ELISA ODDONE
Photojournalist
“This requires an immediate intervention from the authorities to put these people in a condition of safety and dignity. These workers are key to fill supermarkets’ shelves with fresh fruits and vegetables. We cannot deny them protection amid the emergency.”
Turin, Italy - As Italy's north struggles to contain the spread of coronavirus, fears are growing in the south for thousands of migrant workers, mostly from Africa, who pick fruit and vegetables for a pittance and live in overcrowded tent camps and shantytowns.
The health infrastructure in the south is not as advanced as that in the north, and a vast infection outbreak could be devastating.
"Coronavirus cases have steadily increased also in other regions in Italy over the past weeks," said public health expert Nino Cartabellotta. "There is a delay of around five days compared with the north, although we are witnessing the same growth curve across the country."
In the north, foreign farm workers hailing from Eastern Europe have returned to their home countries, choosing to risk poverty over disease, and there are no new arrivals.
But fruit pickers in the south are stuck in camps, often lacking water and electricity and facing exploitation.
Italy is not alone.
Migrant workers are exploited across the European Union, forced to work endless hours and denied minimum wage or safety equipment, research by the EU Agency for Fundamental Rights shows.
Now, the coronavirus pandemic endangers them further.
