Recommendation 1618 (2003)1
Migrants in irregular employment in the agricultural
sector of southern European countries
1. The Parliamentary Assembly notes that
reliance on migrant labour has become a characteristic feature of
Mediterranean agriculture, especially for seasonal activities where a large
workforce may be needed at short notice and for brief periods. The work of
many of these migrants is undeclared. As a result, they have no right to
receive minimum wages or make social security contributions and are often
subjected to abuse and exploitation. In some cases the concentration in rural
areas of migrants with no homes or work, waiting to be recruited, creates
unease in the local population, and even racist or violent outbreaks.
2. Irregular employment does not necessarily
imply illegal residence. Migrants with residence permits may be denied work
permits or forced to work in the black economy because of difficulties in
finding regular employment. Irregular employment is also the recourse of many
genuine asylum seekers who cannot work for the duration of the asylum
procedure – a period which can take months or even years – and who have no
other means of providing decently for themselves or their families. Other
migrants lack legal rights to stay in the host country and for this reason are
prepared to take up any job, whatever the working conditions. Some migrants
even arrive with the intention of engaging in irregular employment, in the
knowledge that the agricultural sector offers excellent opportunities as well
as an efficient word-of-mouth recruitment system.
3. The Assembly is concerned about the work and
living conditions of migrants working irregularly in the agricultural sector,
and about the extent to which the employment of migrants has grown in Council
of Europe member states, and especially in southern European countries.
4.
The Assembly regrets that, despite the fact that a number of
agricultural activities require a seasonal workforce and that many migrants
are ready to take up seasonal employment in agriculture, while the national
seasonal workforce is often unavailable, Council of Europe member states often
do not have clear, transparent and coherent policies for the recruitment of
migrant seasonal workers and their subsequent access to basic social and
labour rights, let alone a
harmonised approach to this issue.
5. The Assembly also regrets that the United
Nations International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All
Migrant Workers and Members of their Families – entry into force 1 July 2003 –
has been ratified by only two Council of Europe member states and signed by
one other.
6. The Assembly therefore recommends that the
Committee of Ministers:
i. instruct its relevant committees to conduct
research on the issue of migrant workers employed in the agricultural sector
of Council of Europe member states, in particular in the areas of legal
status and rights of temporary and seasonal migrant workers, their living
and working conditions, recruitment procedures and sanctions against
employers who illegally employ migrants;
ii. on the basis of such research, formulate
appropriate recommendations addressed to member states;
iii. call on member states to:
a.
establish an effective system of migration management in response to the
demand for labour in agriculture, paying particular attention to seasonal
activities, through transparent procedures engaging employers, local
administration and workers’ representatives;
b.
introduce fair and viable channels for the recruitment of temporary or
seasonal migrant workers, if necessary through the conclusion of bilateral
agreements with potential countries of origin, and advertise them widely,
both in the country demanding a seasonal workforce and in the potential
countries of origin;
c. grant
seasonal or temporary migrant workers accepted under the above-mentioned
procedures work permits giving, amongst other rights, full access to
social security in the host country. Residence permits could be renewable
or issued for multiple entries, and should not be bound to a single
employer. The repeated issuing of seasonal or temporary work permits
should lead to the progressive acquisition of rights for the beneficiary,
including the right to longer-term residence, the right to family reunion
and the right to vote and stand in local elections;
d. make
available vocational training and language courses for migrant workers
both in countries of origin and of destination, with the active
participation of the local administration from both countries, employers
and workers’ representatives;
e.
encourage local authorities and employers to provide access to adequate
housing and social services for foreign workers, particularly seasonal
workers;
f.
introduce and enforce an appropriate legal framework to sanction employers
of clandestine workers in agriculture, as well as suppliers of illegal
migrant labour, with penalties which are proportionate to their actions,
sufficiently severe to have a dissuasive effect and which increase for
repeated offences;
g.
establish an inter-agency task force, composed of relevant government
departments, employers’ associations and workers’ representatives –
including migrant workers – to monitor the effective implementation
of the sanction system. This task force should also be in charge of the
training and education of various enforcement services as well as the
competent courts;
h.
introduce in their law and regulations the possibility of granting a
residence permit to those migrant workers who co-operate with
investigations or court proceedings to apprehend or prosecute illegal
employers or suppliers of illegal migrant labour;
i.
introduce in their law and regulations the possibility of granting a
residence permit on humanitarian grounds to migrants who have been victims
of forced labour;
j. sign
and ratify the United Nations International Convention on the Protection
of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families.
