In France, workers in the French champagne industry are underpaid and denied housing.
Some of them are forced to sleep on the streets and steal food to satisfy their hunger.
According to The Guardian , workers from West Africa and Eastern Europe in the city of Epernay are sleeping on the streets in tents because the vineyards do not provide accommodation.
In 2024, 300 million bottles of champagne from the vineyards of northern France were shipped worldwide, worth almost €6 billion.
Meanwhile, the champagne industry has been hit by a series of scandals after four workers died from sunstroke during the harvest.
In addition, four people and the owner of the vineyard have been charged with human trafficking.
Epernay is home to the world's largest champagne brands and tens of millions of bottles of champagne stored underground.
At the same time, dozens of workers responsible for harvesting grapes do not know where they will sleep tonight.
Workers complain they are being forced to work faster and paid less than the minimum hourly wage in France.
Unions have criticised vineyards for hiring cheap labour and exploiting African migrant labour.
They claim that grapes sell for 10-12 euros per kilo, but workers are treated like machines, not people.
