Medan, Indonesia – Indonesian staff who paid 1000’s of bucks to proceed to the UK to select fruit say they face the anticipation of returning house closely in debt nearest being sacked for no longer assembly unrealistic goals.
Migrant associate Abdul mentioned he departed for the United Kingdom in Would possibly with 9 alternative Indonesians below the rustic’s seasonal associate scheme, which grants international staff six-month visas to paintings on British farms.
Rented by way of UK recruiter Agri-HR, Abdul was once despatched to Haygrove, a farm in Hereford, about 215km (135 miles) southwest of London.
“A friend of mine who had already been to the UK told me about the opportunity. He said I could make $65 per day picking fruit,” Abdul, who requested to usefulness a pseudonym, informed Al Jazeera.
Abdul, who made about $130 in keeping with week in his earlier task as an ice cream supplier in Central Java province, mentioned he racked up about $4,000 in debt borrowing cash from society and pals to pay charges to 2 Indonesian third-party organisations – a recruitment company known as PT Mardel Anugerah Global and a staff’ hub known as Forkom – in addition to out-of-pocket bills to proceed to the United Kingdom.
Abdul mentioned staff at Haygrove had been anticipated to select 20kg of cherries and strawberries in keeping with future, which he discovered to be an inconceivable job because of the insufficiency of fruit – a infection that handiest were given worse as harvest season went on.
“We [the Indonesian workers] were always put at the edge of the plantations where there was little fruit. Several times, we were given trees that were not in good condition and we picked all the fruit there was, but we couldn’t do any more than that,” he mentioned.
Abdul mentioned he and 4 alternative Indonesian fruit-pickers gained 3 written ultimatum prior to they had been sacked inside of 5 to 6 weeks of arriving on the farm.
He additionally alleged that alternative staff who had no longer met goals had no longer been let fall.
“When they let us go, Haygrove just said, ‘Sorry, we didn’t want this either’, and gave us an official letter to say we had been sacked and our ticket back to Indonesia leaving the next day,” he mentioned.
In a remark equipped to Al Jazeera, Haygrove mentioned the employees have been let fall for broke efficiency and that it’s “committed to fair employment practices and the well-being of all our workers”.
“On June 24, 2024, five Indonesian workers were dismissed following a thorough and fair disciplinary process due to consistently poor performance. These dismissals were conducted in accordance with our structured performance management procedures, which include multiple stages of feedback, training, and support,” the farm mentioned.
The Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority (GLAA), the United Kingdom’s primary company for investigating labour exploitation, previous this time opened an investigation into the case.
In step with GLAA licensing laws, “a licensing holder must not charge a fee to a worker for any work-finding services”. On the other hand, alternative prices akin to proceed and scientific exams could also be charged so long as they’re voluntary.
“Additional goods or services must be optional and cannot be discriminated against if not taken up,” the principles environment.
In a remark equipped to Al Jazeera, GLAA mentioned it was once having a look into the employees’ proceedings.
“We are currently investigating the recruitment processes for a number of Indonesian workers in the UK and are working to establish the exact circumstances. At this time, we cannot comment further while the investigation is underway,” it mentioned.
Haygrove mentioned it takes allegations of misconduct “very seriously” and is totally cooperating with GLAA’s investigation.
“We were unaware of any illegal recruitment fees until concerns were raised by a third party and subsequently reported to the GLAA by Agri-HR. Haygrove has a zero-tolerance policy for such practices and is actively supporting the GLAA’s investigation,” the farm mentioned.
“We emphasise that no issues have been raised directly by the Indonesian workers regarding their recruitment, accommodation, or working conditions at Haygrove.”
Following their dismissal by way of Haygrove, Abdul and two alternative staff made up our minds to stay in the United Kingdom.
Abdul has since discovered paintings at any other farm selecting lettuce, even if his six-month visa is because of expire in November, nearest which he must go back to Indonesia.
PT Mardel informed Al Jazeera that Indonesians wishing to profit from the United Kingdom’s seasonal associate scheme should be capable of shield the price of a visa, scientific test, go back airplane tickets and insurance coverage, along side alternative processing prices in response to provisions poised by way of the Indonesian labour segment.
“The estimated costs required are a maximum of 33 million Indonesian rupiah [$2,123],” an organization spokesperson mentioned. “The workers we have placed in the UK are all very happy that they can work there with very good salaries. The farms also pay great attention to their welfare,” the spokesperson mentioned.
PT Mardel additionally mentioned there was once “no relationship between PT Mardel and Forkom”.
Forkom didn’t reply to repeated demands for remark.
A number of alternative staff watching for retirement to the United Kingdom informed Al Jazeera that they had been additionally saddled with debt.
Ali, a seasonal associate applicant from Central Java province, mentioned he was once nonetheless ready to progress to the United Kingdom nearest Forkom informed him he may resignation in August utmost time.
“They said if I went to the UK, I would earn $65 per day picking strawberries. I had to stop work in Indonesia so that I could focus on getting all the documents together, but then I didn’t get to leave,” Ali, who requested to usefulness a pseudonym, informed Al Jazeera.
Ali mentioned he’s now about $1,300 in debt to his society.
“I’ve spent all my money. Before this, I used to buy secondhand goods and sell them on the side of the road. I had been doing that for 25 years and it was enough for me to pay for my family,” he mentioned.
“All the information about the scheme was sent through Forkom, and they made promises that they did not keep. PT Mardel also said that we needed to transfer money to them in order to secure our work in the UK.”
“My wife and children are suffering because all our money is gone,” Ali mentioned. “I can’t pay for my children’s school fees and their pocket money. The biggest effect has been on my family. I am always fighting with my wife now because we don’t have any money.”
In a remark despatched to Al Jazeera, the Indonesian Embassy in London mentioned it’s conscious about stories of Indonesian fruit-pickers being exploited in the United Kingdom.
“The Indonesian Embassy in London supports the Indonesian government’s efforts to ensure placement of Indonesian migrant seasonal workers to England in accordance with regulations and applicable laws in both countries,” the embassy mentioned.
The embassy mentioned that it was once mindful that 136 seasonal staff had arrived in the United Kingdom and been positioned at seven places of work in England as of twenty-two July 2024.
“The placement of the seasonal workers was in accordance with recommendations from the Indonesian Ministry of Manpower and verification and consultation with relevant authorities in the UK,” it mentioned.
Addressing allegations of unlawful charges being charged right through the recruitment procedure, the embassy mentioned it “supports investigations and law enforcement by the authorities in Indonesia and the UK, including pushing for an investigation by the GLAA”.
Andy Corridor, a labour rights activist who’s supporting the Indonesian staff, mentioned UK firms are increasingly more turning to migrant staff as a result of Brexit.
“This means that they are now recruiting workers from far-flung destinations, but they do not want to pay their fees. If anything goes wrong, it is a really risky situation because the workers think they are going to earn lots of money,” Corridor informed Al Jazeera.
“It is the fault of the UK side. The system is broken and the actors are broken. They are lax and naive. They have set up a scheme where workers have to pay their own costs, but they could do it properly and, if they executed it properly, everything would be fine.”
Corridor mentioned supermarkets in the United Kingdom are a big a part of the infection as they need to purchase manufacture on the least expensive costs, which means that that farms in flip don’t need to pay the prices of recruiting staff.
“The farms do not want to pay recruiters, and the recruiters then expect the workers to pay for themselves,” he mentioned. “Supermarkets are responsible for all this mess. They have the money to do this properly. It is all just a squeeze on price.”