KMOP – Social Action and Innovation Centre successfully hosted the international conference “Seeing the Unseen: Strengthening European Cooperation Against Labour Exploitation and Human Trafficking” on Friday, 5 December 2025, at Residence Palace in Brussels.
The hybrid event brought together around 120 participants from across Europe, including policymakers, frontline professionals, researchers, and civil-society organisations, with the aim of advancing coordinated and effective responses to labour exploitation and trafficking in human beings.
Europe’s policy blind spots in labour exploitation
A central highlight of the conference was the keynote address by Antoaneta Vassileva, 1st Vice President of the Group of Experts on Action against Trafficking in Human Beings (GRETA), entitled “Beyond the Surface: Europe’s Policy Blind Spots in Labour Exploitation and What GRETA Sees.” Drawing on GRETA’s extensive monitoring work across Council of Europe member states, she highlighted persistent gaps between policy commitments and implementation on the ground, particularly in the area of labour exploitation.
Ms Vassileva stressed that capacity-building for professionals must be systematic and continuous, especially in light of the high turnover of staff in frontline services, labour inspections, and law enforcement. She also underlined the need to address victims’ fear and reluctance to report exploitation, calling for stronger victim protection frameworks, enhanced trust-building measures, and more consistent multidisciplinary cooperation across sectors and borders.
Expert perspectives and innovative responses
Following the keynote intervention, a series of expert contributions addressed key dimensions of labour exploitation and human trafficking. Daniela Obster, Project Coordinator at the University of Applied Sciences for Public Service in Bavaria, Department of Policing, presented the key results of the ERADICATING II project and highlighted the importance of sustained institutional cooperation.
Further contributions were delivered by Patrick Bourgeois, retired First Chief Commissioner of Police and former Unit Leader of the Human Trafficking and Smuggling Division of the Federal Judicial Police of Brussels; Efthymis Antonopoulos, Head of Policy and Advocacy at Victim Support Europe; Sophia Wirsching, Executive Director of KOK – German NGO Network against Trafficking in Human Beings; and Stef Janssens, Senior Expert on Trafficking and Smuggling in Human Beings at Myria Belgium. Their interventions offered insights into law enforcement responses, victim protection mechanisms, civil-society cooperation, and high-risk sectors.
The role of innovation was also highlighted by Theoni Spathi from the Centre for Research and Technology Hellas (CERTH-ITI), who presented how EU-funded initiatives are exploring the use of artificial intelligence to support early detection and operational analysis in trafficking cases.
Human trafficking risks in the hospitality sector
The conference concluded with a dedicated intervention by Lora Daskalou, Project Manager at KMOP, focusing on human trafficking and labour exploitation risks in the hospitality sector. Drawing on evidence and insights gathered through the HOST project, she highlighted the particular vulnerabilities faced by workers in accommodation and hospitality services, including precarious employment conditions, dependence on employers for housing or legal status, limited awareness of labour rights, language barriers, and exposure to informal or online recruitment practices. She stressed the importance of equipping employers and staff with practical, easy-to-use tools to identify warning signs and report suspected cases, underscoring the role of the private sector in prevention and early identification, alongside public authorities and civil society.
To learn more about KMOP’s work in addressing labour trafficking, visit:
https://www.eradicating2project.eu/
About ERADICATING II
ERADICATING II is a European initiative dedicated to enhancing the detection, prevention, and response to labour exploitation and human trafficking through research, cross-border cooperation, and targeted capacity-building activities.
For more information please contact us at: [email protected] or 210 36 37 547.