Forced labour

Forced labour is work performed under threat of punishment or violence, without the voluntary consent and against the will of the person concerned. In the context of the Second World War, forced labour was often used by the Nazis to provide manpower for war production, infrastructure projects and the operation of concentration camps. Millions of people, including prisoners of war, Jewish forced labourers and other minorities, were forced to work under extreme conditions. Forced labour was associated with brutal abuse, poor treatment and high mortality rates.