Casablanca – 15 Moroccan seasonal workers have asked a French court to convict their recruiters and employers over alleged exploitation in orchards in the Gard region, where they say they paid €12,000 each to secure seasonal work.
The workers appeared before the Nîmes criminal court yesterday as civil parties in a case involving four defendants. Prosecutor Nathalie Welte said the evidence showed human trafficking against three of the defendants and requested suspended prison sentences ranging from one to 18 months, along with fines of €50,000 to €150,000.
One of the workers, A.B., told the court that he paid €12,000 in cash to H.B., a Moroccan seasonal worker who allegedly recruited workers in Morocco.
A.B. said H.B. promised monthly earnings of €2,500, but the workers did not receive the salaries they expected.
A labor inspector who raised the initial alert told investigators that contracts for Moroccan workers can sell for between €8,000 and €15,000. The workers said they later worked around 60 hours a week, with some weeks reportedly reaching 88 hours, while overtime went unpaid.
The workers also described working days of around 13 hours without adequate access to water, toilets or changing rooms. One worker filmed colleagues working at night during a storm without suitable equipment.
According to investigators, H.B. and his wife, N.K., recruited the workers through a system that had operated for at least three years.
N.K., who speaks both languages, reportedly handled the administrative side. After paying the alleged €12,000 entry fee, workers said the couple kept their identity documents and charged them €150 a month for accommodation.
The accommodation reportedly lacked enough beds, furniture and hot water, forcing some workers to sleep on the floor.
H.B. rejected the accusations in court and described himself as a simple worker who could barely read or write French.
G.M., an agricultural operator who employed some of the workers, also denied knowing about the payments or their living conditions.
The prosecutor also requested a €1,000 fine against a second Gard agricultural operator linked to the recruiters.
The court will deliver its decision at a later date.
