With households facing the highest levels of food price inflation since the 1970s, the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs Committee is looking at issues throughout the food supply chain from ‘farm to fork’. Their investigation looks at how how profitability and risks are shared through the food supply chain and the existing government system of monitoring and regulation of these.

The following submission to the inquiry is from the Seasonal Worker Interest Group (SWIG), an alliance of key organisations that provide support to or advocate for migrant seasonal workers. As the only group working exclusively in the interests of migrant seasonal workers, the coalition seeks urgent action in response to growing incidences of poor treatment of workers on the Seasonal Worker visa identified by its members. 

In the submission, SWIG identify three areas for potential scrutiny by the EFRA Committee:

1. The role of the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs in regulating and enforcing scheme operators’ compliance with Seasonal Worker Scheme rules.
2. Improving seasonal workers’ welfare by having written guidance on how workers on the scheme will be supported to maintain their visa and employment in the event of sponsor licence revocations.
3. The role of the Department for Environment Food and Rural Affairs in supporting farm compliance with labour standards in relation to the treatment of seasonal workers, before Rural Payments are distributed.