The NATSO Foundation will join the Washington Attorney General, the Washington State Patrol, Washington Trucking Association and Truckers Against Trafficking Nov. 19 in hosting a regional meeting in Spokane, Washington, aimed at coordinating ways to fight human trafficking within the state.
Truckstops and travel plazas have a critical role to play in reporting suspected incidents of human trafficking along the nation’s Interstate Highway System, and NATSO members are invited to attend this private event.
The event is scheduled to be held at the Spokane Community College in Spokane, Washington, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nov. 19.
All travel plazas and truckstops are invited to attend, regardless of NATSO membership. This event is closed to press.
State coalition meetings provide an opportunity to educate members of the business community, transportation and law enforcement about human trafficking as well as serve as an open forum to discuss human trafficking trends in regional areas and to explore collective ways to combat this crime.
Since 2013, NATSO has co-sponsored regional Coalition Builds with Truckers Against Trafficking, state trucking associations and law enforcement.
The NATSO Foundation has been helping members of the truckstop and travel plaza community engage in the fight against human trafficking for nearly a decade.
NATSO also works closely with the Department of Homeland Security Blue Campaign, Department of Transportation, Polaris Project, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other local organizations to gain insight into best practices on how to educate our members. Our goal is to provide our members with the tools they need to train their staff so that those individuals are equipped to help if they encounter a victim of this horrible crime.
NATSO members are encouraged to train their employees in how to recognize and respond to suspected incidents of human trafficking using the NATSO Foundation’s online course, "The Role of Truckstops in Combating Human Trafficking." The course is free to anyone in the truckstop and travel plaza community. Non-NATSO members should call Kimberly Roberts at 703-739-8573 or kroberts@natso.com to establish an account.
The NATSO Foundation also provides the industry with a “Combating Human Trafficking” toolkit to offer truckstops and travel centers a roadmap for implementing an anti-human trafficking education and awareness program at their individual locations.
The toolkit includes a 50-state chart of human trafficking awareness poster laws. The chart is designed to help members understand how to comply with state laws on human trafficking awareness. This is an important tool for truckstops and travel centers as many state laws reference businesses that provide services and amenities which many truckstop and travel plazas offer, such as overnight truck parking, food, fuel and lodging.
To download the toolkit and the 50-state chart, click here.
Posters to help locations comply with awareness poster laws can be found here.
Truckstops seeking additional information regarding the Nov. 19 meeting or who would like to learn about future meeting locations should contact Tiffany Wlazlowski Neuman at 703-739-8578 or twlazlowski@natso.com.
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