Alamy
n By Hajera Blagg
Seasonal workers – Unite wants visa scheme extended and allow workers to change bosses
Steve told the conference how he and other Unite members met some of these seasonal workers, primarily from Chile, at a protest in London. They’d left an abusive employer, and with no means to earn money, they found themselves homeless on the streets of London after trying to seek support from the Chilean embassy.
He said Unite is calling for the development of multilingual apps and other means of signposting information, through trusted organisations like churches, to arm migrant workers with information about their rights.
Steve went on to highlight the impact of globalisation on food supply chains across countries, citing the example of coffee manufacturer Jacobs Douwe Egberts (JDE), which previously had a large manufacturing facility in Banbury.
“[JDE] decided they were going to up sticks from this country, and transfer their plant elsewhere in Europe,” he said. “This will result in hundreds of well-paid, unionised jobs at that plant going from this country. And there’s nothing we can do to prevent it.”
Steve also highlighted the threat posed by mergers, with the recent Bakkavor and Greencore merger being one such example.
The workforces at each of the major food manufacturers now face an uncertain future. Steve said that ultimately, unions, NGOs and smaller players in food supply chains, all jointly affected by globalisation, must work together to hold multinational companies accountable.
This can be done by ensuring they stick to promises, big retailers like Tesco have made, in supply chain fairness policies.
“There’s no doubt global retailers are susceptible to reputational pressure.” he said.
Steve concluded that we must all work to dismantle a global market where workers and smaller farmers and retailers are, “trodden down by a system where shareholder might is all that counts.”
Speaking to Landworker after the conference, Steve said he was thrilled for Unite to participate for the first time.
“It was hard to know initially what the audience was going to be like, but they turned out to be very receptive.” he said.
FIND OUT MORE
Watch Steve’s full contribution and speeches from other panellists @OxfordRealFarming on YouTube
www.youtube.com/live/6B38gorPR9Q Going to this year’s TUC? Why not join us at the Moroccan food workers’ fringe.
37 uniteLANDWORKER Summer 2026
“It wasn’t strictly farmers – there were NGOs and other interested parties. It was good to see that mix.”
Steve added that he hoped Unite’s first time at the conference would pave the way for further participation at the ORFC and other similar events.
“It’s important to move outside our bubble and understand what other people think,” he said. “We can engage with them, explain who we are, and forge links with others.”
Steve gave the example of learning of a Moroccan food trade union dispute from the conference. A Unite FDA delegation will now be meeting the union’s representatives when they visit the UK later this year at a TUC fringe meeting.
“After having dipped our toes in the water, Unite should look at being involved again,” he noted. “It’s a huge opportunity for us, and we should embrace it.”
• See pages 22-23, 48
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