December 18th is International Migrants Day. 2025 marks 35 years since the General Assembly of the United Nations adopted a resolution on the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families.

And yet, we face an increasingly tough environment, where the political consensus is evermore hostile to migrant workers – despite their risks of exploitation already being extreme. In this context, FLEX continues to push for an end to exploitation and to better, fairer conditions and visas for migrant workers.

At the end of the year, FLEX takes this opportunity to mark its work advocating for the rights of migrant workers in the UK. 

FLEX announced as Big Issue Top 100 Changemaker 2025

Back in January, Focus on Labour Exploitation was announced as one of the Big Issue’s Top 100 Changemakers for 2025, a group of organisations and people voted to be making a tangible, positive impact on society. FLEX was listed under the Politics and Activism category.

Speaking on the announcement, Focus on Labour Exploitation said:

“This was a particularly special award, as the nomination came from one of the most resilient and tireless worker-led groups in the UK, the Voice of Domestic Workers.

“We will never stop working to challenge and transform the systems and structures that make workers vulnerable to abuse, until we live in a world free from all forms of labour exploitation.”

Migrant women in UK Agriculture

For over 5 years, Focus on Labour Exploitation have raised the alarm about the Seasonal Worker Scheme, and the ways in which its design facilitates exploitation. What has gone unaddressed for too long are the ways in which the scheme puts women workers at particular risk of harm and exploitation.

Our latest agriculture briefing “Uneven Fields: women workers’ experiences of the Seasonal Worker Scheme” addressed this missing component, directly confronting the realities that migrant women are facing in the fields.

While many of the problems faced by seasonal workers are experienced by workers of all genders, women are often hit harder than men by these issues.

But it’s not just these general problems that set women apart in the scheme; the gendered dynamics within the system create specific, unique risks for women workers. In this way, women on the scheme are pushed to the margins of an already precarious workforce; it is time we paid attention.

Advocating for better Policy and a stronger Fair Work Agency

With the Employment Rights Bill going through parliament, it’s easy to assume that the situation must be improving for migrant workers. But without plans to address the UK’s use of restrictive work visas which control the lives of thousands upon thousands of workers, in the UK the situation in reality looks as grim as ever.

We’ve produced video explainers on what the problems with restrictive visas are, as well as solutions that could be introduced in the Employment Rights Bill.

Watch the video here: 

Shining the light on hidden corners: Our report on Dark Kitchens

Dark kitchens rose in prominence during the Covid-19 pandemic, when a rapid increase took place in goods and services sold online which do not require customer-facing locations. Under this model, meals are ordered online and prepared, ready for delivery, with no space for customers to enter and dine.

These kitchens are usually located away from busy streets, in areas with low footfall, such as within shipping containers in car parks or industrial estates. 

The rise in work derived from such platforms has transformed the places in which work happens, by altering how it is organised, managed, and performed. The increased remoteness and decreased visibility of these kitchens compared to traditional restaurants may be leading to less scrutiny, sociality, and security for those who work in them.

Our report from this year sought to understand the general conditions of dark kitchens work, and identify how regulation and labour market enforcement could improve conditions for the dark kitchen staff around the UK, cooking thousands of meals every day, behind closed doors.

Deep Dive on Fishing

This year, FLEX has particularly focused its sights on fishing, due to concerns regarding the working conditions and safety of migrant fisher workers in the UK being compounded by the implementation of the White Paper on immigration. The fishing industry is vital: the workers on which it relies are of central importance to government, retailers, producers and consumers across society.

Labour exploitation in the fishing sector is not simply a matter of individual bad actors; it is underpinned by legal and regulatory gaps. These gaps facilitate poor labour standards, limited inspections, and a lack of meaningful enforcement at sea.

Addressing these issues requires urgent reform. To achieve that, an understanding of the existing entry and immigration rules for migrant fishers is essential and how these will be affected by the implementation of the Immigration White Paper. From that understanding, we can make effective recommendations on how all workers employed on British vessels can access rights as workers.

FLEX’s report “Unravelling the nets: An examination of the seafarer visa policies and their impact on migrant fishers in the UK” addresses this knowledge gap by providing an in-depth analysis of the seafarer and fishing-related visa and entry clearance policies in the UK, and their specific impact on migrant fishers.

FLEX Internal news

This has been a big year for FLEX. Our team has grown, including a new Director of Operations to help FLEX’s work develop further.

We’ve continued our projects, such as on secure reporting. Working with the Greater London Authority, and partners including members of the Labour Exploitation Advisory Group (LEAG), the purpose of this project is to develop a blueprint for a holistic, secure reporting pilot in London. Secure reporting is when policies are in place to ensure that victims of crime are able to come forward to statutory bodies knowing that they won’t face repercussions as a result of their migration status. 

We’ve run training programmes with partner organisations, helping them to understand labour exploitation, and learning from them about the day to day realities about their communities. We have provided bespoke training workshops to local frontline organisations whose service users may face precarity and heightened risk of exploitation. 

2025 was undoubtedly a challenging year, from workers facing financial hardship to spiralling anti-migrant policy and action. This has been fueled by the performed cruelty of a present political context which is ever more violent. 

2026 is set to be a big year, with huge decisions to be made that will impact migrant workers across the UK. We will continue to strive to understand what drives exploitation, how to ensure workers can engage in seeking change in meaningful ways, and what can be done to ensure the rights and dignity of migrant workers.