Seasonal workers in Belgium will now be entitled to receive the minimum wage starting from July. Additionally, their allowable working days will increase from 65 to 100 days per year.

Labour Minister Pierre-Yves Dermagne (PS, French-speaking Socialists) emphasized the importance of ending the discriminatory practice of paying seasonal workers, predominantly in agriculture, less than the interprofessional minimum wage. The approved social agreement, which the government is funding, addresses this issue.

The Belgian government will provide fiscal and parafiscal support to partially compensate for the wage increase. The measure will undergo evaluation during the subsequent budget review.

In addition to the minimum wage provision, the number of permissible working days for seasonal workers will be permanently extended from 65 to 100. This adjustment was initially implemented during the Covid-19 crisis and will now be a permanent feature. Photo by Mark Smith, Wikimedia commons.