that’s the Slavery of Bureaucracy.
"Citizen of the Galaxy is a story that deals with four different kinds of slavery, all still being used in every civilization.
The galaxy is run by a human government that is controlled by a few powerful and rich families. (Sounds like the governments of the US, Europe and Asia.) Thorby, the main character, starts out as a slave at the bottom of the scale, complete with whips and chains. He is sold often and learns of the cruelty of being a slave on the bottom.
(In today’s society there are still children stolen from their
parents and sold as playthings for the rich both in this country and
abroad.)
Thorby finds his way into a family of merchants that travel from world to world in a form of slavery known as Economic Servitude. The family is free (except for being confined to a spaceship) and the individual is only there to support the needs of the family.
The third form of slavery that Thorby finds himself in is Military Command,
which in one of the oldest forms of slavery that has ever existed. A
dictator at the top with a clearly defined chain of command down through
the ranks, allowing each level to control the lives of those below him.
In the final form, Thorby finds himself the inheritor to one of the
controlling families. As the head of this family he tries to make
changes to eliminate the buying and selling of slaves but is unable to
because of the laws and policies that are in place. The Slavery of Bureaucracy.
(A bureaucracy is a terrible form of slavery because it is slow to build
and just kind of creeps up on a person without them even realizing that
they are being sold. The laws slowly become more and more confining
until a person cannot even eat breakfast with out breaking some laws.)"
From http://armageddonconspiracy.co.uk/Outsiders(1848631).htm