Foggia

FOGGIA

“In Capitanata, around 35% of Puglia’s migrant agricultural workers are concentrated, mainly employed in tomato harvesting. This area produces 30% of Italy’s industrial tomatoes, and during the summer thousands of migrant farmworkers labor in the fields between San Severo and Apricena. Since the 1980s, local agricultural labor has gradually been replaced by foreign workers, initially from Eastern Europe and today primarily from Sub Saharan Africa. Many workers live in extremely precarious conditions in so called “ghettos”, informal settlements lacking minimum living standards. In 2022, at least 35 settlements were recorded in Puglia, 24 of them in the province of Foggia, inhabited mainly by African men. During the peak summer season, more than 12,000 people live in these ghettos, with 86% concentrated in Capitanata itself. Housing insecurity is accompanied by severe labor exploitation, often worsened by the lack of regular documents. Migrants are recruited by gangmasters and often work illegally or semi legally, without adequate protections, safety measures, or regular contracts. Despite working days of up to 12 hours, actual pay is very low and further reduced by the costs of transportation, housing, and equipment. The gangmaster system is only one part of a broader structure of exploitation linked to bureaucracy, difficulties in accessing housing, the management of reception systems, and the economic pressures imposed by large scale retail distribution.“