Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether it is her Department’s policy that Scheme Operators are responsible for ensuring that people on the agricultural seasonal workers visa scheme to not have zero-hours contracts; and what (a) consequences and (b) options for redress exist in the event that a worker is provided with a zero-hours contract.

The regulations which Scheme Operators are required to follow are set out in the relevant sponsor guidance for the Seasonal Worker route. This explicitly prohibits the use of zero-hours contracts. Any allegation of noncompliance with these requirements would be considered under our published compliance processes.

The relevant sponsor guidance can be found here: Workers and Temporary Workers: guidance for sponsors: sponsor a seasonal worker - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).