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Ripe with Abuse
Human Rights Conditions in South Africa’s Fruit and Wine Industries
Summary
Key
Recommendations
Methodology
I.
Understanding South African and Western Cape Agriculture
1.1. Farming
in South Africa and the Western Cape
1.2. Farmworkers
Box 1:
Increased Vulnerability of Female Farmworkers and Farm Dwellers
1.3. Farm
Dwellers and On-Farm Housing
1.4.
Farmers, Management, and the Supply Chain
1.5.
Previous Scrutiny of Farm Work in South Africa
II. Governmental
and Business Responsibilities
2.1. The
South African Government’s Constitutional and International Legal
Obligations and Relevant Domestic Law that Applies to Employers and Farm Owners
Evictions
and Housing Conditions
Occupational
Health and Safety
Freedom of
Association
Conditions
of Employment
Racial and
Gender Discrimination
2.2.
International Human Rights Responsibilities of Private Actors
III. Poor
Housing and Evictions from Farms
3.1. Poor
Housing Conditions on Farms
3.2.
Evictions
3.3. Related
Impact on Right to Family Life
IV.
Occupational and Other Health and Safety Issues
4.1.
Pesticide Exposure
Failure to
Provide Proper Safety Equipment to Workers Working Directly With Pesticides
Failure to
Mitigate Pesticide Exposure for People Not Working Directly With Pesticides
4.2.
Sanitation and Access to Drinking Water While Working
Toilets and
Hand Washing Facilities
Drinking
Water
4.3.
Injuries While Working
4.4. Legacy
of the Dop System..
Box 2:
Remnants of the Dop System..
4.5. Failure
to Provide Sick Leave or Maternity Leave
Box 3: Challenges
Faced by Foreign Migrant Workers in the Western Cape
V. Lack of
Freedom of Association and Obstacles to Union Formation
5.1.
Obstacles to Union Formation
5.2.
Farmers’ Efforts to Force or Persuade People to Resign from Unions
5.3. Poor
Treatment of Union Members
5.4. Impact
of Union Formation
VI.
Protection and Redress
Box 4: The
Government’s Failure to Protect Beneficiaries in Farm Equity Schemes
6.1. Lack of
Effective Government Monitoring of Labor Conditions and Enforcement of Labor
Laws
Labor
Inspector Capacity
Labor
Inspections and the Agreement Between the Department of Labour and Agri SA
6.2. Failure
of the Government to Protect People Evicted from Farms
6.3. Limited
Private Efforts to Address Conditions for Farmworkers and Farm Dwellers
Box 5:
Better Practices on Farms
Farmers’
Associations
Wine
Industry
Fruit
Industry
Fairtrade
Certification
International
and Domestic Retailers
6.4.
Conclusion
VII.
Detailed Recommendations
Acknowledgements
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