HUMAN TRAFFICKING has always been a key U.S. concern. Still, a moving true story in an independent action film, Sound of Freedom, has America laser-focused on child trafficking for sexual exploitation after millions viewed the movie that was released in early July. CITCA believes tower technicians are excellent observers of this troubling landscape of exploitation and is inviting them to take TATE’s Recognize and Notify training on their website.
CITCA has announced that the company has partnered with the TATE Initiative (Telecommunications Against Trafficking & Exploitation) to begin implementing their RAN (Recognize And Notify) certification training into their climbing, rescue, and rigging programs. The certification program only takes about 30 minutes to complete and is available at no charge.
You can easily take the training course on the CITCA website, available here.
“Human trafficking happens all over the country, in all 50 states,” said Don McMasters, Director of Training and Curriculum for CITCA.
“As telecommunications workers, we have a distinct vantage point to human trafficking in the communities we serve. We travel all over the country and stay in hotels regularly. This opens up the possibility of us being witnesses to potential human trafficking incidents. This training gives workers the knowledge to recognize signs of human trafficking and know who and how to notify those who can provide resources to a victim.”
Tower technicians will learn:
- To identify indicators of human trafficking
- Recognize strategies commonly used to groom and recruit victims
- Identify indicators of trafficking
- Understand how to report
“This is a significant topic/concern that CITCA is very passionate about, so it was a simple decision to get on board with this extremely important program,” McMasters added.
“If one life is saved by a communications worker recognizing a potential human trafficking incident, then the time spent is priceless. We were introduced to the TATE Initiate through the 3 Strands Global Foundation at the NATE UNITE 2022 Conference, and they have been awesome to collaborate with and have supported adding this important training to our curriculum.”
“Not only is CITCA implementing the certification into our existing programs, but we are also placing the link to the training on our website for anyone interested in taking the training in their free time,” said McMasters.