An online recruitment platform has restructured its business model to help target the demand for seasonal workers in picking jobs across UK farms.
With an anticipated shortfall of about 80,000 migrant workers as a result of travel restrictions due to听Covid-19, UniWrk has been helping to connect agricultural businesses with the workers they need to harvest crops during peak season.
Predominantly aimed at students, the platform had previously provided part-time shift work in the hospitality and events sector but adapted its framework after the industry was hit by the pandemic.
Pointing to the high uptake of online applicants for picking vacancies, Tom Bilborough, founder of UniWrk, said: "When the media made it clear there was a real shortage for jobs in the horticultural sector a few weeks back, we started speaking to farmers and taking bookings on farms for picking work.
"All the farms had to do was post a position on our site and within 24 hours we had hundreds of applications - we saw our user base grow by 350 per cent."
Despite applications from across the board, including students, furloughed workers and the self employed, Mr Bilborough highlighted this would be their first time picking.
"It was important to get the message out that this is a different type of work, which requires determination, as you will be working sometimes 12 hours a day, 7 days a week. And this is something we kept in mind when choosing successful applicants, which would then be passed on to farms," he said.
This echoed industry concerns over uptake after the Alliance of Ethical Labour Providers, Concordia and Hops, claimed out of 50,000 applications, only 112 people had taken up roles on farm.
Excitement
But Zoe Allport, a 20-year-old student at Manchester University and first time picker from London, utilised the platform and told of her 'excitement' to help the national food production effort as she prepares to start seasonal work on Spilman's farm, North Yorkshire, in July.听
She said: "I was interested in finding a job over the summer that helped the community in such a difficult time. I would usually get a part time job in hospitality, however, the current climate will not allow this.
"But I love the outdoors and I am very excited to take on a new challenge."
Critical听
Farmer Tom Spilman of Spilman's farm which, alongside a beef and sheep enterprise, grows soft fruit and asparagus, said tackling the recruitment crisis was critical.
He said: "We either get the English workers or we do not pick the crops. They would go to waste and there would be empty shelves in shops."
Mr Bilborough added UniWrk would continue with efforts to help 鈥榝eed the nation', saying: "One thing the UK is really good at doing is coming together in desperate times, helping the NHS and to get food on the supermarket shelves."
