Swedish study reveals widespread human rights violations in popular tour operator destinations

On October 23, the Swedish network Fair Travelling (Schyst Resande) released a report made in two of the most popular destinations for Swedish tourists: Turkey and Thailand.

The report reveals serious violations of international labour standards, national legislation and human rights in hotels used by three of the biggest tour operators in Sweden: Apollo (Kuoni), Fritidsresor (TUI Travel Pic) and Ving (Thomas Cook Group Pic)

The violations include lack of written contracts, non-respect of working time and wage regulations, discrimination of pregnant workers, threats and union busting. In Thailand, Burmese migrant workers are the most exposed to exploitation, including confiscation of identity papers by employers.

The report was widely commented on in the media and the Swedish hotel workers’ union, HRF, raised serious concerns about the role of the tour operators and their non- implementation of their own CSR policies. The tour operators have so far chosen to keep silent.