Topfruit trade body English Apples and Pears has broadly welcomed a committee report recognising the potential need for a seasonal agricultural workers scheme (SAWS), however it rejected the authors’ assumption that agriculture is a low-productivity and low-wage sector.
The Migration Advisory committee, which advises the government on immigration policy, said it did not recommend an explicit work migration route for low-skilled workers, instead suggesting “an expanded youth mobility scheme”.
SAWS was earmarked as a “possible exception” to this approach, however. If such a scheme were introduced, MAC recommended that employers pay a higher minimum wage “in return for the privileged access to labour” to encourage better productivity.
EAP’s executive chair Ali Capper said: “We are delighted to see that the need for a competent and reliable workforce has been recognised.However, we are surprised that the MAC mistakenly considers the British Apple and Pear industry as a low productivity and low-wage industry.”
“Wage inflation has been 12 per cent year on year in horticulture and the sector has already demonstrated the clear ability to paycompetitive salaries for labour throughout the production process, with our growers paying average wages of £10-£12 an hour. This is significantly above the national living wage.”
She added: “Significant investment into modern orchard systems and equipment has meant that in the last decade alone, we have successfully increased the market share of British apples from 26 per cent to 42 per cent. We cannot ignore these numbers, nor should we overlook the industry’s potential to grow further.”
Capper stressed how urgent labour shortages already are, with 41 per cent of growers receiving fewer applications for seasonal picking work this year and 61 per cent saying they think 2019 will be even worse. This is according to an EAP survey carried out in June and July.
“We need more than 11,500 seasonal workers by 2021 to keep pace with a crop that is set to grow and these individuals must have a mix of skills and experience,” Capper said.
She welcomed the government’spilot Seasonal Agricultural Workers Schemebut stressed that the government needs to “consider a larger scale solution” to prevent apples and pears from rotting on trees.
