Practical and Financial Aspects of Concluding Harvest Help Contracts by Farmers

The purpose of this paper is to identify the practical and financial issues that may arise from the application of the recently introduced provisions regulating a new type of contract - the harvest help contract. It can be concluded between a farmer and a farm worker providing help in agricultural activities during seasonal work. Attention was paid to new statutory definitions, with particular reference to the concept of a farm worker. The basic elements of the contract, the rights and obligations of the parties, including the financial duties imposed on the farmer regarding the performance of the contract and the obligation to insure the worker at KRUS were presented. The analyzed regulation raises many doubts, especially when determining the worker’s status. A farm worker may be a person providing help only to statutory limited specific harvest crops. Insurance protection is available only to some persons performing some specific activities and is limited to accident and health insurance only. It generates high costs for farmers who conclude short-term contracts with workers. The contract does not give the assistants any guarantee of minimum wage protection. This could lead to the risk of economic exploitation of assistants in the future.