The couple, who were trafficked to the UK, have been given work and accommodation with a Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) licence holder in Cambridgeshire following their abandonment by their exploiters, the GLAA has reported.

Investigators found the couple sleeping rough inside the London Underground station at Marble Arch after the duo managed to contact a friend and explain that they had been “discarded by their exploiters and left with nothing in a foreign country”, the GLAA statement said.

The friend, a Romanian national working for a GLAA licence holder, then told his boss what had happened and asked if anyone could help the couple. 

GLAA senior investigating officer Jennifer Baines said the couple were “extremely vulnerable and at serious risk of further exploitation without urgent safeguarding action. 

“Thanks to the excellent relationship we have with our licence holders,” Baines continued, “we were tipped off about this situation and were initially able to arrange for them to sleep in a hostel that night to keep them safe.”

Baines credited a recruitment agency, which she did not identify, with helping the GLAA to find the couple work and accommodation with the “trusted” Cambridgeshire licence holder, which also was not identified.

Recruiter could not reach the GLAA for comment.

“Protecting vulnerable and exploited workers is our job,” Baines said in the statement. “But going one step further and supporting them as they build new lives for themselves is a very rewarding experience.”

In additional GLAA news, more garment factories across Leicester have been visited as part of Operation Tacit – a multi-agency drive led by the GLAA to ensure workers are being treated correctly and businesses are following regulations.

As Recruiter reported, the operation follows concerns around allegations of unsafe working conditions and the exploitation of workers that arose during Leicester’s recent localised lockdown as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

On Friday [7 August], officers from the GLAA, Health and Safety Executive, Leicestershire Police and Immigration Enforcement, visited six factories and garment manufacturers. All the factories visited were found to be compliant with the regulations and there was also evidence of good practice by the businesses in taking proactive steps to protect their workers from Covid-19.

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