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In the last three years, the Norwegian Labor Inspection Authority has discovered violations in all inspections carried out by seasonal agriculture in eastern Norway.
These are mainly infringements of the regulations on employment contracts, wages and accommodation of seasonal workers.
– We see in many cases that seasonal workers work long hours and are paid less per hour than the minimum wage that is applied in the industry, says section leader Cathrine Prahl Reusch in the section of crimes against working life East at the Norwegian Labor Inspection Authority.
Bad accommodation
– In some cases, we have seen accommodations that are in such poor condition that it is difficult for us to understand that the farmer feels comfortable offering them, he continues.
The Norwegian Labor Inspection Authority carried out a total of 30 inspections in the years 2018-2020 in collaboration with the Tax Administration, the police and Nav.
In more than half of the audits, the companies were fined. The fees have a total amount of NOK 2.6 million. Several cases from last year and this year are not yet processed.
– We experience that some farmers do not have the necessary competence on what the legislation requires from an employer. This affects seasonal workers in agriculture who may experience a demanding situation, says Cathrine Prahl Reusch.
Salary at the end of the season
The Norwegian Labor Inspection Authority has found that it is often intermediaries who provide the farmer with the necessary labor from the intermediary’s home country.
Seasonal workers are often paid primarily when the season ends. Thus, the workers have little to live on while in Norway and have often accumulated debt in the form of rent and allowance.
– Seasonal agriculture related to, among other things, strawberry picking is an area that we focus on and which we will continue to monitor through our inter-agency cooperation in the coming years, says Director Trude Vollheim of the Inspection Authority of the Norwegian job.
