Workers’ lifestyle diseases challenge for farmers
FARMWORKERS’ battles with lifestyle diseases‚ HIV/Aids and substance abuse are likely to threaten South Africa’s food security.
A sickly workforce‚ according to Agility Corporate – which provides healthcare risk management solutions to medical schemes – is likely to result in loss of productivity.
This will add to the many challenges farmers have to deal with‚ including drought‚ farm attacks and issues of land ownership.
“Our research in the agricultural sector shows that lifestyle diseases top the list of most-claimed-for conditions‚” Agility Corporate executive Lizette Bester said.
Diabetes and cardiovascular diseases were common among farmworkers.
“When it comes to risks impacting the workforce‚ there are a myriad of factors influencing agricultural operations’ efficiency in their contribution to food production,” Bester said.
“In order to make tangible‚ lasting progress‚ worker productivity needs to be assessed and addressed holistically.”
Bester said the impact of stress‚ psychological trauma‚ substance abuse‚ financial worries and workers living with chronic illnesses was likely to worsen farmworkers’ state of health.
AgriSA‚ a federation of agricultural organisations‚ said HIV/Aids and related illnesses as well as alcohol abuse among workers remained a big challenge for farmers.
“Criminals who attack farmworkers in the hope of gaining access to farms and stealing livestock or other valuable items, or rob them of their hard-earned wages, also inflict serious bodily harm‚” AgriSA’s deputy executive officer, Christo van der Rheede, said.
“Workers who are absent from work due to illnesses not only bring about lower productivity‚ but there is also a negative impact on job prospects and career growth. Of particular concern is substance abuse, which has negative consequences for productivity‚ economic growth‚ health‚ stable family life and rural safety,” Van der Rheede said.
“Many drug smugglers have now moved into rural areas and sell drugs to young farmworkers and those dependent on government grants.”
He said many commercial farmers had introduced a range of interventions to curb ill-health.
“Huge investments are made on many commercial farms in terms of providing quality housing‚ healthcare‚ preschooling and [information and training].”