To receive Fairtrade accreditation, DTKW and its members had
to achieve and has maintained a high standard of ethical and sustainable
farming and winemaking practices, particularly in the treatment and
remuneration of workers. Every farm and the cellar, undergoes a stringent
auditing process each year for the renewal of their Fairtrade certification.
All cellar staff members are paid substantially more than
the minimum wages prescribed by government. However, the ethical treatment of
staff involves much more than the monthly or weekly wages they earn; it also
involves their overall level of well being and quality of life. For this reason,
accommodation is made available to them free of charge or at very low monthly
rentals. Early in 2012, DTKW upgraded
all its staff accommodation. Houses were gutted on a rotation basis and
completely refurbished: new ceilings, new floors, kitchen cupboards, bathrooms,
new plumbing and new electrification were installed.
The
Fairhills project that has resulted from our Fairtrade accreditation, has
contributed enormously in recent years to the enrichment of the lives of not
only the workers, but of their families, in particular the children. Everyone
is involved in this project: all our 13 producer-members, their 19 grape
farms, approximately 400 farm workers and their 1 200 dependents.
The project is managed independently by a committee of 34
farm workers, who decide how the premium income will be allocated and to which
projects. The premium of €0.70 in the case of red wine and €0.80 in the case of
white, is paid by socially-conscious consumers, who buy Fairtrade wines such as
those produced by DTKW, thus contributing to the upliftment of workers in participating
emerging countries.
In addition to the premium paid by consumers, the Fairhills
project also receives funding from certain overseas retailers, local
non-governmental organisations, South African government departments with DTKW
itself, a substantial contributor.
One of the first projects initiated by Fairhills, was the
establishment of day-care centres for the children of working parents, staffed
by trained caregivers. Three have been in operation since 2006. Today they
provide care for 170 children between the ages of three months and five years.
The children are transported to and from the centres in buses bought for this
purpose, receive two nourishing meals a day, and are looked over once a week by a qualified medical nurse. All activities are chosen to stimulate development
while the older children, those between four and five years old, are taught
computer literacy.
These centres, where children from non-Fairtrade farms are
also welcome, are run by an ex-farm worker and a management committee of farm
workers. They provide employment for 23 women from the surrounding farms, who
all receive ongoing training in early-childhood development.
The Fairhills Project is also deeply involved in the running
of the Lorraine Primary School, situated on one of our member farms. The school
has approximately 100 learners, of which almost 90% are from member farms. It
originally only consisted of three classrooms. The first addition was a
kitchen, where meals could be prepared for learners as well as for the little
ones in day-care centres.
In the last few years separate classrooms were added for
grades 3 and 4, while a new classroom for Grade 5 is proposed for 2013. When
completed, every grade will have its own classroom, where specific learners can
be taught for longer periods in a familiar environment.
A community library opened its doors two years ago, which
serves both learners and adults. In the same year the school completed
construction of a computer centre, which today, has a bank of 28 computers.
Those receiving training in addition to the older children at the day-care
centres, are learners at the primary school, as well as Fairhills learners in
Grades 11 and 12.
Attached to the school is an after-care centre available to
learners up to and including Grade 4. These learners are assisted with their
homework and also receive an after-school lunch. At the same time, it provides
employment for four adults who manage the programme.
Over the years a community centre was built which plays an
important role as a focal point of social activities and a meeting place for
members of the community.