National Property Portfolio on Auction

National Property Portfolio on Auction
Loading

Bid to avert strike on W Cape farms

January 8 2013 at 06:35am
By Cobus Coetzee

Comment on this story

Copy of workers

CAPE ARGUS

Farmworkers in De Doorns. File photo: Tracey Adams

Cape Town - Labour Department director-general Nkosinathi Nhleko was due to hold a last-ditch meeting with Western Cape farm owners in Cape Town on tuesday in the hope of averting an imminent strike.

Yesterday, he met union bosses to discuss the labour disputes on farms.

Farmworkers threaten to down tools tomorrow, blockade the N1 highway at De Doorns and bring the farming sector to its knees.

Cosatu provincial leader Tony Ehrenreich said workers had started to write to European supermarkets and institutions, calling on them to boycott South African fruit because of the working conditions on farms.

The Cape Chamber of Commerce and Industry said calls for an international boycott were irresponsible. “A boycott will simply create opportunities for our competitors in South America, Australia and New Zealand to move in and grab our share of the market,” said the chamber’s labour analyst, Michael Bagraim.

Labour department spokesman Musa Zondi yesterday said Nhleko was in Cape Town to have two separate meetings with workers and farm owners.

Nhleko met unions and Agri SA in Cape Town on Friday, but no deal was struck then.

Ehrenreich has accused Agri SA and its president, Johannes Möller, of being the main stumbling block to reaching a deal and said he was unwilling to change.

Nhleko, too, appealed to Agri SA to encourage its members to approach talks with various representatives in a positive spirit.

The Star


sign up
 
 

Comment Guidelines


  1. Please read our comment guidelines.
  2. Login and register, if you haven’ t already.
  3. Write your comment in the block below and click (Post As)
  4. Has a comment offended you? Hover your mouse over the comment and wait until a small triangle appears on the right-hand side. Click triangle () and select "Flag as inappropriate". Our moderators will take action if need be.

     

Join us on

 IOL-Social networks IOL-Social networks IOL-Social networks IOL-Social networks
IOL Travel

Make sure you find the best available airfares with our easy-to-use search engine.

Travel_pic_enw
Sudoku