The Mock Turtle

Jings.

Who paid for the flights? The employers?

We're trying to put together our olive harvest team for October. About 1/4 of the team are usually non-French (in recent years they've been Bulgarian, Spanish, Italian and Russian) and they/we don't know if they're going to be able to come this year.
The other 3/4 are still in lockdown and unemployed (no furloughing for seasonal workers) and keen to get back to work but are awaiting new guidelines and govt instructions.

Derek Nimmo wrote: ↑Fri Apr 17, 2020 2:44 pm Yes, in news that shocks nobody, there are jobs that no Brits want to do but that are still essential, that are filled by foreign workers.

If only somebody had warned us

There's a specific far in Kent that has to find the workers, THEN work out what do with 33 tonnes of strawberries when there's no Wimbledon. 33 tonnes. I can't even think what 33 tonnes of strawberries might look like.

Yes. Such a MASSIVELY SHOCKING SHOCK.

Nice one, Leave voters. Taking back control.

Its probably what they want, thinking about it. Come here, pick our veg then piss off back.

Yeah, happy to exploit people for cheap labour but no intention of giving them any rights. Taking back control.

I really don't understand it.
Our non French workers work on various farms throughout the year. They are paid exactly the same as our French workers. They have the same rights. The only difference to me is the paperwork for their contracts.

sally maclennane wrote: ↑Fri Apr 17, 2020 8:59 pm Yeah, happy to exploit people for cheap labour but no intention of giving them any rights. Taking back control.

Ah, yes.

SunnyMum wrote: ↑Fri Apr 17, 2020 9:14 pm I really don't understand it.
Our non French workers work on various farms throughout the year. They are paid exactly the same as our French workers. They have the same rights. The only difference to me is the paperwork for their contracts.

I think in the UK it is more rights around freedom of movement, rights to in work benefits, time spent in the UK leading to a right to reside etc.

Not sure about equal pay here. I know there was some difference if using out of UK agencies. Corbyn and unions were very anti as it undercut wages here. Can't remember the detail though.

Don't you pay lower "NI" etc. for them Sunny, in their home countries?

Ah. Ok. Thanks Marth.
No, PG, they pay into the Sécu in France, as do we as employers. They mostly already have a French NI number having worked here previously. If they don't then we do the paperwork to get one for them.

We don't use an agency or anything like that. They send their CV, ID, NI number and apply directly to us in the same was a French person would.

SunnyMum wrote: ↑Sat Apr 18, 2020 9:10 am No, PG, they pay into the Sécu in France, as do we as employers. They mostly already have a French NI number having worked here previously. If they don't then we do the paperwork to get one for them.

That's nice. I didn't mean to sound accusatory, I just thought that was how it worked under the EU rules but it's good that ethical employers have the option to do better.

No worries PG, it didn't sound accusatory.
I don't feel that we're ethical. We're just ordinary farmers hiring seasonal staff.

I wonder if the low wages here are because we cut a chunk of their salary off for 'rent' of the tiny on-site barracks they have to live in. They can therefore still be paid minimum wage, but take far less home.

Our seasonal staff come in their own vans which they've converted into mobile homes. We provide water and electricity, but otherwise they're autonomous.

In case anyone wants to read that Sunday Times article that analyses how and why our response has been utterly woeful. (the original is behind a pay wall)

http://archive.is/hBnH4

It's all quite horrifying listed out like that. I'm so black and white about meetings at work, I can't even contemplate missing a cobra meeting.

viggy wrote: ↑Sun Apr 19, 2020 8:01 am In case anyone wants to read that Sunday Times article that analyses how and why our response has been utterly woeful. (the original is behind a pay wall)

http://archive.is/hBnH4

Thanks Viggy. That's chilling to read.

When I went to Venice in the first week of Feb they took all our temperatures when we got off the plane, and had already stopped flights from China.

We fully expected there would be something similar when we flew back to the UK, but there was nothing.