The first gathering of the Agroecology Network working group ‘Migration and Wage Labour’ on February 3rd was a unique event. For the first time, members of the agroecological movement and advocates for labour and migrant rights came together and built a coalition.

Insights from Fairwork, FNV-uitzend, FNV-Agrarisch groen, Shop – The Hague, and OKIA brought a great understanding of the situation and taught us about their important work advocating in migrant worker’s interest. Sadly, migrant organisations could not attend yesterday. But good to acknowledge their important work.
We learned more about the low wages of workers through employment agency; about poor housing and dangerous working conditions; the vulnerable position of migrant workers when dependent on their employer for their housing, employment, and insurance; the little protection of workers through Dutch law and little accountability for companies violating the law; and about the importance of advocating to get these problems adressed in politics.

Putting solidarity into action
Afterwards we dived into:
- How to connect with migrant workers.
- How bridges can be made between farmers and migrant farmworkers, who both earn poor pay and little respect for their hard work, against a common enemy being retailerspressing down prices for food.
- How can the agro-ecological movement fight exploitation of migrant farmworkers.
Inspiration was taken from examples of successful organising like the FairFoodProgram and Migrant Justice, by coalitions of migrant workers and other parts of civil society.

A new coalition
Yesterday’s assembly has been a good first step for the Agro-ecology Network to take migrant farmworkers interest into our advocacy work, internally and externally. And to start being part of the struggle of migrant workers for a fair work situation.
The agroecological movement is a movement against exploitation of nature and people. Just like we are advocating against the exploitation of nature through for example pesticides in conventional agriculture, we need to advocate against the exploitation of people in our food system.
We envision this assembly as the starting point of a new coalition for migrant justice in the Netherlands.
Would you like to be involved in this work?
Join the Signal group of the ‘’Migration and Wage Labour’“ Working Group of the Dutch Agroecology Network





