ORANGE COUNTY, Fla. — Sixty-three migrant workers arrived in back home in Mexico after their contract was terminated with their employer.

The fieldworkers were hired to pick berries for four months, but their contracts were terminated after two weeks. All of them were in the U.S. on a temporary H-2A visa.

Antonio Tovar with the Farmworkers Association of Florida said growers normally terminate employees during the peak fruit season because of economic hardships caused by disasters, such as the coronavirus pandemic.

“This is the first case that we have related to the illness," Tovar said.

The U.S. Department of State deemed agricultural workers as "essential." But the 63 employees said they didn't feel that way.

“The contract didn’t work like we wanted too, and we’re just disappointed," Antonio, one of the workers, said. ​

The U.S. Department of State made adjustments to help H-2A workers and employers during the pandemic including expanding "the categories of H-2 visa applicants whose applications can be adjudicated without an in-person interview."

The workers said they tried to move to another job for an out-of-state grower in Georgia but were unable to come to a deal with their contractor.

The contractor did not want to comment on the situation.

The workers said per their contract they will be paid three-quarters of the agreed payment.