Federal Minister of the Interior Horst Seehofer and Federal Minister of Agriculture Julia Klöckner today presented a joint plan to the Federal Cabinet which would allow exceptions to the current restrictions on entry for seasonal workers. The plan is intended to strike a balance between the current increased need to protect against infection and the needs of the agricultural sector.

Growers of fruit and vegetables in particular require large numbers of agricultural workers. Many workers have already been recruited from within Germany, and labour regulations have been eased to help the situation, but growers also rely on workers from abroad. Some 20,000 seasonal workers had already come to Germany when the entry restrictions went into effect; about 100,000 agricultural workers will be needed by the end of May.

The ministers’ plan calls for limited exceptions to the entry restrictions subject to strict conditions set in consultation with the Robert Koch Institute and the German Farmers’ Union to protect the public against infection. The plan limits the number of foreign seasonal workers to the minimum necessary. Farmers also hope that Germans and others already in Germany will help with the harvest.

Federal Minister Seehofer said: "The strict regulations to protect against infections are hard on everyone, including business and agriculture. These measures are needed to break the chain of infection. At the same time, it is important to make sure that government and the economy can keep running during the corona pandemic. Today, we were able to find a way that lets us protect our people against infection while saving the harvest. The Federal Ministry of the Interior has worked closely with all those concerned to come up with rules which will now go into effect quickly."

Federal Minister Klöckner said: "We have found a pragmatic and targeted solution today that does justice to both important concerns at the same time – ensuring the necessary protection against infection and securing the harvest. This is important and good news for our farmers, because the harvest won’t wait, and planting can’t be postponed. Our farmers depend on the help of foreign seasonal workers – skilled workers in their field – to provide consumers with sufficient quality regional produce even during the corona pandemic. The Robert Koch Institute has drawn up rules for the activity and accommodation of the workers. Compliance with these rules must be locally enforced.”

The ministers agreed on the following exceptions from the current entry restrictions for seasonal workers and those helping to harvest crops:

• Up to 40,000 seasonal workers will be allowed to enter Germany each month in April and May. These workers will be selected based on information from the farmers’ organizations and in accordance with demonstrated strict hygiene standards.
• At the same time, farmers hope to recruit some 10,000 workers a month in April and May from relevant groups in Germany: unemployed workers, students, asylum applicants, workers in short-time working arrangements due to the pandemic.
• Foreign seasonal workers are to arrive and depart only by air, preventing hours-long bus journeys through Europe which would increase the risk of infection. The Federal Police will work with the farmers’ unions to determine airports for the workers’ arrival. A coordinated procedure will be used to identify each seasonal worker so that the contingents of workers and their contacts can be tracked at all times in case of infection with the coronavirus. Farmers will pick up their arriving workers at the designated airport (no individual arrivals).
• Employers will arrange for medical staff to perform standardized health checks of workers upon arrival; the results will be forwarded to the local health office.
• New arrivals will be strictly separated from other workers and are not allowed to leave the farm for the first 14 days (de facto quarantine while being able to work). No contact between teams is allowed during or outside of work: work will be carried out in teams, of 5 to 10 persons if possible, but no more than 20.
• Workers must maintain a minimum distance from each other while working; if that is not possible, they must wear protective masks or shields, gloves and overalls.
• Workers’ accommodation will be filled only to half capacity, except in the case of families. Strict rules on hygiene apply to workers’ accommodation and will be posted in the workers’ native languages.
• If there is reason to believe any worker may be infected with the coronavirus, the worker must be isolated immediately and a doctor must be contacted so that the worker can be tested for the virus. The entire team should be isolated and tested as well.