Going for broke The fate of farm workers in arid South Africa Doreen Atkinson Free download from www.hsrc p ress.ac.za Published by HSRC Press Private Bag X9182, Cape Town, 8000, South Africa www.hsrcpress.ac.za © 2007 Human Sciences Research Council First published 2007 The views expressed in this publication are those of the authors. They do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the Human Sciences Research Council (‘the Council’) or indicate that the Council endorses the views of the authors. In quoting from this publication, readers are advised to attribute the source of the information to the individual author concerned and not to the Council. ISBN 10: 0-7969-2176-8 ISBN 13: 978-0-7969-2176-5 Copyedited by Angela du Preez Typeset by Jenny Wheeldon Cover design by Flame Design Cover photo by Doreen Atkinson Print management by comPress Distributed in Africa by Blue Weaver Tel: +27 (0) 21 701 4477; Fax: +27 (0) 21 701 7302 www.oneworldbooks.com Distributed in Europe and the United Kingdom by Eurospan Distribution Services (EDS) Tel: +44 (0) 20 7240 0856; Fax: +44 (0) 20 7379 0609 www.eurospangroup.com/bookstore Distributed in North America by Independent Publishers Group (IPG) Call toll-free: (800) 888 4741; Fax: +1 (312) 337 5985 www.ipgbook.com Free download from www.hsrc p ress.ac.za Contents List of tables vi Acknowledgements viii Acronyms x Map of South Africa’s arid areas xii Chapter 1 The unseen plight of farm workers in South Africa 1 The aims of the book 1 Farmers, government, farm workers and the unresolved policy void 3 The argument 8 A note on concepts and statistics 11 The genesis of this study 13 Chapter 2 The rise of an unfree labour system before 1970 15 Multiple perspectives of a complex history 15 Race, land and labour in South Africa in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries 23 The origins of the master-servant relationship after 1850 27 Entrenching farm labour servility after 1913: farms as total institutions? 34 The leaven in the dough: paternalism and social bonds on commercial farms 42 Why are there no white farm workers? 48 Conclusion 52 Chapter 3 The forces of modernisation after 1970 53 The changing basis of white commercial agriculture 53 The decline of the unfree labour system after 1970 58 Urbanisation dynamics after 1994 65 Free download from www.hsrc p ress.ac.za Chapter 4 Government policy dilemmas after 1994 69 The evolution of rural development strategies 69 Ambiguity, indecision and confused loyalties 72 The Extension of Security of Tenure Act 79 Chapter 5 Life on the farm 91 Paternalism as social capital 91 The decline of paternalism? 96 The right to a grave? 99 The development gap 100 The vexed question of access to farms 108 Conclusion 109 Chapter 6 Leaving the farm 111 To move or not to move 111 Wage levels and the propensity to migrate 118 Employment, retrenchments and migration 126 Education and the propensity to migrate 130 Unresolved policy questions 131 Chapter 7 Civil society and farm life 133 The golden age of service delivery: the Rural Foundation, 1982–1998 133 Filling the gap: civil society organisations and service delivery 142 Possible new alternatives in the NGO sector 147 Conclusion 149 Chapter 8 Municipal political representation of farm dwellers 150 The honeymoon period: 1995–2000 150 Amalgamated municipalities and urban bias 158 Chapter 9 Service delivery and the micro-welfare system 164 Farming communities as micro-welfare systems 165 Farm workers on provincial government agendas 168 The contradictory approaches of government departments 174 Free download from www.hsrc p ress.ac.za The triangular service delivery relationship 179 Municipal service delivery after 2000: a patchwork of district and local functions 182 The role of municipalities in the rural areas 189 The beginnings of a municipal response 191 Conclusion 202 Chapter 10 Tough choices for service delivery 203 What rural services? 203 Linking finance to functions 210 The ‘where’ of development 215 Mobility and transport 223 Beyond infrastructure: towards enabling local government? 225 Chapter 11 The professionalisation of farm work 228 The legacy of poor schooling 229 Towards the professionalisation of farm work? 235 Informal training and professional advancement 242 Training providers 246 Conclusion 249 Chapter 12 A journey to somewhere? 250 Grazing and cropping rights 251 The ideal of farm ownership 254 The private sector’s role in land reform 256 The fate of unemployed farm workers 260 Commonage, peri-urban livelihoods and land reform 264 Institutional support 270 Policy questions 274 Conclusion: an outlook for the future 279 Notes 282 References 286 Index 297 Free download from www.hsrc p ress.ac.za vi List of tables Table 2.1 Agricultural production by black farmers on white farms, 1922–1936 40 Table 3.1 Labour cost as percentage of total cost 57 Table 3.2 Various estimates of the number of farm employees 61 Table 3.3 Racial profile in agricultural employment, 1970–1995 62 Table 3.4 The urban population per settlement category in the Free State, 1991, 1996 and 2001 64 Table 3.5 Number of farm workers on selected farms in the Free State and Northern Cape, 2001 and 2003 67 Table 4.1 Land reforms undermined by evictions 85 Table 5.1 Farm workers’ views on helpful agencies 94 Table 6.1 Length of residence on farms and in the district, Free State and Northern Cape, 2003 112 Table 6.2 Reasons for choosing farm work, Natal and Eastern Cape, 1987 113 Table 6.3 Potential reasons for leaving farm employment, Natal and Eastern Cape, 1987 116 Table 6.4 Farm workers’ income levels, Johannesburg sample, 1990 120 Table 7.1 Farms affiliated with the Rural Foundation and the number of people reached, 1984, 1988 and 1992 140 Table 8.1 Equitable share received by TRCs in the Bo-Karoo District Council, 1999–2000 157 Table 8.2 Funders involved in rural sanitation programmes, Northern Cape, 2000/01 157 Free download from www.hsrc p ress.ac.za vii Table 9.1 Farm worker issues in Provincial Growth and Development Strategies 169 Table 9.2 Agricultural and rural development issues in Provincial Growth and Development Strategies 172 Table 9.3 District municipalities as Water Services Authorities in rural areas 185 Table 9.4 Rural service delivery 186 Table 9.5 Service delivery to farm workers in municipal IDPs 194 Table 9.6 Municipal IDPs: service delivery to agricultural areas 196 Table 9.7 Spatial and demographic dynamics in municipal IDPs 197 Table 9.8 Peri-urban emergent and small-scale farming 200 Table 9.9 Land reform 201 Table 10.1 The applicability and practicalities of service delivery to commercial farms 208 Table 10.2 Preferences for farm workers’ residence, nine Free State and Northern Cape districts, 2003 217 Table 10.3 Frequency of visits to town 223 Table 10.4 Transport modes 224 Table 11.1 Changing employment patterns within agriculture, 1970–1995 236 Table 11.2 Formal employment and education in agriculture, 1970–1995 236 Table 11.3 Farmers’ views of farm workers’ training needs 243 Table 11.4 Training experience and training needs 245 Table 11.5 Farmers’ views of desirable training providers 246 Table 11.6 Farm workers’ preferences for training providers 248 Table 12.1 Farm workers’ ambitions to farm independently 254 Table 12.2 Farmers’ views of appropriate support providers for emergent farmers 256 Free download from www.hsrc p ress.ac.za viii Acknowledgements In many ways, the production of this book was a team effort. Several studies were conducted, which were incorporated in the book. The author would like to thank Prof. Retha du Plessis (Department of Social Work, University of the Free State), as well as the hardworking staff of the Bloemfontein office of the Human Sciences Research Council – in particular, Anja Benseler, Daniel Pienaar and Ntobeko Buso. This book is a testament to the innovative work conducted by the Bloemfontein office, which has unfortunately since closed. Other important contributors were Rev. Carin van Schalkwyk, Mark Ingle, Dr Marlene Roefs, Gwendolyn Wellman, Nhlanhla Ndebele, Victor Mbengwa, Monyake Mothekhe and Pulani Simes. Valuable financial support was obtained from the HSRC’s baseline funds and the Free State Premier’s Economic Advisory Council. The book would never have been produced without the moral support of Prof. Roger Southall and Prof. John Daniel of the HSRC, as well as Prof. Lucius Botes and Mr Malinda wa Mafela of the Centre for Development Support (CDS) at the University of the Free State. Other staff members at the CDS also made valuable contributions, and in particular, the author thanks Dr Lochner Marais and Ms Anita Venter. In addition, the financial support of the United States Agency for International Development must be acknowledged. During 2002, they funded a study trip to the US, to examine policies and programmes for farm workers. I would also like to thank my co-travellers – Mr Mann Oelrich (then MEC for Agriculture in the Free State), Mr Ike Tshitlho (Department of Local Government, Free State) and Ms Baby Ramahotswa (Integrated Rural Development Planning office, Pretoria) – with whom I had lively and informative conversations during that visit. I would like to thank the numerous American officials in California, Texas and Washington D.C. who made time to share their insights and experiences with us. The project also draws on some work done by Daniel Pienaar for the Food and Agricultural Organisation (Harare office), and we would like to thank Ms Kaori Izumi for her support for the Bloemfontein HSRC office. Free download from www.hsrc p ress.ac.za ix In addition, we benefited from the research funded by the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) as part of their LOGOSUL programme in the Northern Cape. During 2004, the Department of Water Affairs funded research on service delivery to farm workers, for which we remain grateful. I would also like to express my appreciation for the many farmers, farm workers and municipal officials who shared their insights with us. The staff of the erstwhile Rural Foundation were particularly helpful. Finally, I would like to thank my husband and colleague, Mark Ingle, for his unstinting moral support and his editing contributions. Free download from www.hsrc p ress.ac.za x Acronyms ABET Adult Basic Education and Training AgriBEE black economic empowerment strategy for agriculture AgriSA South African Agricultural Union AgriSETA Agricultural Sector Education and Training Authority CDA Community Development Association DA Democratic Alliance DC district council DLA Department of Land Affairs DM district municipality DMA district management area DoA Department of Agriculture DoL Department of Labour DPLG Department of Provincial and Local Government DTI Department of Trade and Industry DWAF Department of Water Affairs and Forestry ESTA Extension of Security of Tenure Act FDT Farmers’ Development Trust GEAR Growth, Employment and Redistribution HSRC Human Sciences Research Council IDP Integrated Development Plan ISRDP Integrated Sustainable Rural Development Programme LM local municipality LRAD Land Redistribution for Agricultural Development Free download from www.hsrc p ress.ac.za [...]... or on-farm residents may perform ‘casual work’ These options have very different implications Different types of people perform them, in a wide array of situations and conditions Take, for example, the case of a migrant worker who is employed for eight months on a commercial farm He is not ‘regular’, because he is not in farm wage employment for the whole year, and he therefore may miss out on a range... weekends for pocket money In some cases, child labour is intrinsic to a farm’s production system, and the abolition of child labour may require the farmer to reorient his or her entire business In other cases, child labour is a way for farm worker families to supplement their income, or for the children to accumulate money for luxuries These conceptual and statistical problems raise important questions for. .. a return to sharecropping, or an advance to new forms of profit-sharing with commercial farmers? Will we see the promotion of some workers into a stratum of highly skilled professional farm managers? Do farmers and farm workers see possibilities for economic co-operation on a more equal footing? Are there unexploited political resources for farmers or for farm workers – through either party structures... books Each of the problems listed above will have passionate advocates for it being the primary problem And among these advocates, there will be fervent believers that one single solution is the best one There is, therefore, sufficient food for thought here to keep dozens of philosophers, researchers and analysts intellectualising for a long while In the meantime, the distress signals are becoming clearer... of farm life and to make their way to the cities This resulted in a generally unskilled and unsophisticated farm labour force Those constituting this force are deprived of modern education and experience, and are poorly equipped for the globalised modern economy This process of transformation reached its apogee in the 1960s, after which economic modernisation and international economic dynamics inexorably... F R I C A Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za The theoretical perspectives offer different explanations for how changes occur For the materialists or neo-Marxists, contradictions, or internal tensions, within economic systems propel change For the total institution approach, power-holders’ efforts to close off institutions to outside interference cause change The structuration approach shows how... meanings that vary widely For example, ‘casual work’ can be variously defined as work done by seasonal, occasional or part-time workers ‘Casual workers’ may form skilled teams who market their work to farmers on their own terms (such as builders or shearers) Or they could be workers who are recruited by commercial contractors They could also be unskilled labourers who are desperate for work on any terms... our research efforts with the United States, where an annual National Agricultural Workers Survey includes a sample of 4 000 farm workers each year (Gabbard 2002: 16) There is enormous scope here for an entire generation of postgraduate students and researchers in economics, sociology, political science, public policy and development planning Furthermore, there is even greater scope for comparative... underclass must find resources to pay for basic services and costly rentals while they fight to survive in hostile social and environmental conditions (Parnell 2004: 2) The availability of basic services like water and sanitation varies extensively amongst different farms (CRLS 2001: 19) The low levels of education and literacy in rural areas provide a formidable barrier for rural people in engaging with... Free State-based agricultural stakeholders 14 CHAPTER 2 Free download from www.hsrcpress.ac.za The rise of an unfree labour system before 1970 The story of farm labour in South Africa is largely one of the transformation of an independent black peasantry into a landless workforce defined by race The story’s key themes are the consolidation of land ownership by white farmers, the concentration of black . Going for broke The fate of farm workers in arid South Africa Doreen Atkinson Free. Daniel Pienaar for the Food and Agricultural Organisation (Harare office), and we would like to thank Ms Kaori Izumi for her support for the Bloemfontein