Furloughed Workers Encouraged To Become Fruit Pickers

The Environmental Secretary, George Eustice, has encouraged furloughed workers to work as fruit and vegetable pickers to help farmers fill a labour shortage caused by the Coronavirus lockdown. According to the British Growers Association, 70,000 seasonal workers a year are needed. Much of this work is carried out by seasonal migrant works, however farmers have said the pandemic has restricted the availability of foreign workers and they cannot recruit enough domestic labour. Earlier in the month special flights were chartered to bring in workers from Romania, although it’s estimated only one third of migrant workers who would normally work in the UK arrived before the national lockdown. With the British season for soft fruits and salads about to begin, it’s hoped recruiting furloughed workers will help bring in the harvest in June.

PM Warns This Is “Moment Of Maximum Risk”

Boris Johnson has urged people not to lose patience with the nationwide lockdown, as “we are beginning to turn the tide” on the disease. He stated that there are real signs the nation is passing the peak of the disease, with fewer hospital admissions and fewer patients in intensive care, but warned that ending the lockdown too soon would undo all the effort and sacrifice, and a second peak of outbreak could lead to an “economic disaster”. This week various businesses are implementing a phased return to work, observing strict social distancing controls, including;

• Limiting the number of people in store
• Encouraging customers to shop alone
• Scheduling deliveries to avoid crowding
• Clean door handles and hand rails regularly
• Using floor markings to remind customers to maintain a safe distance (2 metres)

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