The Union appears to be preparing a fresh push to exempt seasonal farm workers from the minimum wage. A proposal submitted for the CDU’s federal congress in February-recommended for approval-was reported by the “Rheinische Post” (Wednesday edition).
The document states that “the CDU of Germany is committed to allowing seasonal farm workers to deviate from the minimum wage”. The idea is that such workers would only help during peak harvest periods and would not be in full-time employment. “In addition, seasonal workers come from abroad, where a wage below the minimum wage is still well above local standards” the justification explains. The party argues that lower wages could enable “even more seasonal workers to benefit”.
For some time the farmers’ association has called for limiting the minimum wage for seasonal farm workers to 80 percent. Agriculture Minister Alois Rainer of the CSU was publicly supportive of the measure. However, a legal assessment carried out in July indicated that this might not be feasible.