Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he has made an assessment of the potential adequacy of protections to ensure that people on the seasonal worker visa scheme who (a) become ill and (b) are injured at work have access to (i) healthcare, (ii) accommodation and (iii) compensation for loss of work.

Seasonal Workers enjoy the same protections under UK law as resident workers. In addition, Seasonal Workers must receive a minimum of 32 hour’s pay each week for each week of their time in the UK.

As part of their duties as Seasonal Worker operators, sponsors provide seasonal workers with information about their rights and how to raise concerns. The Home Office monitors this by interviewing workers and engaging with sponsors to check what information is provided and in what format.

The majority of workers also undertake pre-departure orientation courses, developed by the International Organisation for Migration.

The Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA) also produce and distribute similar material at source of recruitment.