'Massive increase' in human trafficking cases reported, says Alberta agency
An Alberta group that works to fight human trafficking says there has been a "massive increase" in the number of cases reported and frontline healthcare workers could be key in identifying victims.
Andrea Burkhart is the executive director at ACT Alberta.
She says in the eight years the organization has existed, the number of cases reported have exploded.
"We are seeing a massive increase, a fairly significant trend over the last number of years has been an increase in referrals and reports to our organization," Burkhart tells CBC News.
"We are seeing a consistent on average doubling of victims being referred to us every year."
Burkhart says education and awareness are behind those increased numbers and a recent partnership with Alberta Health Services could be helpful in getting more victims to come forward.
"Healthcare providers are in a unique position to identify trafficking because they are able to form trust, to have confidential conversations with potential victims," Burkhart tells CBC News.
Aboriginal woman disproportionately impacted
Burkhart said it's a complex issue that affects a variety of people, but there are trends in Canadian cases.
"What is most often reported is sex trafficking, that comprises about 55 or 60 per cent of the cases that we see … about 40 per cent of our cases have components of labour trafficking, so either solely labour trafficking or labour and sex trafficking happening concurrently," Burkhart said.
"We see this issue disproportionately impacting aboriginal women. About 20 per cent of sex trafficking cases are aboriginal women."
'Massive increase' in human trafficking cases reported, says Alberta agency - Calgary - CBC News
An Alberta group that works to fight human trafficking says there has been a "massive increase" in the number of cases reported and frontline healthcare workers could be key in identifying victims.
Andrea Burkhart is the executive director at ACT Alberta.
She says in the eight years the organization has existed, the number of cases reported have exploded.
"We are seeing a massive increase, a fairly significant trend over the last number of years has been an increase in referrals and reports to our organization," Burkhart tells CBC News.
"We are seeing a consistent on average doubling of victims being referred to us every year."
Burkhart says education and awareness are behind those increased numbers and a recent partnership with Alberta Health Services could be helpful in getting more victims to come forward.
"Healthcare providers are in a unique position to identify trafficking because they are able to form trust, to have confidential conversations with potential victims," Burkhart tells CBC News.
Aboriginal woman disproportionately impacted
Burkhart said it's a complex issue that affects a variety of people, but there are trends in Canadian cases.
"What is most often reported is sex trafficking, that comprises about 55 or 60 per cent of the cases that we see … about 40 per cent of our cases have components of labour trafficking, so either solely labour trafficking or labour and sex trafficking happening concurrently," Burkhart said.
"We see this issue disproportionately impacting aboriginal women. About 20 per cent of sex trafficking cases are aboriginal women."
'Massive increase' in human trafficking cases reported, says Alberta agency - Calgary - CBC News
