New moves to revamp farm labour

IN A move to revamp farm labour laws, Agri Wes-Cape has announced that farmers can no longer continue to feed and accommodate and provide social services to workers. FTW understands there are some 200 000 farm workers and 7 185 farms of all types in the Western Cape alone, a province bedevilled by social problems, not the least of which is alcohol abuse. While the Cape provincial government has committed to improving the lot of farm workers, agriculture minister Cobus Dowry, speaking at a recent meeting in Worcester, expressed concern at the ‘moral decay’ of workers on farms. Agri-Wes Cape said in a submission to a joint oversight committee comprising members of the provincial legislature and the National Council of Provinces, that farming operations, like any business, required specialised workers, administration staff, engineers, fruit pickers and the like and that such posts required specialised skills. It makes clear the days of growers randomly employing untrained labour and providing add-ons, such as housing and training, are over. The organisation says while workers are employed they should be provided with decent housing and treated with respect but that it is not the responsibility of the farmer to provide them with permanent tenure security.