ANC Eastern Cape calls for boycott of SA wines

I am in Cape Town for a wedding plus visiting all the wine farms, have died and gone to heaven.

It's a 3 day wedding last night rehearsal dinner, tonight meet the friend then the wedding Sat, plus have been to Ernie Els place and many more -D

The Big Easy in Stellies is very nice Scotia but the pictures on the wall are like a shrine to Ernie rather than a restaurant. Try the Trumpet Tree across the road, good pub and student atmosphere.

Where are you based ?

Morning Mark we are staying at B and B in Stellies, had meet the friends at protea techno park to 4.00 am so guess we now know everyone and glad to say only the wedding to go.

This place is magic! Going to Franshoek before wedding (tu)

Inside Cape’s farm of shame
12-11-18 10:00


Inside one of the containers in which Kloovenburg workers say they are forced to sleep, packed together.

Farm workers’ strike intensifies

Unrest and violence broke out on Wednesday (November 14 2012) in Robertson in the Western Cape when about 600 farm workers blocked off the main road during a strike for a wage increase.

Jacques Pauw

Workers say they have to live in rat-infested hovels

These are the living conditions for 46 women workers on a world-famous Cape wine and olive estate.

The women live packed like sardines in two metal containers and two dilapidated bungalows on the Kloovenburg Wine and Olive Estate outside Riebeek Kasteel, north of Cape Town.

They say they have no functioning ablution facilities and have to use nearby bushes as their toilet, they live in bunk beds along with their children and cook metres away from where they sleep.

And they are paid a pittance.

They described their conditions to City Press this week as a “living hell”.

The area – and the farm – was hit this week by the wave of strike action that has rolled across the Boland.

The daily wage and living conditions of farm workers are at the heart of the protest action, which has turned violent in some areas.

Multi-award-winning wine and olive farmer Pieter du Toit imports the women he works with every weekend from townships across Cape Town. They toil in the vineyards and olive orchards on his historic farm.

On Thursday, Du Toit obtained an urgent interim order preventing the women from engaging in an illegal strike.

They were ordered to board a truck and were taken to Wellington’s station, where they took the train back to Cape Town. Confused workers feared they had been fired.

“We are finished,” said one. “Du Toit threw us off. We are going home with nothing.”

The workers photographed their living conditions for City Press hours before they were trucked away.

It is unclear what the fate of the women is and whether they will return to Kloovenburg this week.

Confronted on Friday with the claims from his workers, Du Toit threatened court action to stop publication of this material.

He was offered a number of opportunities to respond and to take our reporter to the property to disprove his workers’ claims, but he didn’t.

One of the workers, Nokuthula Menzi, turned only 17 on June 10 this year. The oldest of the 46 workers is 53-year-old Thamela Ntombifikle.

On Tuesday, these women and other Kloovenburg workers joined the farm workers’ strike in the region.

The workers said Du Toit paid them R70 a day for working in his vineyards. They have no benefits.

Du Toit, however, said in court papers that he paid the women R75 a day, which is above the minimum daily wage of R69.

Du Toit referred to them in court papers as “seasonal workers” although the women claim to work week in and week out on the farm.

Through his lawyer, Du Toit described their allegations as “defamatory”, “inflammatory” and untrue.

The 300-year-old Kloovenburg estate is one of the most prized wine and olive estates in Western Cape. The 300-hectare farm produces award-winning wines that are sold at Harrods in London and its olive oil has been named among the best in the world.

Pieter du Toit is the son of legendary Springbok prop forward Piet “Spiere” du Toit while his son, Pieter-Steph, made his debut as lock for the Sharks this year.

The farm employs about 130 workers, of whom more than a hundred went on strike this week.

Other workers supported the claims of the women imported from Cape Town.

Most allege that they are also paid R70 a day (some senior workers get more) although they sometimes work 12-hour shifts. They said they also live in shoddy housing on the estate.

Papers in Du Toit’s Labour Court action brought this week confirm the women are imported from Cape Town townships, are collected on Sunday nights and returned on Friday afternoons.

The papers also confirm that they do manual labour in the vineyards.

On Tuesday, two of the women handed Du Toit a note demanding a daily wage of at least R150.

He told them their strike was illegal after which they began “marching” on the farm and intimidated other workers, he said in court papers.

Du Toit told the court he feared a “violent response” and was concerned about the safety of his family and farm.

The seasonal workers – most asked not be named in fear of retaliation– said the bungalows and containers were infested with rats, spiders and mosquitoes.





- City Press

We all agree that people must get paid a fair wage , but it must be linked to Productivety.
Unfortunately with all these strikes ( transport inc. ) we are going to see a huge increase in food prices and many more job losses.

Living condition described above are disgusting, no worker should have to live like that...(td)

@gregbucks:

'Living condition described above are disgusting, no worker should have to live like that...'

The problem is not the farmers but that there is no policing of worker conditions except when they erupt into protests / violence.

Right on our doorstep, there is a construction company on the Road to Lanseria where workers are housed in a temporary site which brags 1mx1m steel containers with barely 1m walking space between, many without any windows.

There are just 4 toilets for over 300 inhabitants and of the 2 ablution facilities, one is locked. A sign above the door states 'shower in 3 minutes'!

I brought it to the attention of our Premier 2 years ago, MEC Transport & an NGO (human rights sector!).....!!!!!!!!

That's how much they care for the workers on the lower rung!

Whom then do we blame for the labour upheavals?

Do grooms get paid R75 a day now? they never used to...

Well guys probably the wrong thread but we had a great trip and during our last visit to a top class wine estate Mrs S had had her bag taken with the HFT in it !

I feel so sorry for her as she has given so much to various projects over the years that we are both passionate about but understand we have many desperate people in our land, I just wish it had happened to me and not Mrs S

Fuck sake dave, tell sue i love her...

Sorry to hear Scotia.

Regarding Jacques Pauw's report about Kloovenburg;( Jacques, I suppose you hate the Sharks now as well as Pieter Steph plays for them) <

Did he actually see the the women packed like sardines in two metal containers and two dilapidated bungalows on the Kloovenburg Wine?
From what I read the info and photos were given to City Press by protesters!!!!

I've been on the farm quite a few times. Kloovenburg is a absolute picture in the Boland. Top wines & olive oil. A lot of overseas people visits the farm on a daily basis. Pieter & Annalene launched the beautiful restored Kloovenburg Pastorie guest house on the farm. Visitors are free to roam the farm and stunning trails. Do you think a farm as historic as Kloovenburg will allow overseas visitors to roam freely when there is such 'terrible' housing facilities for farm workers? I can tell you that the accommodation for these temporary farm workers are 100 times better to what they have in the squatter camps.

They have no work and are given the opportunity to earn R70 per day as seasonal workers. They accepted the wage/offer of R70 per day as laid down by government as being the minimum payment (R69) per day.

If he's not a member of a farmer union, there's nothing the union can do. Even if he IS a member of a farming union, like AgriSA, there's nothing official the union can do either because it has no direct mandate to deal with wages paid by members. However, if the farmer unions had been prepared to negotiate - or facilitate negotiations - on farm wages this all may have been avoided and been less damaging to workers, farmers, the economy and the international reputation of SA farms. (comment copy)

The problem is not the farmers but that there is no policing of worker conditions except when they erupt into protests / violence.(Umlilo)

Negotiate peacefully and don't take barbaric actions to burn, kill & steal.

On the plane after spending most of the morning at police station very helpful but seen some sorry sites at the court doors, it really is a shame how some people have to survive,
We certainly seen one extreme to another with living standards.