48 C.F.R. §§ 52.222-50

Current through September 30, 2024

Section 52.222-50 - Combating Trafficking in Persons

As prescribed in 22.1705(a)(1), insert the following clause:

Combating Trafficking in Persons (NOV 2021)

(a)Definitions. As used in this clause-

Agent means any individual, including a director, an officer, an employee, or an independent contractor, authorized to act on behalf of the organization.

Coercion means-

(1) Threats of serious harm to or physical restraint against any person;

(2) Any scheme, plan, or pattern intended to cause a person to believe that failure to perform an act would result in serious harm to or physical restraint against any person; or

(3) The abuse or threatened abuse of the legal process.

Commercial sex act means any sex act on account of which anything of value is given to or received by any person.

Commercially available off-the-shelf (COTS) item-

(1) Means any item of supply (including construction material) that is-

(i) A commercial product (as defined in paragraph (1) of the definition of "commercial product" at Federal Acquisition Regulation (FAR) 2.101;

(ii) Sold in substantial quantities in the commercial marketplace; and

(iii) Offered to the Government, under a contract or subcontract at any tier, without modification, in the same form in which it is sold in the commercial marketplace; and

(2) Does not include bulk cargo, as defined in 46 U.S.C. 40102(4) , such as agricultural products and petroleum products.

Debt bondage means the status or condition of a debtor arising from a pledge by the debtor of his or her personal services or of those of a person under his or her control as a security for debt, if the value of those services as reasonably assessed is not applied toward the liquidation of the debt or the length and nature of those services are not respectively limited and defined.

Employee means an employee of the Contractor directly engaged in the performance of work under the contract who has other than a minimal impact or involvement in contract performance.

Forced Labor means knowingly providing or obtaining the labor or services of a person-

(1) By threats of serious harm to, or physical restraint against, that person or another person;

(2) By means of any scheme, plan, or pattern intended to cause the person to believe that, if the person did not perform such labor or services, that person or another person would suffer serious harm or physical restraint; or

(3) By means of the abuse or threatened abuse of law or the legal process.

Involuntary servitude includes a condition of servitude induced by means of-

(1) Any scheme, plan, or pattern intended to cause a person to believe that, if the person did not enter into or continue in such conditions, that person or another person would suffer serious harm or physical restraint; or

(2) The abuse or threatened abuse of the legal process.

Recruitment fees means fees of any type, including charges, costs, assessments, or other financial obligations, that are associated with the recruiting process, regardless of the time, manner, or location of imposition or collection of the fee.

(1) Recruitment fees include, but are not limited to, the following fees (when they are associated with the recruiting process) for-

(i) Soliciting, identifying, considering, interviewing, referring, retaining, transferring, selecting, training, providing orientation to, skills testing, recommending, or placing employees or potential employees;

(ii) Advertising;

(iii) Obtaining permanent or temporary labor certification, including any associated fees;

(iv) Processing applications and petitions;

(v) Acquiring visas, including any associated fees;

(vi) Acquiring photographs and identity or immigration documents, such as passports, including any associated fees;

(vii) Accessing the job opportunity, including required medical examinations and immunizations; background, reference, and security clearance checks and examinations; and additional certifications;

(viii) An employer's recruiters, agents or attorneys, or other notary or legal fees;

(ix) Language interpretation or translation, arranging for or accompanying on travel, or providing other advice to employees or potential employees;

(x) Government-mandated fees, such as border crossing fees, levies, or worker welfare funds;

(xi) Transportation and subsistence costs-

(A) While in transit, including, but not limited to, airfare or costs of other modes of transportation, terminal fees, and travel taxes associated with travel from the country of origin to the country of performance and the return journey upon the end of employment; and

(B) From the airport or disembarkation point to the worksite;

(xii) Security deposits, bonds, and insurance; and

(xiii) Equipment charges.

(2) A recruitment fee, as described in the introductory text of this definition, is a recruitment fee, regardless of whether the payment is-

(i) Paid in property or money;

(ii) Deducted from wages;

(iii) Paid back in wage or benefit concessions;

(iv) Paid back as a kickback, bribe, in-kind payment, free labor, tip, or tribute; or

(v) Collected by an employer or a third party, whether licensed or unlicensed, including, but not limited to-

(A) Agents;

(B) Labor brokers;

(C) Recruiters;

(D) Staffing firms (including private employment and placement firms);

(E) Subsidiaries/affiliates of the employer;

(F) Any agent or employee of such entities; and

(G) Subcontractors at all tiers.

Severe forms of trafficking in persons means-

(1) Sex trafficking in which a commercial sex act is induced by force, fraud, or coercion, or in which the person induced to perform such act has not attained 18 years of age; or

(2) The recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for labor or services, through the use of force, fraud, or coercion for the purpose of subjection to involuntary servitude, peonage, debt bondage, or slavery.

Sex trafficking means the recruitment, harboring, transportation, provision, or obtaining of a person for the purpose of a commercial sex act.

Subcontract means any contract entered into by a subcontractor to furnish supplies or services for performance of a prime contract or a subcontract.

Subcontractor means any supplier, distributor, vendor, or firm that furnishes supplies or services to or for a prime contractor or another subcontractor.

United States means the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and outlying areas.

(b)Policy. The United States Government has adopted a policy prohibiting trafficking in persons including the trafficking-related activities of this clause. Contractors, contractor employees, and their agents shall not-

(1) Engage in severe forms of trafficking in persons during the period of performance of the contract;

(2) Procure commercial sex acts during the period of performance of the contract;

(3) Use forced labor in the performance of the contract;

(4) Destroy, conceal, confiscate, or otherwise deny access by an employee to the employee's identity or immigration documents, such as passports or drivers' licenses, regardless of issuing authority;

(5)

(i) Use misleading or fraudulent practices during the recruitment of employees or offering of employment, such as failing to disclose, in a format and language understood by the employee or potential employee, basic information or making material misrepresentations during the recruitment of employees regarding the key terms and conditions of employment, including wages and fringe benefits, the location of work, the living conditions, housing and associated costs (if employer or agent provided or arranged), any significant costs to be charged to the employee or potential employee, and, if applicable, the hazardous nature of the work;

(ii) Use recruiters that do not comply with local labor laws of the country in which the recruiting takes place;

(6) Charge employees or potential employees recruitment fees;

(7)

(i) Fail to provide return transportation or pay for the cost of return transportation upon the end of employment-

(A) For an employee who is not a national of the country in which the work is taking place and who was brought into that country for the purpose of working on a U.S. Government contract or subcontract (for portions of contracts performed outside the United States); or

(B) For an employee who is not a United States national and who was brought into the United States for the purpose of working on a U.S. Government contract or subcontract, if the payment of such costs is required under existing temporary worker programs or pursuant to a written agreement with the employee (for portions of contracts performed inside the United States); except that-

(ii) The requirements of paragraphs (b)(7)(i) of this clause shall not apply to an employee who is-

(A) Legally permitted to remain in the country of employment and who chooses to do so; or

(B) Exempted by an authorized official of the contracting agency from the requirement to provide return transportation or pay for the cost of return transportation;

(iii) The requirements of paragraph (b)(7)(i) of this clause are modified for a victim of trafficking in persons who is seeking victim services or legal redress in the country of employment, or for a witness in an enforcement action related to trafficking in persons. The contractor shall provide the return transportation or pay the cost of return transportation in a way that does not obstruct the victim services, legal redress, or witness activity. For example, the contractor shall not only offer return transportation to a witness at a time when the witness is still needed to testify. This paragraph does not apply when the exemptions at paragraph (b)(7)(ii) of this clause apply.

(8) Provide or arrange housing that fails to meet the host country housing and safety standards; or

(9) If required by law or contract, fail to provide an employment contract, recruitment agreement, or other required work document in writing. Such written work document shall be in a language the employee understands. If the employee must relocate to perform the work, the work document shall be provided to the employee at least five days prior to the employee relocating. The employee's work document shall include, but is not limited to, details about work description, wages, prohibition on charging recruitment fees, work location(s), living accommodations and associated costs, time off, roundtrip transportation arrangements, grievance process, and the content of applicable laws and regulations that prohibit trafficking in persons.

(c)Contractor requirements. The Contractor shall-

(1) Notify its employees and agents of-

(i) The United States Government's policy prohibiting trafficking in persons, described in paragraph (b) of this clause; and

(ii) The actions that will be taken against employees or agents for violations of this policy. Such actions for employees may include, but are not limited to, removal from the contract, reduction in benefits, or termination of employment; and

(2) Take appropriate action, up to and including termination, against employees, agents, or subcontractors that violate the policy in paragraph (b) of this clause.

(d)Notification.

(1) The Contractor shall inform the Contracting Officer and the agency Inspector General immediately of-

(i) Any credible information it receives from any source (including host country law enforcement) that alleges a Contractor employee, subcontractor, subcontractor employee, or their agent has engaged in conduct that violates the policy in paragraph (b) of this clause (see also 18 U.S.C. 1351 , Fraud in Foreign Labor Contracting, and 52.203-13(b)(3)(i)(A), if that clause is included in the solicitation or contract, which requires disclosure to the agency Office of the Inspector General when the Contractor has credible evidence of fraud); and

(ii) Any actions taken against a Contractor employee, subcontractor, subcontractor employee, or their agent pursuant to this clause.

(2) If the allegation may be associated with more than one contract, the Contractor shall inform the contracting officer for the contract with the highest dollar value.

(e)Remedies. In addition to other remedies available to the Government, the Contractor's failure to comply with the requirements of paragraphs (c), (d), (g), (h), or (i) of this clause may result in-

(1) Requiring the Contractor to remove a Contractor employee or employees from the performance of the contract;

(2) Requiring the Contractor to terminate a subcontract;

(3) Suspension of contract payments until the Contractor has taken appropriate remedial action;

(4) Loss of award fee, consistent with the award fee plan, for the performance period in which the Government determined Contractor non-compliance;

(5) Declining to exercise available options under the contract;

(6) Termination of the contract for default or cause, in accordance with the termination clause of this contract; or

(7) Suspension or debarment.

(f)Mitigating and aggravating factors. When determining remedies, the Contracting Officer may consider the following:

(1)Mitigating factors. The Contractor had a Trafficking in Persons compliance plan or an awareness program at the time of the violation, was in compliance with the plan, and has taken appropriate remedial actions for the violation, that may include reparation to victims for such violations.

(2)Aggravating factors. The Contractor failed to abate an alleged violation or enforce the requirements of a compliance plan, when directed by the Contracting Officer to do so.

(g)Full cooperation.

(1) The Contractor shall, at a minimum-

(i) Disclose to the agency Inspector General information sufficient to identify the nature and extent of an offense and the individuals responsible for the conduct;

(ii) Provide timely and complete responses to Government auditors' and investigators' requests for documents;

(iii) Cooperate fully in providing reasonable access to its facilities and staff (both inside and outside the U.S.) to allow contracting agencies and other responsible Federal agencies to conduct audits, investigations, or other actions to ascertain compliance with the Trafficking Victims Protection Act of 2000 (22 U.S.C. chapter 78), E.O. 13627, or any other applicable law or regulation establishing restrictions on trafficking in persons, the procurement of commercial sex acts, or the use of forced labor; and

(iv) Protect all employees suspected of being victims of or witnesses to prohibited activities, prior to returning to the country from which the employee was recruited, and shall not prevent or hinder the ability of these employees from cooperating fully with Government authorities.

(2) The requirement for full cooperation does not foreclose any Contractor rights arising in law, the FAR, or the terms of the contract. It does not-

(i) Require the Contractor to waive its attorney-client privilege or the protections afforded by the attorney work product doctrine;

(ii) Require any officer, director, owner, employee, or agent of the Contractor, including a sole proprietor, to waive his or her attorney client privilege or Fifth Amendment rights; or

(iii) Restrict the Contractor from-

(A) Conducting an internal investigation; or

(B) Defending a proceeding or dispute arising under the contract or related to a potential or disclosed violation.

(h)Compliance plan.

(1) This paragraph (h) applies to any portion of the contract that-

(i) Is for supplies, other than commercially available off-the-shelf items, acquired outside the United States, or services to be performed outside the United States; and

(ii) Has an estimated value that exceeds $550,000.

(2) The Contractor shall maintain a compliance plan during the performance of the contract that is appropriate-

(i) To the size and complexity of the contract; and

(ii) To the nature and scope of the activities to be performed for the Government, including the number of non-United States citizens expected to be employed and the risk that the contract or subcontract will involve services or supplies susceptible to trafficking in persons.

(3)Minimum requirements. The compliance plan must include, at a minimum, the following:

(i) An awareness program to inform contractor employees about the Government's policy prohibiting trafficking-related activities described in paragraph (b) of this clause, the activities prohibited, and the actions that will be taken against the employee for violations. Additional information about Trafficking in Persons and examples of awareness programs can be found at the Web site for the Department of State's Office to Monitor and Combat Trafficking in Persons at http://www.state.gov/j/tip/.

(ii) A process for employees to report, without fear of retaliation, activity inconsistent with the policy prohibiting trafficking in persons, including a means to make available to all employees the hotline phone number of the Global Human Trafficking Hotline at 1-844-888-FREE and its email address at help@befree.org.

(iii) A recruitment and wage plan that only permits the use of recruitment companies with trained employees, prohibits charging recruitment fees to the employee or potential employee, and ensures that wages meet applicable host-country legal requirements or explains any variance.

(iv) A housing plan, if the Contractor or subcontractor intends to provide or arrange housing, that ensures that the housing meets host-country housing and safety standards.

(v) Procedures to prevent agents and subcontractors at any tier and at any dollar value from engaging in trafficking in persons (including activities in paragraph (b) of this clause) and to monitor, detect, and terminate any agents, subcontracts, or subcontractor employees that have engaged in such activities.

(4)Posting.

(i) The Contractor shall post the relevant contents of the compliance plan, no later than the initiation of contract performance, at the workplace (unless the work is to be performed in the field or not in a fixed location) and on the Contractor's Web site (if one is maintained). If posting at the workplace or on the Web site is impracticable, the Contractor shall provide the relevant contents of the compliance plan to each worker in writing.

(ii) The Contractor shall provide the compliance plan to the Contracting Officer upon request.

(5)Certification. Annually after receiving an award, the Contractor shall submit a certification to the Contracting Officer that-

(i) It has implemented a compliance plan to prevent any prohibited activities identified at paragraph (b) of this clause and to monitor, detect, and terminate any agent, subcontract or subcontractor employee engaging in prohibited activities; and

(ii) After having conducted due diligence, either-

(A) To the best of the Contractor's knowledge and belief, neither it nor any of its agents, subcontractors, or their agents is engaged in any such activities; or

(B) If abuses relating to any of the prohibited activities identified in paragraph (b) of this clause have been found, the Contractor or subcontractor has taken the appropriate remedial and referral actions.

(i)Subcontracts.

(1) The Contractor shall include the substance of this clause, including this paragraph (i), in all subcontracts and in all contracts with agents. The requirements in paragraph (h) of this clause apply only to any portion of the subcontract that-

(i) Is for supplies, other than commercially available off-the-shelf items, acquired outside the United States, or services to be performed outside the United States; and

(ii) Has an estimated value that exceeds $550,000.

(2) If any subcontractor is required by this clause to submit a certification, the Contractor shall require submission prior to the award of the subcontract and annually thereafter. The certification shall cover the items in paragraph (h)(5) of this clause.

(End of clause)

Alternate I (MAR 2015). As prescribed in 22.1705(a)(2), substitute the following paragraph in place of paragraph (c)(1)(i) of the basic clause:

(c)

(i)

(A) The United States Government's policy prohibiting trafficking in persons described in paragraph (b) of this clause; and

(B) The following directive(s) or notice(s) applicable to employees performing work at the contract place(s) of performance as indicated below:

Document Title	Document may be obtained from:	Applies to performance in/at:
____________	____________	____________
____________	____________	____________

Contracting Officer shall insert title of directive/notice; indicate the document is attached or provide source (such as website link) for obtaining document; and, indicate the contract performance location outside the United States to which the document applies.

48 C.F.R. §§52.222-50

71 FR 20303, Apr. 19, 2006, as amended at 72 FR 46341Aug. 17, 2007; 74 FR 2745, Jan. 15, 2009; 80 FR 4990, Jan. 29, 2015; 83 FR 65478, Dec. 20, 2018; 85 FR 62490, Oct. 2, 2020; 86 FR 61035, Nov. 4, 2021

83 FR 65478, 1/22/2019; 85 FR 62490, 10/2/2020; 86 FR 61017, 12/6/2021