Berries With the Taste of Misery: Shocking Exploitation of Moroccan Female Laborers in Spain

An investigation by the Moroccan newspaper Hespress revealed the suffering of Moroccan female workers in the Spanish agriculture fields, highlighting the harsh working conditions and the terrible pressure to which they are subjected.

Thousands of Moroccan women go to Spain during the berry harvest season since the circular migration program between the two countries was launched in 2007. Over the years, their numbers began to rise significantly. Last year, the number reached about thirteen thousand female workers, and about 12000 during the current year, working in harsh conditions.

 The Moroccan Hespress investigation took place in the Huelva region in southwestern Spain, an area known for cultivating red fruits, starting with strawberries and passing through berries and others.

 

Discriminative Terms

The suffering of agricultural workers begins even before they leave their country. Their selection is subjected to primarily discriminatory criteria, as Spain requires that they meet several conditions to guarantee that they will not immigrate illegally.

Hespress met Khadija (pseudonym), a 32-year-old mother of three children, the eldest of whom is currently studying in the first year of university.

Khadija found the circular migration path with Spain as an opportunity to bring in some money, with which to support her children and finance their studies. She confirmed that the first selection criteria are to be married, widowed, or divorced and to have children under the age of 14.

She disclosed: "I have three children who were abandoned by their father, who refuses to provide the alimony amounts, and because I come from the desert, I did not find any job opportunity other than this."

The second condition that these female workers must meet is that they must come from rural or agricultural areas. Khadija said: "The work here is very harsh. A woman does not come here until all the doors are closed in her face. The pressure is horrible. Not to mention the exploitation of all kinds and various suffering." She continued with tears: "I make all this effort for my children. I do not want them to suffer as I did. I want them to have a good life and to complete their studies so that no one will exploit them."

Najat Bassit, a member of Huelva laborers in the struggle association, criticized the targeting of women who come from conditions of extreme poverty, who do not even know how to read and write, declaring that they "sign a contract in Morocco and another in Spain without even knowing its content."

 

Harsh Working conditions

Moroccan women work in the strawberry fields for eight hours a day. Work begins in the very early morning in the fields under the scorching sun, intensified by the plastic cover that covers the fields to protect the crop from loss.

It is very hot, and the workers are working hard. There is no opportunity to stop, take a break, or even make a mistake. Every lapse is met with "contempt and slander, and it may reach the point of deducting their wages or suspending them from work," according to the account of several workers.

Bassit describes what these women suffer, saying that the strawberry fields are kilometers away from the center of the village, and therefore they cannot find someone to transport them to buy things they need. Even worse, when they are sick, they cannot find anyone to take them to the clinic.

The second criticism against employers is related to the application of deductions that women do not know why or where they are directed. Basset said: "It is assumed that these women earn 51.12 euros per day, while what they are given is only 400 dirhams or 450 dirhams. Therefore, the legal fee is not applied."

 

Sexual harassment

Hespress met several workers who spoke of being sexually harassed by their employers, whether Spanish or supervisors of Moroccan origin.

The newspaper stressed that several women had been sexually assaulted, whether by the owners of the operating company or even by other people, such as those who offer delivery services to them, calling for the need to tighten control.

Khadija said: "We feel contempt and inferiority…they treat us as if we do not understand anything, and even those who try to uprise or defend one of their rights, they become marginalized and deprived of legal working hours so that they do not earn anything at the end of the month. Even worse, they are not selected to work in the next season."

Pepe Mejia, a Spanish journalist interested in immigration issues, described the situation of seasonal workers as "slaves of the 21st century." He said that the official decision of the United Nations had previously talked about the fact that these workers live in a situation that lacks the minimum conditions of humanity and are treated like slaves.

He emphasized that these workers earn 900 euros while Spain earns 500 million euros from the berry trade a year, and therefore these huge profits are fueled by women drowning in extreme poverty.

 

Permanent Disability

Moroccan female workers make monthly contributions as health insurance. Most of them do not know about it, nor are they aware of the way to deal in the event of illness or injury in an accident. Many of them had accidents at work but lost their rights.

Kulthum is one of these women who came to Spain in good health and today suffers from a permanent disability. Kulthum Mahrous has been waiting for her "digested right" for three years.

Kulthum explained how her life was turned upside down, so she had to come to work in the Spanish mulberry fields, wanting to secure money to finance her son's education, but her disappointment was great when she was exposed to a work accident during which she was not treated.

Kulthum said: "I am a married woman and mother of four children. I used to live a luxurious life in Morocco, but suddenly my husband fell ill and lost his job and source of income. At that time, I had to work to support the family, and I opened a bakery that brought me a good income until the Corona crisis came, and I lost everything."

Kulthum asserts that losing her job pushed her to come to Spain to work in the mulberry fields in order to earn some money to pay the expenses of her son's studies.

She concluded by saying, "I wish I had not taken this step, I didn't earn any money, and even worse, I lost my leg."