Call Subject Matter Experts in Child Labor, Human Trafficking & Supply Chain, ILAB Research

Overview

Management Systems International (MSI), a Tetra Tech Company, is a Washington, D.C. metro area management consultancy with a 40-year history of delivering results for our clients. Our expertise is in monitoring and evaluation; democracy and governance; peace and stability; rule of law and accountability; education; gender and inclusion; strategic communications; and leadership and organizational development. MSI has implemented projects in 90 countries and works domestically.

For more information, please visit our website at

MSI is pursuing a five-year contract to provide research and support services to the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Bureau of International Labor Affairs (ILAB). DOL/ILAB commissions research support services to produce high-quality, timely Congressional and Executive Order reports on forced labor, child labor, and other labor policy priorities. Our team will deliver rigorous data analysis, policy research, technical editing, and communications support, while strengthening ILAB’s capacity through training, stakeholder engagement, and specialized supply chain and trade-related studies.

To augment the core project team, MSI requires a pool of short-term technical experts to support the delivery of work on forced labor, child labor, and other adjacent research issues. Specifically, this SOW solicits expressions of interest and qualifications for the following three roles:

• Child Labor & Forced Labor Specialist
• Human Trafficking Specialist
• Supply Chain Specialist

Short-term experts will be engaged on an as-needed basis—typically for assignments of 2–8 weeks each—to provide deep technical input, rapid desk reviews, methodological guidance, and in-country advisory support.

• Technical Review & Methodology
  • Review and advise on research instruments (questionnaires, interview guides, sampling protocols) for inclusion of child-labor, forced-labor, trafficking, or supply-chain tracing elements.
  • Conduct desk reviews of national legislation, ILO/UNESCO statistics, trade data, and academic literature.
  • Provide methodological memos on best practices and ethical safeguards for working with vulnerable populations and survivors.
• Advisory & Capacity Building
  • Participate in and facilitate technical working groups with ILAB staff, implementing partners, and in-country researchers.
  • Deliver focused webinars or workshops (2–4 hours) to train field teams on specialized techniques (e.g., supply-chain mapping, victim-centered interview protocols).
• Rapid Analysis & Reporting
  • Produce concise technical briefs (5–10 pages) analyzing specific country or commodity contexts (child labor prevalence, trafficking routes, supply-chain vulnerabilities).
  • Draft sections of human-interest story narratives or policy analyses, ensuring technical accuracy and alignment with ILAB editorial standards.
• Field Support
  • When authorized, advise in-country teams on data-collection logistics, risk mitigation, and survivor engagement protocols.
  • Review and validate field-generated data, interview notes, and preliminary findings.

• Child Labor & Forced Labor Specialist
  • Advanced degree in international development, sociology, child rights, or related field
  • Minimum 8 years of technical experience on child labor and forced labor research, policy, or program evaluation
  • Demonstrated expertise in mixed-methods research and ethical engagement of vulnerable children and survivors
  • Experience supporting DoL assignments in ILAB priority countries, such as Colombia, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Honduras, Mexico, Dominican Republic, or via related studies and partnerships in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East/North Africa region
• Human Trafficking Specialist
  • Advanced degree in human rights, criminology, law, or related field
  • Minimum eight years of technical experience on human trafficking research, victim protection, or prosecution policy
  • Experience liaising with law-enforcement, CSOs, and survivor networks
  • Experience supporting DoL assignments in ILAB priority countries, such as Colombia, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Honduras, Mexico, Dominican Republic, or via related studies and partnerships in Sub-Saharan…