Bianchini (Usb): “Too much exploitation in the agricultural sector”

A huge grey area, not entirely irregular but not with many economic and safety guarantees for the agricultural workers of Tuscia – 9 thousand according to data from two years ago -. This is the picture that emerges from a conversation that the Courier had with Elisa Bianchini, a unionist from Usb Viterbo. So far, he tells us, there are no initiatives planned similar to the one taken by the Region on June 28, when it called a meeting with the institutions responsible for the fight against gangmastering after the death of Satman Singh. However, pressure is being applied, also with last Saturday’s demonstration, to reach a discussion also for Tuscia.

Does gangmastering exist in Tuscia?

“Yes, it exists. In the city of Viterbo, most of the agricultural work is done through the exploitation of workers.”

In the sense that they are made to work illegally?

“It is difficult to find workers who are completely undeclared. This is why the forms of control are also complicated. They all have a contract, but they are contracted to the minimum: they are marked 102 days in two years to get agricultural unemployment. But in the summer, when there is more light, they work from morning to night every day”.

Are contracts valid for obtaining a residence permit?

“With the contract they can ask for a residence permit, but it is a precarious permit because they are seasonal workers and ask for it for six months or a year.”

In short, it is not undeclared work, but not regular either.

“It’s a gray area, the most cunning form of exploitation. Because if someone works illegally, then when they sue it’s easier to prove their situation, it’s enough that someone has seen them work in the fields at least once. With illegal work, however, you have to prove that instead of working every other day, you work every day, and it’s more difficult to file a lawsuit, to bring witnesses to prove it. And that’s why when the police or labor inspectors go to do checks, they find regular contracts, even if they’re mendacious.”

Andrea Tognotti

FULL ARTICLE IN THE CORRIERE DI VITERBO OF JULY 2 – DIGITAL NEWSSTAND