In a damning revelation, a BBC investigation has uncovered how McDonald’s and several major UK supermarkets failed to detect clear signs of modern slavery for over four years, enabling a Czech human trafficking gang to exploit 16 victims in forced labor schemes. The gang, which trafficked vulnerable individuals from the Czech Republic, forced them to work at both a McDonald’s branch in Cambridgeshire and a factory producing bread for leading supermarkets like Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s, and Waitrose.
The victims were subjected to grueling working conditions, often clocking up to 100 hours per week, while their wages were stolen by the traffickers. Despite earning at least the legal minimum wage, the victims saw little of their pay, with most of it being funneled into bank accounts controlled by the gang. The traffickers lived lavishly off the stolen money, using it to purchase luxury cars and property, while the victims were left in squalid housing, including a leaking shed and an unheated caravan.
The operation was only discovered in 2019 after some victims managed to contact authorities in the Czech Republic, who tipped off UK police. By then, the victims had been exploited for more than four years, with both McDonald’s and the supermarkets failing to act on clear warning signs. At least four victims had their wages—totaling £215,000—paid into a single account controlled by the gang, while others lived in overcrowded houses and worked excessive hours.
Nine of the victims were forced to work at the McDonald’s in Caxton, while others were employed at the pitta bread factory’s sites in Hertfordshire and Tottenham. Despite the alarming indicators, the businesses involved missed numerous opportunities to intervene. Job applications were completed by the traffickers, who even attended interviews posing as interpreters. The gang’s control over the victims was so complete that attempts to escape were thwarted, with some victims being trafficked back to the UK after fleeing.
McDonald’s UK, along with the supermarkets involved, has since expressed regret over their failure to detect the exploitation. McDonald’s has initiated an independent review and updated its procedures to better identify risks, such as shared bank accounts and excessive working hours. The retailers, including Tesco and Waitrose, have also pledged to improve their supply chain monitoring, though critics argue these changes are too little, too late.
Former independent anti-slavery commissioner Dame Sara Thornton expressed concern over the case, calling it a wake-up call for businesses. The Modern Slavery Act, introduced in 2015, was designed to prevent such abuses, but as former Prime Minister Theresa May noted, the law needs to be strengthened to hold companies accountable. May, who now leads the Global Commission on Modern Slavery, emphasized that large corporations must take greater responsibility for investigating their supply chains to prevent further exploitation.
While the trafficking gang has now been convicted, the victims face a long road to recovery. For years, they lived in fear and isolation, cut off from the outside world and forced into labor under conditions that amounted to modern slavery. The case serves as a grim reminder that forced labor remains a reality, even within major global brands. The UK government has pledged to take additional steps to tackle modern slavery, though questions remain over whether current measures are sufficient to prevent future cases of exploitation.
