Aspects of the agricultural policy of developed countries on the regulation of employment, income and migration in rural areas in the context of social protection of seasonal workers

Social policy is the most important component of the development system of the agroindustrial sector of any country. Seasonal employment of agricultural workers is one of the key issues of social regulation of the sector. Currently in Russia there is no definition of this category of workers at the legislative level, nor are there any measures for their social protection.

This factor is an obstacle to the effective development of the industry. In this regard, in order to substantiate the need to strengthen social support for domestic seasonal workers, the article examines international experience in this area. As an example, countries with similar economic and geographical location and with labour shortages in agriculture are selected – the European Union, Canada, the United States of America. The analysis of the practice of attracting migrant workers from abroad for seasonal work shows that such regulation of employment is associated with certain social and financial risks and, in a crisis situation, poses a threat to the country’s food security. Taking this into account, the author presents arguments in favour of attracting domestic labour resources for seasonal work in Russia. At the same time, the need to provide social guarantees, benefits and targeted support for this category of workers within the framework of the current social policy in agriculture was noted. The implementation of these measures will contribute to increasing the employment of the population in agriculture and, as a result, to the smooth and efficient functioning of the industry. 

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