Antiquated methods of work combined 
with high-tech

The Spanish coast between Almeria and Malaga is covered by
plastic tarpaulins; one of the most fertile regions in Spain is just a
gigantic greenhouse. The strawberries that can already be bought 
in February in Germany grow here - because they were cheaply
cultivated, sprayed and picked by “illegal" migrants. “
It’s incredibly monotonous work, without a break. All day long
you have to creep along on the ground, bent almost double undert
the plastic tarpaulins. It’s terribly hot in the greenhouses, up to 
45C, and you sweat like hell. Sometimes your body feels 
paralyzed because of the unbearable heat." This work is sheer 
slavery.

There is no breeze and you can hardly breathe in the heat. 
Furthermore, the air is thick with the stench of pesticides and 
fertilizers. Most people only endure it for one or two years. 
Many begin to suffer from lung diseases and if they can’t find 
anything else, at some stage they end up in hospital. Agriculture 
is a seasonal business; depending on the season there is lots of
work or none at all. In this situation, illegal migrants without 
rights of any kind are very handy Every morning they have to
look for new jobs, daily wages are about 50 to 60 DM. 
“Many of the refugees live in quite inhuman conditions. 
They live in shanty towns of scrap and plastic; inside the heat
is infernal.

Mostly there is no water or light, often there were ten or fifteen 
of us sleeping in decaying ruins that did not even have a roof" 
Strawberries in February, or dirt cheap, out-of-season 
shrubbery-tomatoes, perfect lettuces, cucumber at give-away 
prices; in short: the well-laid tables of homes all over Europe 
would be impossible without the work of some 14, 000 migrants 
in the greenhouses of Almeria. Yet workers are not as 
well-organized as their employers. Either they do not know 
their rights or they have not got the self-confidence to assert 
them, for example by means of strikes. The model of Almeria
works because the supply of day labourers is endless.

All those that come have to invest a lot to get there, and they 
have only one goal: to send money back home by any means.
“When they come here, they dream of an economic miracle 
that doesn't exist. Yet by working here they have the chance to 
send from 250 to almost 400 DM a month back home. Extended
families, including aunts, uncles, grandparents and cousins live 
on this money." Burkina Faso, Mauretania, Sierra Leone,
Senegal, Nigeria, Liberia: half Africa meets in Almeria, but 
only internally are the groups well organized.

The people of Senegal have split up the street-trading among
themselves, foremen or -women in the greenhouses are usually 
Moroccans, English-speaking Sierra Leonians concentrate on 
the tourists that bask in the sun dose to this 'shadow economy'. 
Migrant groups do not only have little contact with each other, 
however; they also live on the periphery of Spanish society. 
About 90% of illegal immigrants want to head further north: 
to France, Italy, Scandinavia and last, but not least, to Germany.
The air is always full of rumours; you constantly hear new bits 
of gossip, pick up promising tips on the latest developments... 

Cited from a broadcast on the subject of illicit work
(noborder.org)
 

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