Banana workers in the Dominican Republic are heavily dependent on Haitian labor, which accounts for between 65% and 90% of agricultural workers in the sector, depending on the source. This labor force, often precarious and poorly paid, is essential for harvesting bananas and plantains, particularly in the border provinces where agricultural activity is intense.
Background on Haitian labor needs
More than 30,000 people work directly in the Dominican banana industry, the majority of them of Haitian origin1.
The Haitian presence is explained by geographical proximity, persistent poverty in Haiti, and the absence of other economic alternatives for these workers.
The majority of Haitian workers are employed informally, without contracts or social protection, and many are undeclared.
Impact of deportations and regularization
Deportations carried out by the Dominican government directly affect the availability of this workforce. When deportations intensify, plantations find themselves short of hands for the harvest, threatening production and exports.
Banana growers regularly claim to need at least 15,000 Haitian workers to ensure the harvest, a figure that underlines the sector’s structural dependence on this migrant workforce.
Since 2014, a regularization plan has enabled around 240,000 Haitians to obtain legal status, but the procedures remain long, costly and a large proportion of workers remain in an irregular situation.
Working conditions and social issues
Wages are very low, often below the legal minimum, and living conditions are difficult, particularly in the “bateyes”, precarious villages built to house agricultural workers.
Seasonal workers, who travel back and forth between Haiti and the Dominican Republic, are particularly vulnerable, with unstable incomes and few prospects of improvement.
Despite the efforts of some cooperatives to regularize their employees, precariousness remains the norm on the majority of farms.
In short, the Dominican banana industry cannot function without Haitian labor, and mass deportations are jeopardizing the harvest and the sector’s stability. Calls from workers and producers to maintain or increase the presence of Haitian workers underline the urgent need for a lasting solution to regularize and improve working conditions in this key sector of the local economy.