Labour and producers in South Africa’s wine industry and the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries (DAFF) are united in their backing of a programme to fast-track the implementation of fair labour practices on wine farms and in cellars.
The fair labour initiative, envisages the creation of an ethical seal that will testify to reasonable working conditions, based on rigorous and closely monitored qualification criteria. This is believed to be a world-first amongst wine-producing countries.
Only those producers who meet the criteria set by Wine Industry Ethical Trade Association (WIETA) will be entitled to use the seal on their wines. It is anticipated that the first seals will be granted later this year to currently compliant producers. The fully traceable seal was being modelled on South Africa’s sustainability seal developed to promote awareness of the production integrity followed at every stage of the supply chain from vineyard to bottle.
The WIETA code of good practice is premised on the base code of the International Labour Conventions’ Ethical Trading Initiative and also incorporates South African labour legislation. It precludes the use of child labour, asserts that employment should be freely chosen and that all employees should have the right to a healthy and safe working environment. Amongst the conditions it sets are that workers should have the right to freedom of association, a living wage and to be protected from unfair discrimination. Worker housing and tenure security rights should also be respected.
The ethical programme will be fast-tracked and will be implemented in three phases, starting with the simultaneous training of workers, owners and management in labour law and the WIETA code of fair trading principles.
DAFF notes and supports this very important development in the wine industry that will acknowledge and accredit wineries and farms that follow ethical practices; that will address the abuse of human rights in the longer term and will recognise that the ethical treatment of workers is both a moral and a legal obligation.
For more information contact:
Steve Galane
Director: Communication Services
Cell: 083 635 7346
Tel: 012 319 7960
Fax: 012 319 6943
E-mail: SteveGAL@daff.gov.za
