The Struggling Nicaraguans Who Make Up Over 60% Of Costa Rica's Coffee Harvest Workforce – CoffeeTalk

John Jairo Guerrero Brenes, a 26-year-old Nicaraguan who arrived in Costa Rica with his family to harvest coffee, is one of the many migrants who support the coffee harvest in the country. He is part of the “regulars” who work on the farm, which covers an area of approximately 450 hectares and generates more than $350 million in foreign exchange for the country between 2022 and 2023.

Jairo is one of the many Nicaraguan migrants who support the coffee harvest in Costa Rica, representing over 60% of the workforce in the sector. The coffee industry in Costa Rica has demanding work, often done under the sun or in the rain, with generally precarious wages and living conditions that Costa Ricans do not want to endure. Their rights are often violated, and returning to a country that is falling apart is not an option either.

La Hilda Farm, owned by the Vargas family and part of the Santa Eduviges Group, covers an area of approximately 450 hectares and is one of the largest coffee farms in Costa Rica. Agricultural engineer Daniel Ramírez Valerio, agricultural director of La Hilda, prides himself on having a good relationship with the workers and maintaining open communication. There are about 33 permanent workers, and about 22 are Nicaraguan migrants. At harvest time, there are around 300 to 350 people, with 95% being migrants.

Most coffee workers in La Hilda and the rest of the country are migrants, although there are also indigenous populations from the southern border on other farms. Ingrid Brenes, 24, Jairo’s sister, and Marisela del Carmen González, 28, are among these migrants. They both wake up around 4 a.m. to go to work. During harvest time, Brenes is in charge of the nursery, while the rest of the time, like now, she works as a mower.

Del Carmen Gonzalez, who comes from Muelle de los Bueyes, on Nicaragua’s southern Caribbean coast, agrees that it is not an easy job. She was given the opportunity to be a cutter this year, which means she is one of the people in charge of telling the pickers which rows they have to work on. On harvest days, they leave late, at 6 p.m. However, both Brenes and del Carmen Gonzalez agree that returning to Nicaragua is not an option.

There are farms that take advantage of people, and Jairo Brenes went back about two years ago to show his children. He says that it is a privilege to work here, as they receive a fixed salary during harvest season.

La Hilda, a coffee farm in Costa Rica, offers exceptional wages, working conditions, and living conditions compared to other farms in the country. The minimum wage for an unskilled worker in Costa Rica is 367,000 colones ($734), and the coffee basket must be paid at 1,165 colones ($2.3). This year, La Hilda paid 1,500 colones per basket, almost a dollar more than the minimum price set.

Migrant workers who are permanent employees live in assigned spaces on the farm, with basic working conditions offered such as social security payments, accident insurance through the National Insurance Institute (INS), and a daycare center for children. Insurance has been very important, as it allows workers to receive treatment at the Costa Rican Social Security Fund.

However, most migrants working in Costa Rica’s coffee industry face extreme poverty, as reported by Coffee Watch, a non-profit organization that acts as a watchdog for the global coffee sector. An estimated 25% of coffee farmers live below the extreme poverty line in Costa Rica, where most earn much less than the Global Living Wage Coalition (GLWC) recommends for a rural worker.

There is currently no trade union organization in the coffee sector to defend the rights and interests of its workers, including migrants. Migrants cannot hold leadership positions in trade union organizations, as Article 60 of the Constitution prohibits foreigners from exercising leadership or authority in trade unions. Furthermore, Article 345 of the Labor Code states that members must be Costa Rican or foreigners married to a Costa Rican and have at least five years of permanent residence in the country.

Undocumented migrants do not have conditions for undocumented migrants to claim their rights, as they cannot organize in a sector like coffee where most workers are migrants. However, Jouseth Chaves Rodríguez, general secretary of the Private Sector Workers’ Union (SITRASEP), points out that migrants can join existing unions, although in practice few do so due to fear of reprisals based on their legal status.

Regarding working conditions in the sector, there is no systematic inspection by the Costa Rican government on coffee farms, making it difficult to file complaints. The MTSS has not responded to a request for information related to complaints from coffee workers. Additionally, coffee farms generally do not have an Occupational Health and Safety Council, which leaves workers more vulnerable.

While La Hilda offers exceptional wages, working conditions, and living conditions, many migrants in Costa Rica face extreme poverty and lack access to fair treatment.

Child labor remains a significant issue in Costa Rica, particularly in the agricultural sector, including coffee farming. The law prohibits employing children under 12 for any work, but minors aged 15 and over are allowed to do light and occasional work as long as it doesn’t interfere with their education, has authorization from the Council for Children and Adolescents and their employer, and the work is not dangerous or unhealthy.

According to the 2016 National Household Survey (ENAHO), 30,369 children and adolescents aged between 5 and 17 were engaged in economic production, a third of them in agriculture, livestock farming, forestry, and fishing. In 2011, at least 1,422 children aged 5 and 14 were working in the coffee sector at that time.

Agricultural engineer Daniel Ramírez Valerio, agricultural director of La Hilda, claims that there is no child labor at La Hilda, as they have several certifications that prohibit it. However, he acknowledges that this scenario may vary across the country, as some farms may have staff management differences that may lead to child labor.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s report “Child Labor in Costa Rica” published in 2023 highlights the vulnerability of children living in coastal provinces such as Limón, Puntarenas, and Guanacaste to working in agriculture, including coffee production. The most vulnerable groups are Afro-descendants, migrants, and indigenous people.

The ENAHO emphasizes that these jobs negatively impact children’s education, reducing school attendance and increasing the gap between them and unemployed children. A 2023 Costa Rican directive requires the agricultural sector to comply with the Inter-institutional Coordination Protocol for the Care of Working Minors to prevent child labor and ensure compliance with regulations related to adolescent workers.

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