The National Motor Freight Traffic Association (NMFTA) signed the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Transportation Leaders Against Human Trafficking (TLAHT) initiative. As January is National Human Trafficking Prevention Month, the initiative is composed of travel and transportation industry professionals who are collectively working to maximize their shared impact in combating human trafficking.
“NMFTA is committed to doing everything in our power to be a source of aid for this cause,” said Debbie Sparks, executive director of NMFTA. “As a leader in the industry, it is our responsibility to contribute resources to help create a solution to this highly problematic trend that we are witnessing and is also impacting the transportation sector. When all companies unite, more can be accomplished, and further insight into this problem will create safer environments for statistically at-risk individuals.”
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According to DOT, more than 27.6 million women, children, and men are trafficked into forced prostitution and labor. In this initiative, five critical aspects of human trafficking are prioritized, and transportation stakeholders are provided with resources for industry training and education, public awareness, policy awareness, information sharing and analysis, and industry leadership. The initiative aims to raise awareness about the national crisis and create additional resources to support efforts to directly combat it.
Sparks officially signed the TLAHT pledge on behalf of NMFTA. First, the pledge calls for all participating companies to unite within the transportation industry against human trafficking. Secondly, all participants pledge to educate their employees and other stakeholders to recognize and report signs of human trafficking.
By using common messaging in targeted outreach campaigns and tracking and sharing key data points, this initiative will also raise awareness among the traveling public.
