suspect or accused has provided significant assistance towards ascertaining the facts comprising the subject matter of evidence in relation to a criminal offence pursuing which is important for public interest reasons.

The Committee notes that the Violence Prevention Agreement for 2021–2025 provides, under the measures relating to the prevention of trafficking in persons, for an analysis of the need to update legislation concerning non-punishment for crimes committed by the victim. The Committee requests the Government to indicate if the above provisions have already been applied to victims of forced labour, including victims of trafficking in persons, who have been compelled to commit unlawful activities as a direct consequence of being subject to forced labour. It also requests the Government to specify if instructions were given to prosecution officers to apply these provisions to victims of forced labour. Please also provide information on the results and impact of the analysis above-mentioned.

Article 6 of the Protocol. Consultation with social partners.The Committee requests the Government to provide information on its approach and method of consultation with the organizations of employers and workers when it is determining the measures to be taken to apply the Protocol and the Convention.

Article 25 of the Convention and Article 1(1) of the Protocol. Application of penal sanctions and law enforcement bodies collaboration. The Committee recalls that section 133 of the Penal Code defines and criminalizes trafficking in adults (minors are covered by section 175 of the Penal Code). It notes the Government’s information that 11 cases of trafficking under this section were registered in 2022 and 14 in 2023. Two cases of trafficking were prosecuted in both 2022 and 2023, and four convictions were handed down in 2022, compared with one in 2023. According to Crime Statistics, three cases of trafficking were recorded in 2024, and no convictions were handed down under section 133.

The Government indicates that joint training for authorities in charge of combating crimes related to trafficking in persons are organized. In 2023, investigators from the Police and Border Guard Board and public prosecutors’ offices, labour inspectors, Tax and Customs Board inspectors, victim support specialists and non-governmental organizations representatives attended a training course that brought together around 100 participants. The Government also indicates that, as a result of years of training for relevant professionals, for the first time in 2023, more cases of trafficking for the purpose of labour exploitation were identified than for the purpose of sexual exploitation (13 and 1 respectively). In this regard, the Government indicates that the Labour Inspectorate pays particular attention to training on trafficking in persons. It stresses that foreign labour is an important aspect of the work of the Labour Inspectorate, considering that labour migration has increased in recent years, thus heightening the risk of exploitation of migrant workers. In 2021 and 2022, the Police and Border Guard Board and the Tax and Customs Board conducted joint inspections, controlling a total of more than 5,000 employees, and that no cases of trafficking for labour exploitation were found. More generally, the Government indicates that joint inspection visits are organized each year in cooperation with the Police and Border Guard Board, the Labour Inspectorate and the Tax and Customs Board, based on proposals from the institutions, within the framework of a cooperation agreement. These inspections cover various areas, including illegal employment of third-country nationals, trafficking in persons offences, and labour exploitation. The Committee requests the Government to continue its efforts to strengthen the capacity of law enforcement bodies, in particular the Labour Inspectorate, the police and border guard, and prosecutors, to ensure that all cases of forced labour, including trafficking in persons, are identified and promptly investigated, resulting in their effective prosecution. The Committee requests the Government to continue to provide information on the number and results of joint inspections where indicators of forced labour practices were identified as well as on the number of investigations, prosecutions, convictions and penalties applied under section 133 of the Penal Code. Lastly, the Committee requests the Government to clarify whether the definition of trafficking in persons contained in section 133 of the Penal Code covers all forms of forced labour as defined by the Convention.