Farm workers to receive more pay and holidays

The T&G general union has described the pay rise announced by the Agricultural Wages Board (AWB) as “a small first step out of poverty pay for farm workers”.

The rise of 4.9% on the standard rate (from £5.15 to £5.40 per hour) and 5.8% for craft and higher grades (from £6.02 to £6.37 per hour) means an overall increase of 5.1%. The new rates will come into effect on 1 October 2004, and will apply to 120,000 workers, most of whom are on the standard rate. Two “appointment grades” will also see increases, with Grade 2 going from £6.38 to £6.75 per hour and Grade 1 from £6.89 to £7.29 per hour.

A separate “harvest” rate, which is paid at the National Minimum Wage and will therefore also increase on 1 October to £4.85 per hour, will now also apply to mushroom pickers.

In addition to the pay increases, the deal includes one extra day’s holiday per year. This will take the annual entitlement to 22 days from October.

A meeting of the AWB, scheduled for 28 July, is due to confirm the deal and hold further discussions on pay structures.

The TGWU has noted the results of an independent assessment, which showed that the vast majority of workers are employed on profitable farms; the only category where farm incomes have not increased was lowland cattle.