The German Federal Employment Agency and the National Employment Agency Moldova signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) in July 2021. The Memorandum enables up to 500 Moldovan citizens to begin seasonal work without additional visa processes. One of the conditions for the cooperation between Germany and Moldova regarding visa-free seasonal work of Moldovan citizens was that they had to be exclusively recruited by a National Employment Agency of Moldova and receive all relevant information prior to their departure.  For that reason, Arbeit und Leben DGB/VHS Berlin-Brandenburg joined forces with the Ministry of Labour and Social Protection of the Republic of Moldova as well as the International Organization for Migration office in Moldova, and signed a cooperation agreement to formalise the relationship in December 2021.

The organisations developed together online training programmes for recruiters on German labour and social law related to seasonal work. In Germany, they also developed information brochures on working conditions and labour rights, which were distributed to workers in Moldova before departure. The stakeholders created online messaging service  groups that allowed seasonal workers to stay connected during their stay in Germany, and giving the chance to the authorities  to answer questions on labour law, and to provide advice and support to the workers. Where necessary, the authorities also referred seasonal workers to the closest regional advisory service of the network Initiative Fair Seasonal Work. Thanks to the close cooperation it was possible to keep track of the seasonal workers’ employers and monitor working conditions and the compliance with labour rights.

Under the realm of this project, around 400 employees from Moldova were able to accept a monitored and safer seasonal employment in Germany.

All 50 recruiters of the National Employment Agency of Moldova  received an online training focusing on German labour law and the peculiarities concerning seasonal work. They shared further the high-quality information to interested Moldovan workers. The participating organisations organised more than ten online trainings for seasonal workers with about 200 participants. Through consultations via an instant messaging service, they reached workers in 50 different chat groups. The organisations developed two flyers with additional practical information which were shared with the workers before their departure.  They also provided feedback in around 40 cases about labour contracts.

Seasonal work can come with some practical challenges that make workers particularly vulnerable. Limited knowledge of foreign language, no prior work experience in the country and low level of education make the seasonal workers more susceptible to (Illegal) recruitment fees, confiscated documents, isolation, inhumane accommodation and violation of rules related to minimum wage.

This good practice can be easily implemented by other countries and in other sectors, with very little additional costs since the support structures already exist. The details of the project are available here. 

The Call for Good Practices is a recurring initiative is a recurring initiative first launched by ELA in June 2022. The purpose of the Call is to exchange, disseminate and uptake good practices and knowledge collected by Member States and other stakeholders that operate at the national, regional or local level, including social security institutions, civil society and social partner organisations. Each annual Call has a specified deadline for submission of good practices. Each year there is a different set of priorities.

The findings from the calls are anticipated to contribute to the effective application and enforcement of EU labour mobility law within the EU, by encouraging good practice exchange, and their potential further application by Member States.