Stop the abuse of farm employees

Employment relations problems happen in all types of work and at every level. Even big companies that should know better are often involved with personal grievances. We have found that certain types of employers are over represented in personal grievance claims. They include charities, doctors, and farmers.

We have talked about charities before and we’ll talk about doctors at some stage. For now we want to talk about employees in the farming industry. We frequently come across cases so bad that we can only describe it as employee abuse. Examples include farm workers not being provided with employment agreements, being dismissed on the spot for no reason, having part of their wages withheld illegally, being kicked out of their farm house with no warning, serious bullying and harassment, and being physically and verbally abused by the owner or managers. All of these things could happen to any employee; however, they seem to occur much more frequently with farm employees. The way that many farm employees are dismissed on a whim and with no warning shows that some farmers have no idea of even the most basic employment procedures – or they just don’t care.

If you are a farm employee, you don’t have to put up with this. If you are dismissed or your working conditions are changed without your permission, you probably have a personal grievance claim available to you. It is very important that you keep records (dates, times, what was said and what happened) and that you try to get proof of what has happened. For example, if the farm manager tells you to pack your bags and get out, try to get it in writing (email is fine). Try also to have a reliable witness who will agree to give evidence to support your case.

We realise that it can be challenging for small scale employers to know the law, however, what happens to many farm workers is nasty, vindictive and illegal. There are plenty of industry bodies that will help employers to do the right thing, at a reasonable price, so there’s no excuse for bad behaviour on the farm.

If you have any concerns about your work please contact us.