Brazil rescues 55 workers from forced labor on Goiás farm

The Ministry of Labour and Employment (MTE) carried out an operation on July 23‑24, 2026, at a rural property in Cezarina, Goiás, rescuing 55 people held in conditions akin to slavery. The victims, recruited from the states of Bahia and Minas Gerais with promises of salaries up to R$ 10,000, were forced to work extracting corn straw for cigarette production. Workers endured lack of potable water, absence of personal protective equipment, and unsanitary conditions, with nine of the rescued being women.

Approximately 150 people had been recruited; two‑thirds left the site on their own after confronting the reality of the job. The employer failed to honor wage promises or provide transport home, prompting the Ministry to cover transportation to the Goiânia bus station. The rescued workers will receive six installments of a special unemployment insurance benefit of R$ 1,621 each. The investigation classified the situation as a crime of fraudulent hiring and degrading treatment, despite the absence of physical violence.