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Women on Farms Project in the streets marching to the offices of Philagro in Somerset West. Philagro is the registration holder of Dormex, a pesticide used on table and wine grapes on commercial farms in the Western Cape, South Africa.
Members of the advocacy group Women on Farms have called for improved working and living conditions for farm workers. The group marched to the Department of Labour and Employment offices in the Western Cape on Monday to hand over a memorandum of demands.
The women claim their health is being affected by exposure to harmful chemicals, including pesticides, and say they are earning below the minimum wage.
The group’s representative, Julia Makhangana says, “We need engagements with Minister Meth to discuss issues pertaining to labour rights for farm workers; a meeting with the provincial DEL including Mr. Ntamo, the inspectorate, heads of labour centres from Worcester, De Doorns, Paarl, Ceres and Somerset West, and Dr. Bucks, the compensation fund, by 6 June.”
She adds that they are calling for “an immediate and full investigation into the cases listed above, including the deployment of qualified inspectors to conduct health and safety inspections on farms.”
VIDEO | Women on Farms demand decent salaries:
