A charter flight of around 180 Romanian workers is set to land at Stansted Airport tomorrow to fill vacancies at UK farms amid the coronavirus crisis.
The plane is the first of up to six to arrive in the coming months so that farms stay staffed with labourers. Country Land & Business Association has warned that farms could be short staffed due to coronavirus travel restrictions.
There have been calls for Brits to step up and fill the gaps – but although many people made unemployed during the lockdown have come forward, it is not enough to fill all vacancies. Farmers need around 70,000 seasonal workers to make sure crops are picked throughout the year, most of whom usually arrive from the EU.
While a major hiring drive to ‘Feed the Nation’ during the coronavirus crisis has had more than 27,000 applicants, only around 4,300 of them have taken up the offer of an interview so far.
https://metro.co.uk/2020/04/15/fruit-pickers-flown-romania-brits-failed-answer-call-help-12559562/?ito=article.desktop.share.top.facebook
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Will our government be testing them for Covid-19 or making sure they stay isolated for 14 days before letting them pick fruit?
Brexitiers won't be happy about this. Many seemed to think Brits would pick up the slack.
Ship in the Romanians
posted on 16/4/20
comment by LoneWolf - Rebel Without A Cause (U22026)
posted 6 minutes ago
Stop the benefits of the long term unemployed.
You'd be surprised what they'll work for when they're literally starving to death.
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If I were starving to death, and forced to pick crops I'd imagine I'd be eating as much of the produce as possible
posted on 16/4/20
Unemployed Brexiteers should be made to work the fields for 12 hour shifts for £7 an hour.
posted on 16/4/20
comment by Sergio Marquina (U11781)
posted 15 hours, 40 minutes ago
My flat is rented out to tenants at the moment, I’m living at home until I’ve got enough money saved up to pay the mortgage and service charge.
I’m still helping out with the bills at home though because I’m not a scrounger. You can sit there and judge me though, because it’s logical enough to forfeit money for a strawberry picking job 100 miles away from my house.
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So you're collecting rent, furlough, and live off your parents. Yet have the nerve to complain.
posted on 16/4/20
comment by LoneWolf - Rebel Without A Cause (U22026)
posted 1 hour, 56 minutes ago
Stop the benefits of the long term unemployed.
You'd be surprised what they'll work for when they're literally starving to death.
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Give them the choice, work, or be shot.
posted on 16/4/20
lol this all descended a bit Daily Mail
posted on 16/4/20
comment by Corona will save us from Pool winning the league (U10012)
posted 3 hours, 34 minutes ago
Struttocks - nope they should work the conditions the Romanians do. They are happy to do it. It’s this mentality why Britain will always need foreign workers. Many of those unemployed too happy to get benefits.
==========
This
Immigration has always been used by those who actually don't want to work as an excuse as to why they don't work.
If someone from Spain, Italy, France or Poland can could move to the UK and find a job within a month, then there is no reason as to why the "local" couldnt' have that job if they really wanted to.
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Not if it's a job with language requirements.
posted on 16/4/20
comment by Stay Safe (U1250)
posted 33 seconds ago
comment by Corona will save us from Pool winning the league (U10012)
posted 3 hours, 34 minutes ago
Struttocks - nope they should work the conditions the Romanians do. They are happy to do it. It’s this mentality why Britain will always need foreign workers. Many of those unemployed too happy to get benefits.
==========
This
Immigration has always been used by those who actually don't want to work as an excuse as to why they don't work.
If someone from Spain, Italy, France or Poland can could move to the UK and find a job within a month, then there is no reason as to why the "local" couldnt' have that job if they really wanted to.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Not if it's a job with language requirements.
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Since 2012, English language learning has been taken up by around 99% of students from the aforementioned countries - with Poland at 96%.
Language should therefore not be an obstacle. Especially if the job specifically required the applicant to speak English.
posted on 16/4/20
comment by Kunta Kante (U1641)
posted 7 hours, 35 minutes ago
comment by Scruttocks (U19684)
posted 1 hour, 37 minutes ago
Sort out the work conditions and pay and British people will work on farms (hard grueling work deserves excellent pay). The reality for most workers is far from that at the moment
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‘Sort out’ work conditions and pay for British people but not for immigrant workers?
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Actually that wasn't my point at all (can understand why you might think that as there's a lot of people who do).
The conditions are awful for these Romanian workers and it must change.
I was more explaining why the whole forcing people on benefits to do it is also unacceptable and that these types of jobs need a massive raise in regulation and pay just like many other jobs that "Brits won't do".
Unfortunately I imagine the economic fall out from this pandemic will accelerate the race to the bottom rather than halt it...
posted on 16/4/20
comment by What would Stuart Pearce do? Better than Gozer the Gozerian (U3126)
posted 5 hours, 20 minutes ago
comment by Stay Safe (U1250)
posted 33 seconds ago
comment by Corona will save us from Pool winning the league (U10012)
posted 3 hours, 34 minutes ago
Struttocks - nope they should work the conditions the Romanians do. They are happy to do it. It’s this mentality why Britain will always need foreign workers. Many of those unemployed too happy to get benefits.
==========
This
Immigration has always been used by those who actually don't want to work as an excuse as to why they don't work.
If someone from Spain, Italy, France or Poland can could move to the UK and find a job within a month, then there is no reason as to why the "local" couldnt' have that job if they really wanted to.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Not if it's a job with language requirements.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Since 2012, English language learning has been taken up by around 99% of students from the aforementioned countries - with Poland at 96%.
Language should therefore not be an obstacle. Especially if the job specifically required the applicant to speak English.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
The other way around of course! An English speaking person cannot do a job where they need to speak a foreign language.
posted on 17/4/20
comment by Scruttocks (U19684)
posted 14 hours, 4 minutes ago
comment by Kunta Kante (U1641)
posted 7 hours, 35 minutes ago
comment by Scruttocks (U19684)
posted 1 hour, 37 minutes ago
Sort out the work conditions and pay and British people will work on farms (hard grueling work deserves excellent pay). The reality for most workers is far from that at the moment
----------------------------------------------------------------------
‘Sort out’ work conditions and pay for British people but not for immigrant workers?
----------------------------------------------------------------------
Actually that wasn't my point at all (can understand why you might think that as there's a lot of people who do).
The conditions are awful for these Romanian workers and it must change.
I was more explaining why the whole forcing people on benefits to do it is also unacceptable and that these types of jobs need a massive raise in regulation and pay just like many other jobs that "Brits won't do".
Unfortunately I imagine the economic fall out from this pandemic will accelerate the race to the bottom rather than halt it...
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Important point. I was, perhaps naively, surprised on the news that the accommodation of one farm that the transient immigrant workers would live in from spring - summer was just caravans.