Women farm workers protest at Stellenbosch festival

A GROUP of farm workers used this weekend’s iconic Stellenbosch Wine Festival to draw attention to what they said were poor working conditions on farms.

Over 100 women from across the province gathered in the town and went on protest marches to highlight their plight.

“Last year we did some research regarding the labour conditions specifically on farms and found out about the festival and decided to share the information we’ve gathered with wine consumers,” Women on Farms Project director Colette Solomon said.

During the research conducted in the Western and Northern Cape about 300 women farm workers were interviewed, she said, and the majority were fieldworkers.

Solomon said the research showed 72% of seasonal women workers did not have access to a toilet in the vineyard, 73% of women were not provided with protective clothing – despite being exposed to pesticides.

It also uncovered that 75% of women were not being paid the legal minimum wage, she said.

She said the biggest concern for women farm workers was not having adequate ablution facilities. “Their dignity is affected because they are forced to squat in the vineyards and do their business,” she said.

The Stellenbosch Wine Festival is one of the biggest locally.

Festival manager Elmarie Rabe said: “We are committed to the well-being and upliftment of farm workers.” Rabe said the festival organisers regarded the issue seriously and would investigate.

DISCONTENTED: Hundreds of women farm workers from various parts of the Western Cape came together to protest at the prestigious Stellenbosch Wine Festival to raise awareness about their inhumane working conditions.