June 18, 200719 yr British job-seekers denied jobs 'because they don't speak Polish' By ANDY DOLAN - More by this author » Last updated at 18:29pm on 18th June 2007 Comments The massive influx of Eastern European workers means Polish is now crucial for jobs in agriculture British job-seekers are being refused work because they do not speak Polish, it was claimed. The massive influx of Eastern European workers means the language is now crucial for jobs in agriculture, an MP has claimed. Malcolm Moss's North East Cambridgeshire constituency has seen the arrival of a huge number of migrant workers to pick fruit and vegetables, as well as fill jobs in local packaging and food processing factories. Many of the farms and companies involved rely on local job agencies or gangmasters to supply a steady stream of low-paid staff. Yesterday Mr Moss told how a constituent had been denied work at one factory because she did not speak Polish. Mr Moss said: "A woman came to my surgery to tell me about her daughter's experience when she was looking for work. "The daughter was aged 18 or 19 and had been to the job centre, where there was little work. Instead she was told to try the local factories in person. "They, in turn told her they did not recruit directly and referred her on to a gangmaster who held the contract to supply the staff." Mr Moss added: "This particular gangmaster told the woman: "If you don't speak Polish I can't put you on the assembly line, because they all speak Polish. "They won't accept you, and you won't be able to communicate with them anyway." "This is obvious discrimination. If that is happening, it is no wonder that youth unemployment is on the rise." Mr Moss said the incident was reported to him at a constituency surgery early last year. He did not remember the woman's name or the factory involved. He first raised the incident publicly during a special debate on the effect of immigration in Cambridgeshire, held in the House of Commons last week. Mr Moss said the incident was indicative of the problems caused by large-scale immigration in his area. "It is not just Polish workers", he said, "there are also Estonians, Lithuanians and other nationalities working in these factories too. "Local people cannot get jobs in the factories in which historically they worked. I have tried each and every way to find a solution to the problem." He added: "Five or six years ago such low-paid jobs were done by local people; now, they are done by migrant workers. "Where have the indigenous population gone? "These are people who do not have cars and cannot travel to find a job, so where are they in the local community? "Let us not kid ourselves - there is displacement. It is no good saying we hear this argument all the time - (that) they're coming in to do the jobs our people don't want to do. "In my constituency, they are doing jobs that my people did a few years ago." Mr Moss also called for action to tackle gang-masters who exploit eastern European workers by bringing them to the county and paying poverty wages, as well as making them live in crowded houses and charging exorbitant rents. "These people operate by being paid a fixed amount - usually at minimum wage level - to cover the cost of each person they supply", he said. "Some of them pass this money to the workers on, but many of them are unscrupulous and must be stamped out". Figures released last month revealed a massive influx of immigrants to Britain from the former Eastern Bloc since 11 countries including Poland, Estonia and Lithuania joined the EU in 2004. Around 640,000 Eastern Europeans, most of them Poles, have registered to work in Britain. But the figure could be as high as 800,000, experts believe, because in most cases the Government keeps no record of the self-employed, spouses or children. Peterborough MP Stewart Jackson told the special Commons debate that more than 68,000 migrants from those accession countries had moved to the East of England. A report from the Joseph Rowntree foundation last month revealed that around 160,000 migrants planned to settle in Britain for good. Most told researchers they had originally intended to go home but have changed their minds after living here. Home Office Minister Joan Ryan said a special task force had been set up to address the issues raised in the debate.
June 18, 200719 yr not really i speak ukrainian so that means i can speak polish and russian because the languages are all similar it's not as amazing as it might seem
June 18, 200719 yr Author not really i speak ukrainian so that means i can speak polish and russian because the languages are all similar it's not as amazing as it might seem :dozey:
June 18, 200719 yr great article lets throw them out problem solved :dozey: you right winged extremist that's such an ignorant thing to say and i am NOT impressed my grandma has just gone into a care home and she has problems speaking english luckily there are 2 polish workers who she can talk to and it's a great relief to her otherwise she'd spend her days in silence apart from when we come to visit the solution is not to ''kick them all out'' i'm really disgusted someone has said that britain is an island of immigration and it always has been it's time the people of britain learnt languages it annoys me, the amount of british citizen who only know their own language fluently
June 18, 200719 yr Author you right winged extremist that's such an ignorant thing to say and i am NOT impressed my grandma has just gone into a care home and she has problems speaking english luckily there are 2 polish workers who she can talk to and it's a great relief to her otherwise she'd spend her days in silence apart from when we come to visit the solution is not to ''kick them all out'' i'm really disgusted someone has said that britain is an island of immigration and it always has been it's time the people of britain learnt languages it annoys me, the amount of british citizen who only know their own language fluently :stunned:
June 18, 200719 yr haha how could you not have realised that i disagree with this article thanks for calling me a right winged extremist, i really appreciate it
June 18, 200719 yr :lol: maybe i should read the article i have no idea what you mean if it's not what i think you mean
June 18, 200719 yr Author :lol: maybe i should read the article i have no idea what you mean if it's not what i think you mean :confused:
June 18, 200719 yr :lol: maybe i should read the article i have no idea what you mean if it's not what i think you mean i thought everyone would realise i wasnt being serious read the article but you've probably heard those things a million times before
June 18, 200719 yr Author i thought everyone would realise i wasnt being serious read the article but you've probably heard those things a million times before Of course, the ones who should really be thrown out are all those damn Swiss!!:P
June 18, 200719 yr Of course, the ones who should really be thrown out are all those damn Swiss!!:P i'm waiting for an article that says you gotta speak german to get a job in britain!
June 18, 200719 yr Author i'm waiting for an article that says you gotta speak german to get a job in britain! Or maybe Swiss German?:P
June 18, 200719 yr No, it was a school trip. Before the days when it entered the EU, so 3 hour border-crossings.
June 19, 200719 yr Author No, it was a school trip. Before the days when it entered the EU, so 3 hour border-crossings. Sounds more like a boreder crossing!!:stunned:
June 19, 200719 yr Author I'm fed up with this country since the Kaczyński brothers are in power... :dozey: Sounds like some comedy double act!!:rolleyes:
June 20, 200719 yr Sounds more like a boreder crossing!!:stunned: It was, 3 and a bit hours sitting on the coach, not allowed to get off. I used the time up by sleeping going from Poland to Czech republic
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