Foreign Berrypickers Gain More Rights
Image: YLE
Companies that hire foreign berrypickers to help with the summer harvest will be required to take more financial responsibility for the guest workers.
According to a new visa directive from the Foreign Ministry, the firms must pay for the harvesters' travel costs, accommodation and working equipment. The ministry wants to ensure that guest workers do not end up with a financial loss, as many did last year, reports Helsingin Sanomat.
Last summer a number of pickers, mostly from Thailand, ended up in debt after local travel companies charged them exorbitant rates for their trips to and from Finland.
Foreigners -- including Asians -- have been brought in temporarily for the berry harvest in recent years as firms have been unable to find enough workers in Finland or even neighbouring countries.
Minority Ombudsman Johanna Suurpää raised the issue after receiving several complaints.
YLE, Helsingin Sanomat