Farm worker rights: what to do if something goes wrong

Start with one pay period and compare your payslip with your shift records and the money paid into your bank. Separate gross pay before deductions from take-home pay. A difference may relate to tax, accommodation, an error in hours or unpaid work; to make a complaint, you need to identify where it arose.

1. Record the dates of the period, your pay rate, the hours recorded and the amount you actually received. For piece work, add the number of accepted boxes or kilograms and the rate paid.
2. For each deduction, find its description, amount and basis in your contract. Ask for accommodation, transport, utilities, bedding and other costs to be explained separately. A line on a payslip does not in itself confirm that a deduction is correct.
3. Write to payroll or the person responsible for pay, notify your scheme operator and ask for an itemised calculation and a correction. Keep your message and the reply. There is a template in the complaints procedure section.

From April 2026, the general national minimum is £12.71 an hour for workers aged 21 and over and £10.85 for those aged 18–20. These are the general age-based rates: the contractual rate, sector rules and sponsor requirements must be checked separately. GOV.UK rates; minimum wage entitlement — Acas. Details of the rate changes: official information on the minimum wage in 2026.

Separate scheme requirements apply to seasonal work in horticulture: sponsor guidance requires at least £12.71 for every hour worked and a minimum of 32 paid hours a week. Reasonable averaging of hours is allowed where the pay period is a fortnight or a month. These requirements concern basic pay before tax; accommodation and allowances do not replace the pay rate. Compare your contract, Certificate of Sponsorship and payslip; if your hours or pay fall short, ask your scheme operator to check the calculation. Home Office guidance, SE6.10–SE6.14.

Being paid for the amount you pick does not remove the applicable minimum wage requirement. If your employer sets your shift hours, a low picking total does not in itself explain pay below the required level. The calculation may differ for other piece work arrangements: show an adviser your contract, rota and production records, rather than just an average amount for one day. GOV.UK piece work rules.

Accommodation: what £11.10 a day means

The accommodation offset is a figure used to calculate the minimum wage, not a universal rent cap. From April 2026, it is £11.10 a day, or £77.70 for seven days. If the charge for employer-provided accommodation is higher, the excess may reduce the pay counted towards the minimum wage. GOV.UK rule and examples.

A simplified example: a worker aged 21 or over earns £508.40 for 40 qualifying hours (£12.71 × 40), with accommodation provided for all seven days at a cost of £100. The amount above £77.70 is £22.30. This leaves £486.10 for the minimum wage check, or about £12.15 an hour: that is not enough. The example excludes other payments and deductions; the actual calculation needs to be checked against the documents.

Keep your accommodation agreement, move-in and move-out dates, bills and correspondence about the price. If the amount changes, ask when and on what basis. Record accommodation quality issues separately from your pay check: a high or low price alone does not show whether a caravan is safe. Everyday accommodation issues are covered in the housing guide.

Holiday entitlement is usually 5.6 weeks a year, adjusted for the period worked. The calculation differs for irregular hours and some other working arrangements. When your work ends, ask for a balance of holiday accrued and taken, and a calculation of any remaining payment. Paid holiday rules. Start checking tax deductions with the pay and tax section.

A broken ladder, faulty machinery, chemicals without clear instructions, overheating or no access to water are reasons to report the specific risk straight away. If the situation poses an immediate threat to your health, move to a safe place and explain what happened. Do not return to a dangerous activity to take a photo or collect evidence.

Identify the site, equipment and time. Ask for the danger to be removed, the safe way of working to be explained and the necessary protection to be arranged. Employers must provide required personal protective equipment free of charge; what is needed depends on the risk assessment. Gloves, goggles, footwear and respirators are not interchangeable. HSE on protective equipment; HSE on chemical and biological risks in agriculture.

If you have a cough, difficulty breathing, skin irritation or an injury, seek medical help and explain what you were working with. Do not decide the cause of an illness yourself: the doctor needs to know your symptoms, when they started and any possible exposure. Seek urgent medical help independently of any dispute with the farm; possible charges depend on the service and your status.

If illness prevents you from attending a shift, report your absence using the workplace procedure and keep the message. Ask what documents are needed and how sick pay is assessed. Acas information on statutory sick pay changes in 2026 can help you prepare questions; check entitlement and the amount against your own circumstances.

For adults, the general rule is a break of at least 20 minutes if the working day lasts more than six hours; there are exceptions. Record the breaks you actually take, not just those on the rota. GOV.UK rest break rules.

You can report a risk in England, Scotland and Wales through the official HSE form; for help making a report, call 0300 003 1647. HSE asks for contact details and does not pass them to the organisation, but the employer may work out who reported the issue from the circumstances. This is not a guarantee of anonymity. For Northern Ireland, use HSENI.

After an injury or an accommodation problem

Record whom you told about the incident, ask for it to be entered in the incident book and ask to keep a copy of the entry. Some incidents must be reported under RIDDOR; the duty to report and the criteria depend on the case. Do not wait for management to complete paperwork before getting help or reporting a danger. HSE incident reporting rules.

For mould, leaks, faulty heating or pests, list each defect separately, identify the room or caravan and record when you found it. Ask for a repair deadline and a safe temporary solution. Only take photos where you can be lawfully and safely. Do not enter someone else’s accommodation without consent. Give information about your health to a doctor and copies of your report to your scheme operator and adviser.

If a letter addressed to you arrives opened or is being withheld, start by recording the specific incident. Sometimes the delivery arrangements or an address error need to be clarified; in other cases, the situation involves pressure and control.

1. Photograph the damaged envelope and keep the letter itself. Record the sender, expected and actual delivery dates, who handed over the envelope and who witnessed what happened.
2. If it is safe, ask in writing for mail addressed to you to be handed over unopened and without delay. Confirm where and when it can be collected and who is responsible. Do not try to enter a locked room yourself to retrieve letters.
3. Tell your scheme operator and the sender. If bank letters or cards are affected, explain the risk of unauthorised access to your bank and discuss a replacement letter, a new card and protecting your account.
4. Do not post your passport, account number, address or the contents of a private letter in a group chat. Send copies to an adviser through an agreed secure channel; cover personal details when discussing the issue with colleagues.

Section 84 of the Postal Services Act 2000 distinguishes, among other things, intentionally delaying or opening mail in the course of transmission without reasonable excuse from opening an incorrectly delivered postal packet with intent to act to the detriment of the addressee, also without reasonable excuse. Not every instance of opening mail is automatically a crime: the legal assessment depends on the circumstances and is worth discussing with an independent adviser.

If your mail is withheld along with your documents, you are threatened or access to your money is controlled, use the FWA channel for serious exploitation. In immediate danger, call 999.

A short email about receiving your mail

Replace the brackets with your details. Keep a copy and the date sent; do not add information you do not know.

Hello. The mail addressed to me, [name], from [sender] was [opened / delayed / not handed to me] on [date]. Please hand me my mail unopened and without delay. Please confirm where and when I can collect it and who is responsible for handing it over. Thank you.

The official FWA page sets out two routes. For pay, working time and agency problems, use the pay and work rights complaint form. For threats, control and serious exploitation, use the online channel for reporting serious exploitation, email contact@fairworkagency.gov.uk or call 0800 432 0804.

The number 0345 161 6000 is for licensing and general enquiries, not the exploitation reporting line. FWA does not replace the emergency services.

Prepare the farm and agency names, address, dates and a short description. Separate what you saw yourself from what others told you. Attach relevant documents, give a safe way to reply and keep confirmation of submission. If the form does not fit your situation, ask the service which channel to use; do not invent answers to required fields.

A short period of service does not mean you have no rights. Minimum pay, holiday, breaks, safety and protection from discrimination each have their own conditions. They cannot all be reduced to the two-year rule for an ordinary unfair dismissal claim. Start by identifying the action you are challenging: underpayment, insults, a dangerous task or the ending of your work.

Some reasons for dismissal are considered automatically unfair without the usual service requirement, but the reason and the relevant employment status need to be established. A complaint does not give unconditional protection against every subsequent management decision. Acas on ordinary and automatically unfair dismissal.

If shifts disappear or conditions worsen after you raise an issue, record the previous rota, the date of your complaint, the new rota and the manager’s explanation. Ask for the reason for the change in writing. This sequence can help an adviser check for a possible connection, but does not by itself prove a breach.

Whistleblowing means reporting wrongdoing in a way that meets the legal conditions for a public interest disclosure. It may concern a crime, a breach of a legal obligation, a health risk or the concealment of these matters. Not every personal complaint qualifies.

The content of the report, reasonable grounds, public interest and the correct recipient matter. Before reporting externally, check the appropriate channel with an independent adviser. Protection against detrimental treatment applies to those with worker status; protection against dismissal is also assessed with regard to employee status. A retaliation claim requires a connection with a protected disclosure to be established. Compensation is not automatic.

You can also report something verbally. If it is safe, follow up in writing to confirm what you reported, to whom and when. Keep the reply. Conditions for protection — Acas; Public Interest Disclosure Act 1998; GOV.UK explanation.

Insults about nationality, unwanted sexual behaviour or different treatment because of a protected characteristic need separate assessment. The Equality Act 2010 covers, in particular, race, sex, age, disability, religion or belief, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity. This legislation applies in Great Britain; separate advice is needed for Northern Ireland.

Record the exact words, place, date, witnesses and management’s response. If comparing pay, picking targets or equipment provision, note shared duties and significant differences in the work. Do not collect other people’s personal documents without consent. A specific incident is more useful to an adviser than a general conclusion that “everyone is treated badly”.

If you are pregnant, report work risks and ask for them to be assessed. Changes to conditions, suitable alternative work and pay during suspension depend on the circumstances and your status; you do not need to prove for yourself that you can carry out a dangerous task. GOV.UK on the rights of pregnant employees.

If your complaint concerns a supervisor, find another recipient: management, HR or your scheme operator. Say what outcome you need now — an end to insults, safe conditions or an explanation of pay differences. Possible compensation cannot be determined from a single account or a table of amounts.

Being unable to retrieve your passport, someone controlling your bank card, threats to you or your family, being prevented from leaving freely, pressure over debt and being forced to keep working are warning signs. They need specialist assessment; you do not have to identify the name of a crime yourself to ask for help.

If it is safe, record who has your documents, when they were taken, the response to your request for their return and any conditions imposed. If you paid an intermediary, keep the advert, messages, receipts, recipient’s details and promised working conditions. Do not hand over more money simply on a promise to “settle the matter” without independent advice.

Contact Unseen — 08000 121 700 or FWA. Another page from the organisation is Unseen’s contact page. Explain if someone checks your phone or if voicemail messages must not be left. Do not risk a dangerous confrontation to get your documents back. In immediate danger, call 999.

Recovering money paid to an intermediary depends on who received it, where it happened and what evidence remains. We cannot promise either that recovery is possible or that it is impossible. Ask for the employment dispute, safety and money claim to be considered separately; reporting exploitation does not in itself guarantee a particular outcome.

Worker, employee and agency worker are legal terms that determine which requirements apply. The contract’s title or a scheme operator’s involvement does not automatically determine your status. The actual relationship matters: who hires you, pays you, assigns shifts, controls the work and can end it. GOV.UK on employment status.

Gather your farm contract, agency documents and the payer’s details on your payslip. If you are asked to register as self-employed, do not draw conclusions from the document’s heading alone: ask for an independent assessment of the actual conditions and the consequences of signing.

Agency workers may qualify for equal basic conditions, including pay and holiday, after 12 qualifying weeks in the same role with the same hirer. Access to shared facilities and vacancy information are rights from the start of an assignment. Breaks and changes of role affect the calculation under separate rules; a transfer does not always automatically reset the clock. GOV.UK rules for agency workers.

An agreement to exceed the average 48-hour weekly limit — an opt-out — is voluntary. Keep a copy of the proposed document and do not sign wording you do not understand under pressure. GOV.UK on voluntarily opting out of the limit.

Your visa and changing farms

The Seasonal Worker visa permits the work described in your Certificate of Sponsorship. Do not start a different job without checking the conditions. If you want to move to another farm, contact your scheme operator; get advice from a regulated immigration adviser about any consequences for your visa. A farm manager does not make deportation decisions. Keep any threatening message and seek independent help.

Official Seasonal Worker page.

Ask for confirmation of whether your contract has ended, from which date and for what reason. A lack of shifts, the end of an assignment and dismissal may need different assessments. Keep rotas, messages, the notice, your latest payslips and your contractual notice period.

For an ordinary unfair dismissal claim, employee status and, as a rule, two years of service currently matter; there are automatically unfair reasons with exceptions to the service requirement. It is not possible to promise that any complaint or short contract automatically entitles you to a payment. Current Acas explanation.

Constructive dismissal is a complex claim about leaving because of a serious breach by the employer. Do not resign specifically to make such a claim without independent advice. Prepare a timeline and ask about the available remedies before deciding to leave. If you are asked to sign a waiver of claims or a settlement agreement, take a copy and allow time to understand it.

At the same time, clarify final pay, holiday, the return of belongings and accommodation arrangements after work ends. Do not hand over the only copy of your documents. If you have nowhere safe to sleep, tell your adviser and scheme operator straight away, separately from the dispute about why your work ended.

You do not need to wait for a complete set of documents before asking for help. Start with what you have. It helps to create one folder and a short timeline: date, event, people involved and supporting file. Keep originals separate from copies in which you cover personal details.

Shifts and pay

• Record the start and end of each shift, actual breaks, location and type of work every day. Record waiting time, preparation and journeys between sites separately. These are not all automatically paid in the same way: your records will help establish the applicable rules.
• For piece work, record the rate, quantity, who accepted the work and which units were not counted. If the target or rate changed during the day, record the time and the message announcing the change.
• Keep your contract, every payslip, bank payments, accommodation bills and messages. If you have no payslip, ask for one; missing paperwork does not leave you without any way to prove you worked. The right to a payslip.

Messages, photographs and witnesses

• Save messages with dates and context, including your request and the reply. After a verbal conversation, you can send a calm confirmation: “Today we discussed… Have I understood correctly that…?” Do this if it is safe.
• Photograph conditions you have access to without entering other people’s premises, secretly accessing accounts or putting yourself at risk. GPS does not have to be enabled. An original photograph and a separate note of the place and time are more useful than an edited image without context.
• Ask a witness whether they agree to give an adviser their contact details. Record what they saw personally. Do not promise that they will take part in court proceedings or share their number without consent.

Health and storing copies

After seeing a doctor, ask for an available copy of the medical record. Describe your symptoms and working conditions accurately; a record does not automatically confirm that the farm caused the illness. Keep prescriptions, dates of absence and expenses if they relate to your case.

Keep backups in secure personal storage that management cannot access. Check that you will still be able to log in after changing your phone or leaving. Do not use a group chat as an archive for your passport, medical information or bank documents. Check the recipient’s address before sending anything and share only the materials needed for the issue.

1. Set out the problem. Write one paragraph with dates, facts and what you are asking for: a calculation, corrected pay, repairs or an end to insults. You can complain verbally; written confirmation helps preserve what was said.
2. Choose the recipient. This is usually the responsible person at the farm and your scheme operator. If contacting them is unsafe, discuss the situation with an independent service first. Keep a copy and ask for confirmation of receipt.
3. Get advice at the same time. Do not wait for the internal investigation to finish before checking time limits. Give an adviser the dates, contract and key messages; check which procedure applies.
4. Separate your claims. Reporting to FWA or HSE, negotiations and an individual tribunal claim serve different purposes. Record reference numbers, next steps and who should reply.

An email about underpayment

You can give a provisional amount. Do not invent hours: if you do not have the figures, explicitly ask for them.

Hello. Please check my pay for [dates]. My records show [hours] hours worked and an agreed rate of [rate]. My payslip shows [amount] before deductions, and I received [amount]. I believe the difference is [amount, if known]. Please send an itemised calculation of my hours, pay and each deduction, and explain or correct the difference. I can provide my records. Please confirm receipt and when I can expect a reply. Thank you.

After receiving a reply, check each disputed line. If a correction is offered, ask for the amount, payment date and a new payslip. Do not consider the matter closed on a verbal promise alone. If a settlement waiving claims is being discussed, get independent advice before signing.

These publications help explain the questions workers and journalists raised in previous years. Participants’ statements and an investigation’s findings are not the same as facts established by a court. This page does not claim that the publications led to reforms or describe current conditions at the farms named.

• TBIJ, Emiliano Mellino and Matthew Chapman, 2023 — an investigation into concerns raised by seasonal workers, including accounts concerning Haygrove and Dearnsdale. Read it alongside the responses from the organisations mentioned; the publication does not replace a court judgment.
• TBIJ, Emiliano Mellino, 2024 — an article on difficulties bringing tribunal claims. An archive link from the original article, relating to Sapana Pangeni and EU Plants; the outcome of the case is not confirmed here, and neither amounts nor a claim that the case was won are reproduced.
• The Guardian, Emily Dugan, 2024 — requests for help after work ended. A historical publication, not a court judgment.

For your own situation, use documents and current rules rather than amounts from someone else’s story. The Woodfields farm page has a separate article about that farm; this link and the Place UK illustration do not associate either farm with the complaints listed.