Procedural Justice and Therapeutic Frameworks for Police Interactions with Migrant Populations Experiencing Forced Labour

Craig Paterson () and Matthew Morgan
Additional contact information
Craig Paterson: Institute of Law and Justice, Sheffield Hallam University, Sheffield S1 1WB, UK
Matthew Morgan: Thomas More Law School, Australian Catholic University, Brisbane 4014, Australia

Social Sciences, 2025, vol. 14, issue 11, 1-17

Abstract: Public cooperation is crucial for the police to successfully perform their duties. Yet marginalised and vulnerable groups facing uncertainty about their societal status often significantly mistrust the police. Migrant populations experiencing forced labour are marginalised and uncertain groups that face significant challenges for police in gaining trust and cooperation, especially since many have escaped conflict or authoritarian regimes, or experienced trauma and exploitation prior to encountering police in democratic contexts. This paper examines the potential role of policing agencies in Anglophone countries in addressing forced labour in migrant communities. Whilst recognising that police are not ideal first responders to this issue, the paper acknowledges that they often represent the first visible state response with the legal authority to support or detain individuals. This paper reviews the literature on forced labour and migration and presents a conceptual argument, applying procedural justice as a theoretical framework to assess its potential for improving the policing of forced labour, particularly among newly arrived migrants still establishing social relationships, bonds, and capital. The paper concludes by arguing that procedural justice may help police earn the trust and confidence of migrant populations experiencing forced labour and help address labour exploitation, although this trust-building remains hampered by the concomitant harms caused by crimmigration systems.

Keywords: migration; forced labour; procedural justice; policing; conflict (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A B N P Y80 Z00 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/14/11/638/pdf (application/pdf)
https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0760/14/11/638/ (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:gam:jscscx:v:14:y:2025:i:11:p:638-:d:1784073

Access Statistics for this article

Social Sciences is currently edited by Ms. Yvaine Sun

More articles in Social Sciences from MDPI
Bibliographic data for series maintained by MDPI Indexing Manager ().