"Nepalese recruitment agency directors handed slavery order", 3 Jan 2023

Doncaster Magistrates’ Court approved the application from the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) for an interim STRO against Resham Gurung and Pravin Rimal at a hearing on Wednesday December 21.

The order is in place for 18 months.

STROs are civil orders issued to restrict the activities of individuals who pose a serious risk of otherwise committing slavery or trafficking offences.

Gurung, 65, and Rimal, 56, are listed as chairmen of Adept and Agile, a company based in Nepal.

The GLAA has suspended Adept and Agile’s licence, meaning it can no longer at this time supply workers into the UK regulated sectors of agriculture, horticulture, shellfish gathering, and any associated processing and packaging...

Workers told the GLAA that they had paid job-finding fees of up to £13,000 to Adept and Agile while they were still in Nepal. Some had taken out loans to pay the fee, while others said that they had put up their homes or businesses as security for the loan.

Work-finding fees are explicitly banned under the GLAA licensing standards.

Some of the workers added that they had been told not to speak about the payments otherwise they could lose their jobs and be sent back to Nepal...

Gurung and Rimal must not act as gangmasters and are prevented from arranging employment for anyone else.

Further restrictions on the pair prevent them from renting or subletting any property, rooms, premises or buildings which they either own or control...

Gurung and Rimal must allow law enforcement officers access to any accommodation they occupy or control so the GLAA can check that they are complying with the conditions of the order...

Breaching a STRO is a criminal offence carrying a maximum penalty of five years in prison...