January is Human Trafficking Awareness Month and state government agencies are joining together to discuss the goal of ending human trafficking.
The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation, Labor and Industry, Office of Victim Advocate, and State Police are working to prevent crimes and prosecute those responsible, as well as support and protect victims and survivors. PennDOT Secretary Yassmin Gramian.
“PennDOT is one of the first agencies in America its employees on human trafficking awareness. We continually train approximately 1,400 driver center employees on the signs of potential trafficking and all our staff at the state’s 14 welcome centers,” Gramian said.
PennDOT also educates the public through posters and electronic ads. This effort to combat all forms of human trafficking also includes the State Police Organized Crime Task Force regularly participating in human trafficking investigations with other law enforcement.
Potential warning signs of a human trafficking situation could include a lack of knowledge about location, restricted communication, lack of control over identifying documents, or signs of branding.
Those who believe they could have witnessed a human trafficking situation are asked to report the incident though the national hotline (1-888-373-7888) or state tip line (1-888-292-1919). January 11th is Wear Blue Day to help raise awareness of trafficking.
