Agricultural workers




The Agricultural Wages Board for England and Wales (AWB), which brought together employers and unions to set wages and conditions for around 150,000 agricultural workers, was abolished on 1 October 2013. The abolition was hard-fought by the trade union movement, including an ultimately unsuccessful challenge by general union Unite. The union took the claim all the way to the European Court of Human Rights, based on the human right to bargain collectively (Unite v The UK, application 65397/13, 3 May 2016). For more information see Chapter 5.


Following the abolition of the AWB, agricultural workers in England are now covered by the NMW regulations. This change represents a significant decline in basic wage rates for affected workers. 



The Scottish Agricultural Wages Board (SAWB) continues to function, meeting twice a year to decide the minimum wages of Scottish agricultural workers and setting conditions for holiday and sick pay. In December 2015, the Scottish government confirmed that the board would be retained, after a review showed that abolishing it would drive down wages. The Northern Ireland board continues unaffected. 




In Wales, wages are set following consultation by the Agricultural Advisory Panel for Wales, a statutory body created under the Agricultural Sector (Wales) Act 2014 which meets three times a year to set minimum pay rates and other terms and conditions in Wales. The panel includes trade union representatives. The Westminster government challenged the Welsh Assembly’s decision to set up its own agricultural wages board, pursuing the challenge as far as the Supreme Court, where it was defeated (Agricultural Sector (Wales) Bill [2014] UKSC 43).