Gangmaster system: 10 arrests in Sicily
Italian authorities have arrested 10 people in Caltanissetta, Sicily, on charges of exploiting foreign farmworkers who were allegedly forced to work extenuating shifts for less than four euros per hour.
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Southern Italian region to create sustainable housing for migrant farmworkers
Calabria has allocated €10 million to renovate a former industrial complex and to create an environmentally sustainable 'village' for non-EU workers. Many migrants in the region are currently living in precarious housing conditions.
Britain recruits migrant workers from new countries to pick fruit harvest
The soft fruit season in the UK is already underway. But this year, due to Brexit and the war in Ukraine, farmers had to look for workers from Indonesia, Vietnam, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan instead of Ukraine and the EU.
Italy: 358,000 foreigners work in agriculture
Nearly 30% of people working in agriculture in Italy are migrants and refugees, according to Italian farmers confederation Coldiretti. While most of them are farmworkers, there are reportedly 17,000 foreigners who own agricultural businesses in Italy too.
Portugal urged to do more to identify human trafficking victims
The growing demand for cheap labor in Portugal has created opportunities for migrant workers. But it has also increased the risks of exploitation and human trafficking. A group of experts has called on Portuguese authorities to do more to tackle the problem.
Migrants paying town council for hovels – Italian trade union
The Italian trade union FLAI CGIL has spoken out against seasonal migrant workers in the Puglia region allegedly paying a "stay tax" of one euro per day to live in a "guesthouse that seems more of a makeshift refugee camp."
Shortfall of 100,000 migrant seasonal farmworkers in Italy
Italian farmers' association Coldiretti warns that Italy needs at least 100,000 seasonal migrant farmworkers to guarantee the fruit and vegetable harvest during the upcoming summer season.
Italy: Moroccan arrested for allegedly exploiting migrants
Italian authorities have arrested a 30-year-old Moroccan citizen living in the Veneto city of Padua for allegedly exploiting 23 migrant workers of African origin. The migrants worked in the fields in shifts of up to 15 hours, investigators said.
UK: Nepali seasonal workers scammed by recruiters
Seasonal workers from Nepal have been illegally charged fees to pick fruit and vegetables in the UK, an investigation has found.
Italy: Free bus rides for migrants to fight gangmaster system
The association Cidis is promoting a project in the area around the southern city of Caserta, in Campania, to provide bus rides to immigrant farmworkers. The farmhands get free transportation to the fields as part of efforts to fight the gangmaster system.
Italy: Farmers in Puglia warn of labor shortage
A branch of the Italian Farmers' Association 'Coldiretti' in the southern Puglia region says there it is facing a serious shortage of workers. It has urged the national government to speed up the issuing of permits for workers from outside the EU.
Italy: Puglia finances accommodation for 120 migrant farmworkers
The Puglia region has approved funding worth €158,000 to build a temporary guesthouse for some 120 foreign seasonal farmworkers who will be employed for the cherry harvest season.