Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:

To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to the Answer of 23 January 2023 to Question 120891 on Agriculture: Seasonal Workers, what redress is available to workers on the seasonal worker visa scheme if they are not paid; how those workers can access that payment; and how much was issued in redress for that purpose in (a) 2021 and (b) 2022.

The sponsor guidance - Workers and Temporary Workers: guidance for sponsors: sponson a seasonal worker - GOV.UK - provides information for approved scheme operators in the horticultural sector on how to sponsor an overseas worker on the seasonal worker immigration route. Breaching the sponsor guidance can result in the operator losing their license.

The sponsor guidance includes an overall requirement to maintain a high standard of welfare for seasonal workers. There is the expectation that Scheme Operators maximise the work opportunities for participating seasonal workers and we will continue to monitor this situation closely. Operators can transfer workers between farms to avoid seasonal workers being left without work.

The guidance also sets out the minimum pay requirements for this route, which includes paying a minimum hourly rate, alongside satisfying relevant National Minimum Wage regulations, including those on fair rates for piece work, and holiday pay. We do not collect data on redress of pay.

The guidance also requires operators to have appropriate procedures in place for workers to report any concerns they may have.