Moroccan Seasonal Workers Return to Spanish Farms Amid COVID-19 Restrictions

Starting this week, a first wave will be welcomed in the strawberry plantations. There are 14,000 of these Moroccan seasonal workers who are going to Spain, reports Assabah, specifying that 2,800 others could be called upon later if needed.

Contrary to previous agricultural seasons, the number of Moroccans authorized to travel to Spain has been revised downwards due to the persistence of the Covid-19 pandemic. The local authorities would have eliminated at least 30% of the authorizations.

Faced with this situation, it is up to the farmers to call on labor from Eastern Europe, as well as migrants already present on Spanish soil. Last season, the Moroccans represented 16% of the workforce working in the Spanish agricultural fields. The locals, for their part, constituted 50% of the workforce, a rather high rate which is mainly justified by the socio-economic repercussions of the health crisis.