Foreign farm workers aren’t paid slave wages farmers say

By Ofentse Moka
18 November 2009

Agri Western-Cape has strongly denied paying foreign workers less than locals.

Reacting to the past two days’ attacks on Zimbabwean seasonal workers in De Doorns in the Hex River Valley, chief executive Carl Opperman said what farmers pay their workers could be checked as employers were legally required to keep wage sheets.

Local residents attacked foreigners and drove them from their dwellings after accusing them of being prepared to work for slave wages.

Agri Western-Cape’s Portia Adams says foreign labour is only used because of shortage of workers.

“At the moment there is a shortage of local labour and therefore producers are making use of foreign labour especially during season time,” said Adams.

Adams says during season time the number of workers required on the farms increases significantly thus the use of foreign labour.