French Farm Faces €140,000 in Social Charges After 19,000 Hours of Undeclared Work
An inspection at a farm in southwestern France found four Moroccan workers without work permits. The investigation later uncovered more than 19,000 hours of suspected undeclared work, representing nearly 140,000 euros in potentially evaded social security contributions.
Nearly 237,000 euros in wages may have gone undeclared in a case involving agricultural work by a service provider from Morocco and a 72-year-old French fruit grower. According to La Dépêche du Midi, both are facing charges before the criminal court in Montauban, in Tarn-et-Garonne.
On Bladi.net : Moroccan farmworkers paid up to €12,000 for French jobs, then worked 88-hour weeks
The case began on September 19, 2023, when border police and the Mutualité sociale agricole (MSA) inspected a farm in Albias. There, inspectors found four Moroccan nationals employed without the necessary permits.
Investigators from the Nègrepelisse gendarmerie then examined agricultural services carried out between January 2022 and August 2023. They documented more than 19,000 hours of suspected undeclared work, with social security contributions estimated to have been shorted by 140,000 euros.
The farm operator said she had turned to a company run by a 50-year-old Moroccan man named Mostafa to address difficulties recruiting seasonal workers. The services were paid at a flat rate, based on a charge of about 15 euros per hour.
Contracts drawn up by the farmer herself
During questioning, the fruit grower acknowledged that she had personally drawn up the service contracts for her subcontractor. She said she had done so because he had difficulty writing in French. She also admitted that she had not checked whether the workers assigned to her had work permits.
The service provider, for his part, said he prepared payslips based on the hours reported by his employees. He did not systematically keep track of their working hours. Inspectors also accuse him of failing to provide documents they requested during their visit.
On Bladi.net : Moroccan workers France fraud 800000 euros verdict
Both defendants deny the offences they are accused of. The farmer is charged with using a person engaged in undeclared work and indirectly employing unauthorized foreign workers. The service provider also faces accusations relating to housing vulnerable people in undignified conditions and obstructing an inspection.
