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| Fear, hunger and dirt: Lithuanian migrants on life as chicken catchers | Fear, hunger and dirt: Lithuanian migrants on life as chicken catchers |
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| Laurynas Kelpsa was just 19 when he saw an advertisement for jobs in England on the internet in 2011. Opportunities in his home town in Lithuania were limited and the advert promised good wages of £250-£350 a week with accommodation, so he called the mobile phone number given and spoke to a bus company owner called Saulius. A couple of days later he was on his way across Europe, heading for Kent, nervous but excited, unsure of the details of the work. | Laurynas Kelpsa was just 19 when he saw an advertisement for jobs in England on the internet in 2011. Opportunities in his home town in Lithuania were limited and the advert promised good wages of £250-£350 a week with accommodation, so he called the mobile phone number given and spoke to a bus company owner called Saulius. A couple of days later he was on his way across Europe, heading for Kent, nervous but excited, unsure of the details of the work. |
| Related: Lithuanian migrants trafficked to UK egg farms sue 'worst gangmaster ever' | Related: Lithuanian migrants trafficked to UK egg farms sue 'worst gangmaster ever' |
| He was dropped outside what looked like an ordinary suburban house in Old Tovil Road, Maidstone. Walking through the door, “I was shocked,” he recalled. There were several men to each room, some sleeping on mattresses on the floor in a dirty and overcrowded house. | He was dropped outside what looked like an ordinary suburban house in Old Tovil Road, Maidstone. Walking through the door, “I was shocked,” he recalled. There were several men to each room, some sleeping on mattresses on the floor in a dirty and overcrowded house. |
| A traumatic period of 12 months working for DJ Houghton Catching Services, described by the authorities as “the worst gangmaster ever”, was about to begin. | |
| Kelpsa and two of his fellow migrant workers have spoken exclusively to the Guardian about their experiences. They said they were the victims of violence, described the process of being debt-bonded on arrival, spoke of their accommodation being riddled with bedbugs and of becoming so hungry that they ate raw eggs. | Kelpsa and two of his fellow migrant workers have spoken exclusively to the Guardian about their experiences. They said they were the victims of violence, described the process of being debt-bonded on arrival, spoke of their accommodation being riddled with bedbugs and of becoming so hungry that they ate raw eggs. |
| They are among a group of six Lithuanian workers who, in a new legal landmark, are suing the company and its directors in the high court for damages with the help of the London-based solicitors Leigh Day. It is the first such case of a UK company being sued for modern slavery related offences. | They are among a group of six Lithuanian workers who, in a new legal landmark, are suing the company and its directors in the high court for damages with the help of the London-based solicitors Leigh Day. It is the first such case of a UK company being sued for modern slavery related offences. |
| The gangmaster operation was owned and run by a local couple, Darrell Houghton and Jacqueline Judge, out of their Grade II listed house in a village nearby. The Houghtons worked closely with a Lithuanian associate called Edikas Mankevicius, who found them a constant supply of migrants. | The gangmaster operation was owned and run by a local couple, Darrell Houghton and Jacqueline Judge, out of their Grade II listed house in a village nearby. The Houghtons worked closely with a Lithuanian associate called Edikas Mankevicius, who found them a constant supply of migrants. |
| We have been treated like slaves and they haven’t suffered any consequences | We have been treated like slaves and they haven’t suffered any consequences |
| The company supplied labour to hundreds of poultry farms across the UK, including many of the largest factory farms producing eggs for leading supermarkets and high street fast food chains. | The company supplied labour to hundreds of poultry farms across the UK, including many of the largest factory farms producing eggs for leading supermarkets and high street fast food chains. |
| As the size of chicken farms has increased in the last 25-30 years, the job of catching birds has become more specialised. Some of the biggest farms house more than a million birds on one site. It is a labour-intensive job – a catcher can collect around 6,000 birds an hour – and it needs to be done in the dark to keep the birds as calm as possible. The chickens are liable to flap, peck, claw, vomit and defecate. By its nature, it is dirty and dangerous work. | As the size of chicken farms has increased in the last 25-30 years, the job of catching birds has become more specialised. Some of the biggest farms house more than a million birds on one site. It is a labour-intensive job – a catcher can collect around 6,000 birds an hour – and it needs to be done in the dark to keep the birds as calm as possible. The chickens are liable to flap, peck, claw, vomit and defecate. By its nature, it is dirty and dangerous work. |
| There are also legal limits on how long birds may be kept in crates awaiting slaughter to minimise stress. So instead of employing people directly to catch flocks, nearly all farms today use agency labour and they often order workers at short notice. | There are also legal limits on how long birds may be kept in crates awaiting slaughter to minimise stress. So instead of employing people directly to catch flocks, nearly all farms today use agency labour and they often order workers at short notice. |
| DJ Houghton was one of just a handful of companies in the UK that supplied chicken catchers and its workers were in constant demand. | DJ Houghton was one of just a handful of companies in the UK that supplied chicken catchers and its workers were in constant demand. |
| Kelpsa’s first experience of the job came as soon as he arrived. A fellow migrant in the house received a text telling them to get ready and they left half an hour later. He told us he had no contract, had received no training or protective clothing, and had no idea where he was going or how long he would be away. It would be the pattern of his employment. | Kelpsa’s first experience of the job came as soon as he arrived. A fellow migrant in the house received a text telling them to get ready and they left half an hour later. He told us he had no contract, had received no training or protective clothing, and had no idea where he was going or how long he would be away. It would be the pattern of his employment. |
| “It was horrible. I was covered in shit and mud and chicken puke, [there were] chickens flying in your face and I had scratches all over my hands,” he said. | “It was horrible. I was covered in shit and mud and chicken puke, [there were] chickens flying in your face and I had scratches all over my hands,” he said. |
| Some days they would only have smaller farms to clear. They might be driven from Maidstone to Penzance for two hours work, taken back to Maidstone, and then turned back again to Penzance almost immediately for just two more hours work. They were paid piece rates for the number of chickens caught and not for any travelling time. | Some days they would only have smaller farms to clear. They might be driven from Maidstone to Penzance for two hours work, taken back to Maidstone, and then turned back again to Penzance almost immediately for just two more hours work. They were paid piece rates for the number of chickens caught and not for any travelling time. |
| Often they would be told on a Sunday to get ready and be kept on the road continuously for days. Kelpsa remembers working week after week of over 120 hours, in which they were driven from job to job around the country, with no chance to wash or eat proper meals and only able to sleep briefly in the van between farms. They were even denied toilet breaks and had to relieve themselves in the vehicle on occasion. | Often they would be told on a Sunday to get ready and be kept on the road continuously for days. Kelpsa remembers working week after week of over 120 hours, in which they were driven from job to job around the country, with no chance to wash or eat proper meals and only able to sleep briefly in the van between farms. They were even denied toilet breaks and had to relieve themselves in the vehicle on occasion. |
| “We never know how long we were away. Sometimes we were hungry. We were trying to share, or we were eating raw eggs,” he recalled. | “We never know how long we were away. Sometimes we were hungry. We were trying to share, or we were eating raw eggs,” he recalled. |
| Kelpsa was moved to another Maidstone house in Beaumont Road, but the squalor was no different. The bed bugs were so bad, one worker slept in the garden shed. | Kelpsa was moved to another Maidstone house in Beaumont Road, but the squalor was no different. The bed bugs were so bad, one worker slept in the garden shed. |
| Mindaugas Prokopas, 36, and Antanas Galdikas, 60, came from the Lithuanian port city of Klaipeda and arrived in the UK via the same route as Kelpsa. The men told us that they were debt-bonded on arrival. Workers were told that once in the UK they had to pay an illegal £350 work-finding fee, which was deducted from their wages, along with £40 or £50 rent per week for squalid bug-ridden housing and their bus fare from Lithuania, so that for the first three weeks they received no money. | Mindaugas Prokopas, 36, and Antanas Galdikas, 60, came from the Lithuanian port city of Klaipeda and arrived in the UK via the same route as Kelpsa. The men told us that they were debt-bonded on arrival. Workers were told that once in the UK they had to pay an illegal £350 work-finding fee, which was deducted from their wages, along with £40 or £50 rent per week for squalid bug-ridden housing and their bus fare from Lithuania, so that for the first three weeks they received no money. |
| Pay was often withheld, sometimes as an arbitrary punishment – for having a drink when off-duty or for leaving a dirty coffee cup by the sink, for example. Mankevicius depended on a turnover of workers so he could charge new people the £350 fee. | Pay was often withheld, sometimes as an arbitrary punishment – for having a drink when off-duty or for leaving a dirty coffee cup by the sink, for example. Mankevicius depended on a turnover of workers so he could charge new people the £350 fee. |
| All three men described suffering accidents at work and say they were denied rest or medical attention. | All three men described suffering accidents at work and say they were denied rest or medical attention. |
| Kelpsa says he fell while working on a farm and broke his ribs and that he was threatened with immediate eviction without pay by Mankevicius when he asked for time off to recover. After an argument, Kelpsa says he was given two days’ leave, but had to summon an ambulance to take him to A&E when he found he could no longer breathe. | Kelpsa says he fell while working on a farm and broke his ribs and that he was threatened with immediate eviction without pay by Mankevicius when he asked for time off to recover. After an argument, Kelpsa says he was given two days’ leave, but had to summon an ambulance to take him to A&E when he found he could no longer breathe. |
| Galdikas says he sustained an eye injury when a cage gate swung into his face, while Prokopas says he fell while catching birds in a multistorey house of cages and did permanent damage to his back. | Galdikas says he sustained an eye injury when a cage gate swung into his face, while Prokopas says he fell while catching birds in a multistorey house of cages and did permanent damage to his back. |
| The men have also described how they were controlled by intimidation, threats and actual violence. Mankevicius trained fighting dogs and the workers claim he would set them loose in the houses so that some of them were bitten and their beds were fouled. Prokopas alleges that another Lithuanian supervisor split his lip during an argument, while Kelpsa says he was hit for trying to help two other workers who had been punched to the floor. | The men have also described how they were controlled by intimidation, threats and actual violence. Mankevicius trained fighting dogs and the workers claim he would set them loose in the houses so that some of them were bitten and their beds were fouled. Prokopas alleges that another Lithuanian supervisor split his lip during an argument, while Kelpsa says he was hit for trying to help two other workers who had been punched to the floor. |
| Perhaps even greater than the physical effect of their experience is the long-term psychological impact. The men felt trapped. Unable to speak English and unaware of their rights, they did not know who to ask for help and feared eviction and unemployment if they complained. They felt every aspect of their lives was controlled. “It’s like slavery, controlling you, controlling your sleeping, controlling your hours, controlling everything you have … I lost [the ability to] trust,” Kelpsa said. | Perhaps even greater than the physical effect of their experience is the long-term psychological impact. The men felt trapped. Unable to speak English and unaware of their rights, they did not know who to ask for help and feared eviction and unemployment if they complained. They felt every aspect of their lives was controlled. “It’s like slavery, controlling you, controlling your sleeping, controlling your hours, controlling everything you have … I lost [the ability to] trust,” Kelpsa said. |
| All three men have now been officially recognised as victims of trafficking for labour exploitation. The process of rescuing the workers began when a few of them eventually went to a Citizens Advice Bureau to ask for help, which culminated in police raids a couple of months later on the Houghtons’ addresses in 2012. | All three men have now been officially recognised as victims of trafficking for labour exploitation. The process of rescuing the workers began when a few of them eventually went to a Citizens Advice Bureau to ask for help, which culminated in police raids a couple of months later on the Houghtons’ addresses in 2012. |
| Mankevicius was in Lithuania at the time and nearly three years later police still wish to interview him about the allegations. The Houghtons were arrested but not charged. They did not respond to requests for comment but have maintained in the local media that they were blameless and that the allegations are untrue. | Mankevicius was in Lithuania at the time and nearly three years later police still wish to interview him about the allegations. The Houghtons were arrested but not charged. They did not respond to requests for comment but have maintained in the local media that they were blameless and that the allegations are untrue. |
| Kelpsa now has a job in a car wash in the north of England and has an English fiancee. Prokopas is unemployed. Galdikas told us he was unable to work. | Kelpsa now has a job in a car wash in the north of England and has an English fiancee. Prokopas is unemployed. Galdikas told us he was unable to work. |
| He finds the lack of penalty hard to come to terms with. “We have been treated like slaves and they haven’t suffered any consequences. I have no family. I have lost everyone and everything. It is as though we are the criminals,” he said. | He finds the lack of penalty hard to come to terms with. “We have been treated like slaves and they haven’t suffered any consequences. I have no family. I have lost everyone and everything. It is as though we are the criminals,” he said. |