Seasonal workers survey results 2021
Updated 21 October 2024
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/seasonal-workers-pilot-review/seasonal-workers-survey-results-2021
Executive Summary
This document sets out the summary of results of the 2021 seasonal workers survey. Invitations to take part in the survey were sent in the summer of 2022 to seasonal workers who took part in the seasonal workers pilot in 2021.
The survey is based on 772 responses from a total of 6,600 survey invitations. Nearly 24,000 visas were issued in 2021; however, the decision was taken not to send the survey to the 18,800 Ukrainians who had returned home.
The greatest proportion of survey respondents were Russian (50%) with a significant proportion from four central Asian countries (30%).
Working on farms in the UK
Overall, over 90% of respondents said they would work on UK farms again.
Farm Management
Respondents reported a broadly positive experience with farm management:
- 79% of survey respondents found that farm management treated them the same as other workers
- 66% felt management supported them in their work
- 73% stated support staff were helpful
However, 10% of respondents stated that they had been threatened by farm staff.
Pay
Most respondents stated they were paid in full (93%) and on time (99%) for their work, with 85% stating that their contractual agreements were adhered to.
Accommodation
In terms of accommodation, 85% of respondents stated it matched the description given to them prior to starting work. Additionally, survey respondents picked ‘safe’ most often from a list of options when asked to describe their accommodation, closely followed by ‘comfortable’, with ‘warm’ being picked least frequently.
Physical working conditions
Respondents stated that their physical working conditions were generally good: 95% agreed in respects to hygiene and health and safety, and 89% agreed in relation to the intensity of work and working hours.
Over half of respondents were provided with all the supplies they needed to do their work, 35% with some and 12% with none.
Complaints
Questions were asked of those who filed a complaint during their stay (12% of survey respondents). The most frequently picked reason for filing a complaint, from the choices provided, were ‘living conditions’, ‘treatment by farm managers’ and ‘working conditions’. Of these complainants, 40% stated that it was not easy to file a complaint and only 44% felt their complaint was followed up.
Section A – Introduction to seasonal workers survey results from 2021
The seasonal workers survey is a monitoring tool used by the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra) to assess migrant welfare and the experience of seasonal workers working on UK farms. The survey has been run each year since the Seasonal Worker visa route began as a pilot in 2019. 2020 and 2021 were also considered pilot years.
This report presents the results of the 2021 seasonal workers survey, which was issued in the summer of 2022 to migrant workers who had worked in the UK with Seasonal Worker visas in 2021. Insights are intended to support future policy development aimed at improving migrant welfare. Data from the 2019 Survey of Workers was published as part of a more comprehensive wider review. Read the results from the 2020 seasonal workers survey.
The government confirmed that the seasonal workers pilot would allow farmers to hire up to 30,000 workers. This was a trebling of the previous year’s allocation of 10,000 visas. Visas allow workers to stay for up to six months. Of the 30,000 visas available in 2021, 29,587 visas were issued.
At the time of the survey’s launch in 2022, the seasonal workers pilot was operating with four operators: Pro-Force, Concordia, AG, and Fruitful Jobs, which were all licensed to recruit migrant workers. The home countries of seasonal workers reflect the recruitment approach taken by the operators who source seasonal workers (and act as their sponsor) on behalf of UK growers. A breakdown of the total number of visas issued to seasonal workers by nationality is in Table 1.
Table 1: Total number of visas issued to seasonal workers in calendar year 2021
| Country of respondent | Visas issued in 2021 | % Total of visas issued in 2021 |
|---|---|---|
| Ukraine | 19,894 | 67.2% |
| Russia | 2,276 | 7.70% |
| Bulgaria | 1,110 | 3.8% |
| Belarus | 1,007 | 3.4% |
| Tajikistan | 980 | 3.3% |
| Moldova | 865 | 2.9% |
| Romania | 660 | 1.90% |
| Uzbekistan | 556 | 1.90% |
| Nepal | 518 | 1.8% |
| Kazakhstan | 391 | 1.30% |
| All Other | 1,330 | 4.50% |
| Totals | 29,587 | 100% |
Source: Defra’s secondary analysis of Home Office Immigration Statistics – year ending June 2022
1. Insights from the seasonal workers survey
The 2021 seasonal workers survey was hosted on Qualtrics and all scheme operators collected data on behalf of Defra. As well as providing benefits to both business owners and workers, migration routes for low skilled workers have a range of risks associated with them, including the treatment of workers, fair pay and the quality of their accommodation. Defra recognises the importance of monitoring and understanding their experiences so that measures can be taken to reduce these risks.
The annual worker survey collects both quantitative and qualitative data from seasonal migrant workers and provides valuable insights across five dimensions of their welfare:
- Treatment by management and other staff (Section B part 4)
- Contractual and pay agreements (Section B part 5)
- Accommodation and working conditions (Section B part 6)
- Complaints process (Section B part 7)
- Intention to return in 2022 (Section B part 8)
2. Methodology and analysis
The survey was hosted online. A link was disseminated to 6,600 workers by the scheme’s operators on behalf of Defra in summer 2022. In most cases the survey will have been completed after the worker has returned home. As mentioned above, the survey was not sent out to Ukrainian workers for 2021 due to the outbreak of war which would have made collecting survey responses both insensitive and logistically difficult.
The survey asked a range of questions on multiple areas of the scheme, ranging from working experience, accommodation and pay. The survey comprised 55 questions and included two screening questions and several free text fields to gain further detail on specific questions. The questionnaire was translated to make it accessible to all respondents. The survey ran from 28th February to 3rd July 2022 gaining insights from workers whose visa was granted in 2021.
Analysis was conducted in-house, removing responses where: consent was not provided; respondents did not work on farms in the UK in 2021; and blank responses. This left 772 completed surveys, giving a total response rate of 12%.
2.1 Limitations of survey
While seasonal migrant workers can be hard to reach as a research population, there have been significant efforts to document the experiences of seasonal workers and farmers. This study contributes to the body of literature and provides valuable insight into seasonal workers’ experience working in the UK. However, this research has some limitations, and we invite careful consideration when interpreting the findings.
The online survey was disseminated to migrant workers via the scheme’s operators to have a broader reach. Defra took measures to ensure that the anonymity of respondents was protected and did not collect identifiable information from survey respondents. Data was collected via Qualtrics, which allowed survey respondents to submit anonymous feedback directly to Defra.
However, there are limitations to collecting the data in this way. Firstly, it meant Defra could not follow up with survey respondents, for example to further explore questions raised. Secondly, online survey methods can be susceptible to low response rates, as is the case with all survey methods.
One crucial factor that may have affected the survey response rate is that workers depend on the scheme’s operators to access work and may therefore be reluctant to provide negative feedback or respond to the survey because they lack trust in the process, including who can view their responses.
There is also a risk of self-selection bias as participants could choose whether to respond to the survey or not. Hence, there is a possibility of overrepresentation of subgroups which had a particularly positive or negative experience of working in the UK.
A low response rate exacerbates the risk of self-section bias, and it is worth noting that the response rate has fallen from 21% in 2020 to 12% in 2021. In addition,
Defra’s decision not to survey Ukrainian workers during 2022 due to the war meant that survey respondents constituted only 3% of the total cohort of seasonal workers. As a result, its results cannot be assumed to represent the overall experience of migrant workers employed for seasonal labour in 2021. Neither does this report make claims about the experiences of workers currently on the scheme. Defra are committed to looking at ways of increasing response rates for future surveys.
Language barriers can be another limitation, bringing a risk that information is lost in the translation of survey questions into other languages or responses into English. However, only a minority of survey respondents answered in languages other than English, and a professional translator converted all responses.
2.2 Comparisons with previous surveys
This report makes a few comparisons to the 2019 and 2020 Survey of Workers results. For example, some characteristics, notably response rates, are compared. However, the analysis of the results was treated distinctly because of changes to the seasonal workers pilot scheme and survey design between 2019 and 2021. There are two main reasons for this. Firstly, improvements of the survey design led to question changes between each survey, Secondly, the population cohort has changed dramatically over this period. This is both in size, due to the expansion of the scheme, and as the home countries for the workers has changed dramatically over the three years. This makes comparisons between the surveys very difficult.
3. Respondent characteristics
The respondents’ characteristics provide basic demographic information, including nationality and age group.
3.1 Nationality of survey respondents
Of the 747 survey respondents to this question, the single largest cohort was Russian (50.2%). There was also significant representation from four central Asian countries; Tajik (15.5%), Kazakh (7.1%), Kyrgyz (5.5%%), and Uzbek (2.3%). Ukrainians who had not returned home were also sent the survey, hence some Ukrainian respondents in the results (see Table 2 below).
Table 2: Nationality of survey respondents
Total number of respondents to this question: 747
| Nationality | Frequency | Proportion (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Russian | 375 | 50.20% |
| Tajikistani | 116 | 15.50% |
| Kazakhstani | 53 | 7.10% |
| Ukrainian | 42 | 5.60% |
| Kyrgyz | 41 | 5.50% |
| Belarusian | 37 | 5.00% |
| North Macedonian | 18 | 2.40% |
| Uzbekistani | 17 | 2.30% |
| Other | 48 | 6.40% |
| Totals | 747 | 100% |
3.2 Age of survey respondents
Most respondents were aged between 25 and 31 years (43.3%). Following this, a similar percentage were between 18 to 24 (23.1%) and 32 to 38 (21.6%), with those aged 39 and over being least represented (12.1%) (read Table 3 below).
Table 3: Age group of survey respondents
Total number of respondents to this question: 746
| Age group | Frequency | Proportion (%) |
|---|---|---|
| 18 to 24 | 172 | 23.10% |
| 25 to 31 | 323 | 43.30% |
| 32 to 38 | 161 | 21.60% |
| 39 and over | 90 | 12.10% |
| Totals | 746 | 100% |
Section B - Main findings
This section outlines the main findings from the seasonal workers survey results in 2021.
4. Treatment by farm management and other staff
In the first section of the seasonal workers survey, seasonal workers were asked how they felt they were treated by farm management and other staff, how well they were supported by management, and how helpful they found working with farm support staff. It is worth noting that some respondents may have worked on multiple sites, or with multiple managers, during 2021 with varying treatment. However, responses were based on their overall feelings regarding their treatment while working on farms in the UK.
Please note that Section 7 discusses respondent complaints, including about farm managers and other staff members, during their stay in 2021.
4.1 Treatment of seasonal workers by farm managers
Respondents were asked whether they were treated equally to other workers by farm managers (see Figure 1 below).
Total number of respondents to this question: 719
Findings
- The majority of respondents (83%) felt that farm managers treated them equally to other workers.
- 11% said they did not feel that farm managers treated them equally to other workers and 6% that they did not know.
Figure 1: Were you treated equally to other workers by farm managers?
| Respondents | Share of respondents (%) |
|---|---|
| Yes | 83% |
| No | 11% |
| Don’t know | 6% |
4.2 Support for seasonal workers by farm management
Respondents were asked how well supported they were by farm management (see Figure 2 below).
Total number of respondents to this question: 719
Findings
- 78% of survey respondents said that they felt farm managers supported them in their work.
- 16% said that they did not feel supported by farm managers in their work.
Figure 2: Did you feel supported by farm managers in your work?
| Respondents | Share of respondents (%) |
|---|---|
| Yes | 78% |
| No | 16% |
| Don’t know | 6% |
4.3 Help for seasonal workers by farm support staff
Respondents were asked how helpful other staff members were, such as translators and human resource staff (see Table 4 below).
Total number of respondents to this question: 696
Findings
- Most respondents stated that they found their farm’s support staff (translators and HR staff) either helpful (51.1%) or very helpful (32.0%).
- 9.3% of respondents said that they found the farm support staff to be neither helpful, nor unhelpful.
- 4.5% of respondents said that farm support staff were unhelpful and 3.0% that they were very unhelpful.
Table 4: Seasonal workers asked how helpful were the farm’s support staff members, such as translators and human resources staff?
Total number of respondents to this question: 696)
| Statements | Frequency | Proportion (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Very Helpful | 223 | 32.00% |
| Helpful | 356 | 51.10% |
| Neither helpful nor unhelpful | 65 | 9.30% |
| Unhelpful | 31 | 4.50% |
| Very unhelpful | 21 | 3.00% |
| Totals | 696 | 100% |
5. Contractual and pay agreements
In the second section of the seasonal workers survey, Defra asked seasonal workers whether contractual agreements and worker rights, in terms of pay, were upheld.
5.1 Pay agreements
Respondents were asked whether they were paid in full and on time for their work (see Figure 3 below).
Total number of respondents to this question: 720
Findings
- 93% of the 720 respondents to this question stated they were paid in full for their work, while 5% said they were not paid in full and 3% said they did not know (see Figure 3). 99% of respondents also said they were paid on time, whilst 1% either said they did not know or were not paid on time.
Figure 3: Were you paid in full?
| Respondents | Share of respondents (%) |
|---|---|
| Yes | 93% |
| No | 5% |
| Don’t know | 3% |
5.2 Contractual agreements
Respondents were asked whether contractual agreements were adhered to while they were employed to work on UK farms in 2021.
Total number of respondents to this question: 721
Findings
- 85% stated that all their contractual agreements were adhered to, while 7% said that employers did not adhere to their contractual agreements, and 9% said they did not know.
- Of the respondents who said their employers did not adhere to their contractual agreement, their reasons included: accommodation (15), working conditions (11), minimum working hours (17), incorrect fees (8), contract length (12) and other (17)
5.3 Recruitment fees
Respondents were asked if they had to pay any fees to recruiters or recruitment agencies in their home countries.
Total number of respondents to this question: 727
Findings
- 92% stated that they did not pay any fees. With 6% stating they had and 2% that they did not know.
6. Quality of accommodation and working conditions
6.1 Quality of accommodation
Respondents were asked whether their accommodation matched the description provided before they arrived.
Total number of respondents to this question: 709
Findings
- 85.5% of survey respondents stated that their accommodation matched the description provided before they arrived. However, 11.0% said their accommodation did not match the description, while 3.5% did not know (see Table 5).
Table 5: Did seasonal workers find the accommodation provided matched the description upon arrival?
Responses to this question: 709
| Response | Frequency | Proportion (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 606 | 85.50% |
| No | 78 | 11.00% |
| Do not know | 25 | 3.50% |
| Total | 709 | 100% |
Respondents were asked whether they would describe their accommodation as ‘safe,’ ‘comfortable,’ ‘hygienic,’ and/or ‘warm.’ Respondents could select multiple options they felt applied to their accommodation.
Total number of respondents to this question: 709
Findings
- Of 709 respondents, the most frequently picked descriptor was that accommodation was ‘safe’.
- Figure 4 shows a count of descriptors seasonal workers picked to describe their accommodation based on the multiple-choice options available.
Figure 4: How seasonal workers described their accomodation in UK farms in 2021 (n=709)
| Description of accommodation | Number of respondents |
|---|---|
| Safe | 485 |
| Comfortable | 447 |
| Hygienic | 387 |
| Warm | 326 |
| None of the above | 92 |
Respondents were asked whether their accommodation had toilet facilities, adequate running water, and cooking facilities.
Total number of respondents to this question: 708
Findings
- A large proportion of respondents stated that their accommodation had toilet facilities (75.3%) and adequate running water (83.5%). 89.3% of respondents said their accommodation had adequate cooking facilities.
- Less frequently chosen from the options provided within accommodation was wi-fi or internet connection (49.6%) or adequate privacy (48.4%) (see Table 6).
Table 6: Did seasonal workers find the accommodation have toilet facilities, adequate running water and cooking facilities, wi-fi or internet connection and adequate privacy?
Number of respondents to this question: 708
Note – Respondents were able to select multiple options (n = 708)
| Rating on accommodation | Frequency | Proportion (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Adequate cooking facilities | 632 | 89.30% |
| Adequate running water | 591 | 83.50% |
| Toilet facilities | 533 | 75.30% |
| Wi-fi / internet | 351 | 49.60% |
| Adequate privacy | 343 | 48.40% |
6.2 Working conditions
Respondents were asked how they would rate the general physical working conditions covering: hygiene, health and safety, the intensity of work, and working hours.
Total number of respondents to these questions: 684,697,689 and 689 respectively
Findings
- Across all categories most respondents stated their physical working conditions were very good, good or ok, at 95% in relation to hygiene and health & safety, 89% for intensity of work and working hours.
- The distribution of answers was broadly similar across all categories. Figure 5 shows the responses for working hours.
Figure 5: How respondents rated physical working conditions: working hours
| Response | Percentage of respondents |
|---|---|
| Very good | 24% |
| Good | 33% |
| OK | 32% |
| Bad | 9% |
| Very bad | 2% |
Respondents were asked whether they were provided with all the appropriate clothing and equipment needed to undertake their work safely (see Figure 6).
Total response rate to this question: 699
Findings
- Over half of respondents (52%) said they were provided with all the supplies they needed to undertake their work, while 35% said they were provided with some. Meanwhile, 12% said they received none of the supplies necessary to do their work. A small number (1%) did not know.
Figure 6: Whether respondents said they were provided with supplies
| Response | Share of respondents (%) |
|---|---|
| All | 52% |
| Some | 35% |
| None | 12% |
| Don’t know | 1% |
6.3 Adherence to COVID-19 regulations and handling of sickness
In March 2020, the government issued guidance on social distancing measures to protect UK citizens from COVID-19. These measures included advice on how to reduce the spread of respiratory infections, including COVID-19, in the workplace. These measures continued into the 2021 season.
Respondents were asked whether social distancing and other COVID-19 measures were upheld in their accommodation (see Table 7 below).
Total number of respondents to this question: 708
Findings
- The majority of respondents stated that COVID-19 regulations were met (69%) or partly met (18%).
Table 7: Did seasonal workers find that social distancing and other COVID-19 measures upheld at accommodation sites?
Number of responses to this question: 708
| Were COVID-19 regulations were followed? | Frequency | Proportion (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 536 | 69% |
| Partly | 141 | 18% |
| No | 31 | 4% |
| Totals | 708 | 100% |
Respondents were also asked whether they became sick or injured during a placement, and, if so, whether farm management helped them receive adequate treatment.
Total response rate to this question: 693
Findings
- Of 693 respondents, 155 said they had become sick or injured during a placement. One of these respondents did not say whether farm managers ensured that they received adequate treatment.
- Of the 154 who did provide insight on their treatment, 75 (48.7%) said farm managers ensured they received adequate treatment. In comparison, 79 (51.3%) respondents said that farm managers did not ensure they received treatment (see Figure 7 below).
Figure 7: Total % of respondents who said farm managers ensured they received treatment when injured or sick (N = 154)
| Respondents | Share of respondents (%) |
|---|---|
| Yes | 48.7% |
| No | 51.3% |
7. Nature of complaints and handling experience
7.1 Number and nature of complaints
Respondents were asked whether they filed a complaint during their placements.
Total number of respondents to this question: 692
Findings
- 83 respondents (12%) said they had filed a complaint during their placements (read Table 8 below).
Table 8: Seasonal workers asked whether respondents filed a complaint
Number of responses to this question: 692
| Response (Y/N) | Frequency | Proportion (%) |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 83 | 12.00% |
| No | 609 | 88% |
| Totals | 692 | 100% |
Respondents were given an option to elaborate on the nature of their complaints and could select multiple options:
-
Dismissal.
-
Illness and injury.
-
Working conditions.
-
Pay disputes.
-
Living conditions.
-
Treatment by other workers.
-
Treatment by managers.
-
Other.
The most frequent complaints identified from the options provided were living conditions (29), treatment by managers (27) and working conditions (25). Additional concerns raised by seasonal workers in the ‘other’ free text field related to leave allowance and payments for transportation
7.2 Complaint handling experience
Respondents were asked how easy it was to file a complaint if they needed to.
Total number of respondents who answered this question: 82
Findings
- 40 (49%) respondents said that it was easy to file complaints. Meanwhile, 33 (40%) said it was not easy to file a complaint.
Respondents were also asked whether their complaints were followed up by farm managers.
Total number of respondents who answered this question: 82
Findings
- 36 (44%) respondents said that their complaints were not followed up by farm managers, while the same number (36) 44% said they had been. 10 respondents (12%) said that they did not know whether farm managers followed up on their complaints or not.
8. Future plans of seasonal workers
8.1 Likelihood of returning to the UK for seasonal work
Respondents were asked how likely they would be to return to seasonal work in the UK.
Total number of respondents who answered this question: 684
Findings
- Of the respondents who rated how likely there were to work on UK farms again, most said they were very likely (79%) or likely (13%) to do so. 5% said that they did not know whether they would return or not.
- By comparison, only a small proportion of respondents said they were unlikely (1%) or very unlikely (2%) to return to do seasonal work in the UK (see Figure 8).
Figure 8 Would you work on UK farms again for seasonal work?
| Rating of respondent | Share of respondents (%) |
|---|---|
| Very likely | 79% |
| Likely | 13% |
| Neutral / Don’t know | 5% |
| Unlikely | 1% |
| Very unlikely | 2% |
Respondents could select multiple options as to why they would or would not return.
Respondents who answered this question: 658
Findings
- The two most common reasons cited for returning to the UK as a seasonal worker were pay and UK culture and attractions (see Figure 9 below for a full count of options selected).
| Reason to return | Number of respondents (%) |
|---|---|
| Working condition | 370 |
| Living condition | 336 |
| Pay rate | 580 |
| UK culture and attraction | 455 |
| To learn about agriculture | 162 |
| Other | 29 |
9. Conclusion
The results of this survey give a useful snapshot from a small, and not necessarily representative sample of seasonal workers from 2021. This excluded Ukrainians due to the war, even though these made up a large number of seasonal work visas in 2021.
There are some promising findings, with most respondents indicating they would want to work on a UK farm again. Additionally, there were positive findings related to experiences with managers and other farm workers, adherence to contractual arrangements (being paid in full and on time) and good general working conditions. There are, however, areas for improvement notably on some aspects of accommodation, support during sickness and with the complaint handling process.
Section C – Next steps
The seasonal worker pilot has been expanded significantly since its inception in 2019 and is now confirmed as a visa route through to 2024. The expansion in the number of Seasonal Worker visas available in 2022 and 2023, coupled with a changing global political situation, has resulted in an increased number of migrants travelling to the UK from countries much further afield. This expansion has brought benefits but also challenges, notably an increased risk of welfare issues from travel costs and misinformation in home countries.
Defra and the Home Office are dedicated to ensuring that the Seasonal Worker visa route runs efficiently and fairly for all, providing workers overseas with the opportunity to earn a decent wage, safely and fairly, while UK growers can access additional labour for seasonal peaks.
There is a planned programme of work to address welfare issues for the Seasonal Worker visa route, some of which have been identified in this and previous surveys, but some of which have been drawn from other sources, to identify where improvements might be made both in the short and longer term. Areas to investigate may include the requirements and responsibilities set out in sponsor guidance, fair distribution of costs, earning expectations, living and working conditions, complaints procedure and support for workers in the UK.
The programme of activity will necessitate close working across Government, with the agriculture sector and labour providers, as well as with other key interested parties who hold insights on seasonal workers’ welfare issues.
In parallel, work is ongoing to improve the worker welfare survey for workers in the country during 2022 (survey to be launched later in 2023). This includes consideration of the content of the questions, timing and frequency of the survey, and seeking to improve the response rate of the survey to provide more representative insights from the workers themselves.
The annual survey of workers will continue to provide an essential source of real-experience information each year, at least through to 2024.
Section D – Information about this release
Totals in this release are based on unrounded figures so may not agree with the sum of their components in the tables.
Other relevant data sources
Data has been collected every Spring since 2020 on a retrospective basis. Results from the 2019 survey of workers were published within a wider review of the pilot.
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