Thai Workers Head For Blueberry Fields In Finland

webfact · July 14, 2010

OVERSEAS JOBS

Thai workers head for blueberry fields in Finland

By The Nation

In the next five days, hundreds of workers will be flying to Finland to take up the job of picking blueberries.

The first batch of workers will depart on Saturday, while the second will leave next Tuesday. Most of the workers, 232 in these two batches, come from the Northeast.

The Labour Ministry yesterday held a training session for the workers to prepare them for life and work overseas.

Finland, where the blueberrypicking season runs from July to September, agreed to accept 2,000 workers from Thailand through seven employment agencies.

Chansak Promthong, a coordinator from one of the agencies, said the Thai workforce would be working in Finland for a total of 70 days, during which they would be required to work from 4am to 10pm every day.

"They will need to work hard but they will also be paid well," he said.

Boontan Paengsaeng, one of the workers, said he expected to make about Bt160,000 to Bt170,000 from the trip, which cost him Bt67,000.

"Even after covering the expenses, I will still have a lump sum," the 51yearold man from Chaiyaphum said.

Boontan said he had worked as a fruit picker in Sweden twice before, but both times he only managed to bring back Bt50,000.

"So, I decided to switch to Finland," he said, adding that he had to pay taxes while working in Sweden, but that Finland had agreed not to collect taxes from him.

This year, Sweden has offered to recruit 3,500 fruit collectors from Thailand and is guaranteeing that each will earn at least Bt80,000.

-- The Nation 2010-07-14

rkidlad · July 14, 2010

Wow! What a lovely and civilised country Sweden is. I wonder how Thailand will repay the favour.

Damaz6052 · July 14, 2010

Work from 4.00am to 10.00pm..!!! Surely a typo.

norwayeagle · July 14, 2010

Hi.

Finland, where the blueberrypicking season runs from July to September, agreed to accept 2,000 workers from Thailand through seven employment agencies.

Anyone who can give me name and telephone numbers to these Agencies? Please

Garry · July 14, 2010

Wow! What a lovely and civilised country Sweden is. I wonder how Thailand will repay the favour.

I had similar thoughts.

Work from 4.00am to 10.00pm..!!! Surely a typo.

Hopefulyl not and the timings would include trips to and from the fields, unless they have workers dormitories on-site.

I see labourers in the Middle East 12-14 hr days on back breaking work.

Either way, still a long day

chainarong · July 14, 2010

Might be a good idea for the embassy/ Consulate in Finland to monitor this activity.

Alwaysright · July 14, 2010

:whistling:Blueberries are expensive in Thailand,I hope the Thai's are getting a piece of the pie!!! :whistling: :whistling: :whistling:

Atmos · July 14, 2010

expected to make about Bt160,000 to Bt170,000 from the trip, which cost him Bt67,000.

the cost of the trip - about three times a return airfare? Agency fees then?

Was it last year or 2008 the Thai gov't had to 'bail out' similar workers from Sweden who'd paid up but there was no work/earnings for them.

noel2499rk · July 14, 2010

Working from 4am to 10 pm.

I'm no expert on Finnish labor laws, but I'd be pretty sure that working these hours would be illegal.

Soutpeel · July 14, 2010

Working from 4am to 10 pm.

I'm no expert on Finnish labor laws, but I'd be pretty sure that working these hours would be illegal.

My thought as well.......

moe666 · July 14, 2010

Maybe different laws for field work that allow longer hours. Field work in US has its own laws to accomodate the need to get a crop in.

Boater · July 14, 2010

Someone must be making a fortune from these thais , 70 days work .. Working 4am - 10pm and only taking home 160 k ... This is what the english and americans used to do with the blacks from africa !! Its called slave labour

Johpa · July 14, 2010

This year, Sweden has offered to recruit 3,500 fruit collectors from Thailand and is guaranteeing that each will earn at least Bt80,000.

They will be paid Bt80,000 and the recruiting agencies will gladly take half of that amount and split it with the government bureaucrats who help grease the wheels. But for a poor Isaan farmer, coming home with maybe Bt30,000 after three months is worth a go.

MB1 · July 14, 2010

I found an interesting article with regards to the Thai Berry pickers and if true it seems Thai's will be better off than before, only time will tell...

Article from HELSINGIN SANOM INTERNATIONAL EDITION..

http://www.hs.fi/english/article/1135252299398

Berry processing companies must pay pickers’ expenses

Use of foreign labour leasing companies banned on suspicion of human trafficking

For the first time, companies inviting berry-pickers to Finland will this year have to pay the pickers’ expenses, including travel tickets, accommodation, and working tools.

Finland’s Minority Ombudsman Johanna Suurpää has made a recommendation to this effect, and the Ministry for Foreign Affairs has included her suggestion in its visa directive, which will be sent to berry processing companies and to Finnish missions abroad.

”A financially sound company will have to be able to cover the expenses incurred in order that none of the berry-pickers has to return home indebted after having worked in Finland”, states the newly published directive.

For example in Thailand, berry picking trips are organised by agents who charge the pickers exorbitant rates for tickets and travel arrangements - a situation that often leads to unreasonable debts.

It is estimated that last summer one in three berry-pickers, mainly Thais, had incurred debts since they had borrowed money for the trip.

The Thai newspaper Bangkok Post reported on these problems on its website on January 2nd, saying that last year the Finnish-Thai Association helped some 60 Thais to return home from Finland after they had ended up in dire straits. Helsingin Sanomat has also reported on similar cases (see articles from 2009).

The berry season itself was good and the pickers got reasonable earnings.

Next summer, it will be forbidden to invite berry-pickers who are on the payroll of a foreign labour leasing company. The purpose of the ban is based on suspicion of human trafficking for the purpose of labour exploitation.

”When it comes to labour leasing, it is no longer clear who is the inviter and what are these workers’ wages and terms of employment”, says Counsellor Vesa Häkkinen from the Unit for Passports and Visas at the Ministry for Foreign Affairs.

The ministry is now collecting advance notices from those companies that intend to invite berry-pickers to Finland next summer.

The number of visas that can be granted under the new terms is the same 2,000 to 3,000 as in the previous years.

For several years, many kinds of shortcomings have been found in the conditions and travel arrangements of those seasonal workers who come to Finland with a tourist visa.

They are treated as entrepreneurs, which means that nobody is looking after their interests and rights - not the occupational safety districts nor the police, notes Johanna Suurpää.

Since last summer, the Minority Ombudsman has received a large number of complaints relating to 15-hour workdays, the pickers’ accommodation, food, and particularly to the fact that many foreign berry-pickers have ended up in debt.

Moreover, many Finnish citizens have expressed their concern over how badly people can be treated in Finland.

In the Minority Ombudsman’s view, foreign berry-pickers must be guaranteed a minimum level of subsistence.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is trying its best to monitor the financial situation of the inviting companies.

Last year the ministry rejected the invitations sent by a company that had gone into liquidation.

Below a link to an article which relates to the 2009 berry picking season.

http://www.hs.fi/english/article/A+long+way+for+bilberries/1135249991322

Edited July 14, 2010 by MB1

MB1 · July 14, 2010

Someone must be making a fortune from these thais , 70 days work .. Working 4am - 10pm and only taking home 160 k ... This is what the english and americans used to do with the blacks from africa !! Its called slave labour

From reading the links I've posted I'd say the Thais are basically self employed and have the right to sell the berries they pick to anyone they want to but it seems they sell them mostly to berry processing companies, also the prices paid per kilo to Thai's are the same price paid to anyone else, including Finns, until foreign berry pickers picked the berries mostly were left to rot in the forests and woods, as most Finns won't work picking berries and Finns that do pick them do so for personal consumption.

From what I have read, most of the Thai's seem to be very happy earning what they do and many return each year, now I wouldnt call that slave labour..

chainarong
Posted Today, 18:03

Might be a good idea for the embassy/ Consulate in Finland to monitor this activity.

It seems they are...

Edited July 14, 2010 by MB1

Puschl · July 14, 2010

MB1, thanks for sharing.

They are treated as entrepreneurs, which means that nobody is looking after their interests and rights -

This is the key that led to exploitation. In Finland (and many other northern countries), mushrooms and berries are not owned by the landlord. It is everybody's right to go to the forests and pick them - given you behave decently. As an incentive to get the berries picked (an estimated 90% of berries used to rot in the forests), the finnish government made an incentive to volunteering workers: you can sell what you pick on the markets tax-free. I thought this regulation only applied to the local weekend markets, but apparently it's also possible to sell to companies.

Individuals (not bound by any labour law restrictions) may work as hard as they wish - even 24/7 if they don't collapse. Now enter the agencies: they provide travel arrangements. They don't employ people. Of course travelling to Finland is expensive. Life in Finland is expensive, too. More expensive, if you don't know the area and are at the mercy of the tour guide.

There's also competition from the Estonians, who are EU citicens, and can travel to Finland a lot cheaper (e.g. by ferry bringing their own car). Supply goes up, demand claims to be low to push the price down. Gosh, the big companies pay 1EUR per liter. At the weekend markets you could sell them for 4EUR - but wait, you'd need transportation.

Several years back I heard a success story of a Thai family that came to Finland on tourist visum and knew how to organize themselves (I guess they had finnish friends who helped them). Now the same is still possible, but agents try to get their share. The article shows that the finnish government is aware of the situation and starts moving. Let's hope the solution will not be to stop issuing visas to potential Thai pickers, but instead a fair payment scheme.

Another issue to consider: in Lapland in summer time, the sun sets only for one hour or - in the northern part - not at all. The midnight sun is a fun experience if you can relax. It's not so nice if you work hard and want to get some hours of sleep.

way2muchcoffee · July 14, 2010

18 hours a day for 70 days straight. That's the equivalent of 3 full-time jobs for a little over two months. The payout is probably only about 70k after all is said and done. Exploitation comes to mind.

On the other hand I suspect the man who returns to the village after 10 weeks with 70-100k in cash will be pretty happy.

Edited July 14, 2010 by way2muchcoffee

MB1 · July 14, 2010

MB1, thanks for sharing.

No problem.

Several years back I heard a success story of a Thai family that came to Finland on tourist visum and knew how to organize themselves

An article I read stated that a Thai woman from Chaiyaphum moved to Sweden but not Finland, below from a link I posted earlier with the article.

http://www.hs.fi/english/article/A+long+way+for+bilberries/1135249991322

"In the beginning, there was love.

A couple of decades ago, a Thai woman from the north-eastern province of Chaiyaphum fell for a Swedish man. They moved to Sweden.

There the woman noticed that every year vast quantities of berries were simply left to rot in the woods.

She begn to invite people from her home province over to pick berries in Sweden.

It turned into a business. Later others picked up on the idea. It became a boom.

This year a total of around 5,400 Thai berry-pickers came to Sweden and a further 2,500 or so to Finland.

Nearly all of them hail from Chaiyaphum and a couple of neighbouring provinces."

webfact · July 16, 2010

UPDATE