FOR maintenance man Terry Garner, the argument was clear - Eastern Europeans are stealing our jobs.
A victim of the recession, Terry went from earning ?85,000 a year to the dole queue last April when he was made redundant.
He saw the increasing number of migrant workers in the UK as a slap in the face to people like him who were struggling to find a job.
Terry, 45, who previously earned ?500-?800 a day doing repairs for Thames Water, says: "Basically, I thought the immigrants were taking our jobs.
"You feel like a foreigner round here now because it's mostly immigrant people.
"There's a lot of resentment between the British and the immigrants."
But a new BBC1 experiment, where Terry replaced a migrant worker at a potato packing factory, helped soften his views.
The documentary by Leopard Films - The Day The Immigrants Left, on BBC1 on tonight at 9pm - sees 11 unemployed Brits in Wisbech, Cambs., try their hand at packing potatoes, picking asparagus, grafting on a building site or cooking in an Indian restaurant.
Since the European Union expanded in 2004, around 9,000 immigrants have arrived in the market town of Wisbech, mainly from Eastern and Central Europe.
Meanwhile, there are 2,000 people claiming Jobseekers' Allowance - and many point the finger at the migrants for their situation.
Terry, who was relying on his wife Tracey's part-time wage at a nursery while unemployed, says the experience was an eye-opener.
He says: "It was really hot in the factory and it was hard work stacking boxes.
"I think I used muscles I haven't used before.
"It was also really boring work, especially on the potato grader. You're just watching potatoes go round and round. You feel like you're going to nod off."
During his 12 hour shifts, earning just over ?6 an hour, Terry tried to understand more about the immigrant workers.
He says: "I was quite surprised that about three quarters of the workforce were Eastern European. I had thought it would only be a handful.
"They told me they were only here because they can't earn that sort of money at home. One girl sends half her wages back to her mum and dad every month."
"I do feel sorry for them and you've got to admire people who leave their families and send half their wages back.
"But on the other hand, if we went over there and took their jobs, they wouldn't like it either.
"Now I think the jobs should go to Brits first, and then to migrant workers."
Terry's pal Paul also worked in the factory. He complains that he couldn't understand what his supervisor, Yuri, was saying, and decided to rename him Bill.
And while some fared well in their new jobs, others only reinforced a negative stereotype about the unemployed.
Two people failed to turn up to their second day at the Indian restaurant, while the one remaining lad didn't even know how to tie his tie.
Asparagus farmer Victor Aveling, who hires three workers in the experiment, argues that Brits are simply turning their noses up at the sort of manual labour filled by Eastern European workers.
He employs around 25 people between April and June to reap his crop, most of whom come from Eastern Europe through the Student Agricultural Workers Scheme.
Victor, 69, says: "It's damn hard work and the students I employ earn every penny.
"They are usually out in the field from 6am to 2pm, but it can be until 6pm to get the field cleared. They earn according to what they pick.
"The English people in the experiment were very willing but they couldn't earn half as much as the students. One of them only got ?11 one day and ?12 the next. That meant I had to subsidise his wage to bring him up to minimum wage.
"At one time in the UK, we had a pool of people who would do that sort of outside work. Now those people are in regular jobs.
"Hard seasonal work usually comes from a country with a lower standard of living. If you go to Spain, it's the Moroccans doing this work, if you go to Germany, it's Eastern Europeans, and in America, it's Mexicans.
"I do employ English people in the packing shed, but they don't tend to come for jobs in the fields. The other thing is, once you come off benefits to do a temporary job, it's quite difficult to get back onto benefits."
Judging by the 26-year-old who failed to turn up on the first day at the factory, and sent a text at midnight to excuse himself, it's easy to see why employers might prefer foreigners.
Terry agrees: "Youngsters now don't want those sort of jobs, they just want to sit about and play their PlayStation and collect their Jobseekers' Allowance."
Terry has now got a full time job in repairs and construction.
A victim of the recession, Terry went from earning ?85,000 a year to the dole queue last April when he was made redundant.
He saw the increasing number of migrant workers in the UK as a slap in the face to people like him who were struggling to find a job.
Terry, 45, who previously earned ?500-?800 a day doing repairs for Thames Water, says: "Basically, I thought the immigrants were taking our jobs.
"You feel like a foreigner round here now because it's mostly immigrant people.
"There's a lot of resentment between the British and the immigrants."
But a new BBC1 experiment, where Terry replaced a migrant worker at a potato packing factory, helped soften his views.
The documentary by Leopard Films - The Day The Immigrants Left, on BBC1 on tonight at 9pm - sees 11 unemployed Brits in Wisbech, Cambs., try their hand at packing potatoes, picking asparagus, grafting on a building site or cooking in an Indian restaurant.
Since the European Union expanded in 2004, around 9,000 immigrants have arrived in the market town of Wisbech, mainly from Eastern and Central Europe.
Meanwhile, there are 2,000 people claiming Jobseekers' Allowance - and many point the finger at the migrants for their situation.
Terry, who was relying on his wife Tracey's part-time wage at a nursery while unemployed, says the experience was an eye-opener.
He says: "It was really hot in the factory and it was hard work stacking boxes.
"I think I used muscles I haven't used before.
"It was also really boring work, especially on the potato grader. You're just watching potatoes go round and round. You feel like you're going to nod off."
During his 12 hour shifts, earning just over ?6 an hour, Terry tried to understand more about the immigrant workers.
He says: "I was quite surprised that about three quarters of the workforce were Eastern European. I had thought it would only be a handful.
"They told me they were only here because they can't earn that sort of money at home. One girl sends half her wages back to her mum and dad every month."
"I do feel sorry for them and you've got to admire people who leave their families and send half their wages back.
"But on the other hand, if we went over there and took their jobs, they wouldn't like it either.
"Now I think the jobs should go to Brits first, and then to migrant workers."
Terry's pal Paul also worked in the factory. He complains that he couldn't understand what his supervisor, Yuri, was saying, and decided to rename him Bill.
And while some fared well in their new jobs, others only reinforced a negative stereotype about the unemployed.
Two people failed to turn up to their second day at the Indian restaurant, while the one remaining lad didn't even know how to tie his tie.
Asparagus farmer Victor Aveling, who hires three workers in the experiment, argues that Brits are simply turning their noses up at the sort of manual labour filled by Eastern European workers.
He employs around 25 people between April and June to reap his crop, most of whom come from Eastern Europe through the Student Agricultural Workers Scheme.
Victor, 69, says: "It's damn hard work and the students I employ earn every penny.
"They are usually out in the field from 6am to 2pm, but it can be until 6pm to get the field cleared. They earn according to what they pick.
"The English people in the experiment were very willing but they couldn't earn half as much as the students. One of them only got ?11 one day and ?12 the next. That meant I had to subsidise his wage to bring him up to minimum wage.
"At one time in the UK, we had a pool of people who would do that sort of outside work. Now those people are in regular jobs.
"Hard seasonal work usually comes from a country with a lower standard of living. If you go to Spain, it's the Moroccans doing this work, if you go to Germany, it's Eastern Europeans, and in America, it's Mexicans.
"I do employ English people in the packing shed, but they don't tend to come for jobs in the fields. The other thing is, once you come off benefits to do a temporary job, it's quite difficult to get back onto benefits."
Judging by the 26-year-old who failed to turn up on the first day at the factory, and sent a text at midnight to excuse himself, it's easy to see why employers might prefer foreigners.
Terry agrees: "Youngsters now don't want those sort of jobs, they just want to sit about and play their PlayStation and collect their Jobseekers' Allowance."
Terry has now got a full time job in repairs and construction.
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