All you wanted to know on being a good farm worker or employer

Wesley Siele, the chairman of Agricultural Employers Association. According to Mr Siele, good employers, not only in the agricultural but also in other sectors, should create a conducive working environment for their employees. PHOTO | RACHEL KIBUI | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • A good employer should create a conducive working environment for their employees and be mindful of their welfare. A casual employee is one who is engaged and paid at the end of each day and should not be engaged for more than 24 hours.
  • The new Employment Act in a way has discouraged casualisation of jobs by setting a time limit of two months according to Wesley Siele.
  • AEA is an association for the farmers, formed in 1962 to represent their collective interest. We welcome members to join by filling in the forms and paying an annual subscription.
  • Treasury CS Henry Rotich tried to address concerns raised by the farmers in his budget reading two weeks ago.

WESLEY SIELE is the CEO of Agricultural Employers Association. He spoke to RACHEL KIBUI, breaking down all you wanted to know as an employee or employer in the agricultural sector.

What is the general state of affairs between workers and employers in the agricultural sector?

We have very cordial relations currently, the reason we have had very minimal disruptions related to strikes, which were actually a problem in the years before.

The agricultural sector has, however, seen diminishing returns due to the escalation of the cost of production amid stagnation and drop of farm produce prices. Tea, coffee, flowers, maize and milk sectors are facing huge challenges.

What is your definition of a good agricultural employer?
Good employers, not only in the agricultural but also in other sectors, should create a conducive working environment for their employees and be mindful of their welfare.

They should have a common understanding with the employees for a smooth running of agribusinesses and other businesses. They should be knowledgeable of the existing labour laws and follow them accordingly.

Many small and big farm owners complain a lot about their employees. If it is not pilferage, it’s failing to apply fertiliser or milk cows. Are there any honest farm workers around?
Many farm workers are honest and do a good job, however, in a society you can’t miss people who are dishonest. Kenya has some of the most hardworking and dedicated people in the region and we are proud of them as employers.

What contributes to the poor working relationship between farm owners and their employees?
Generally, employees require training and to be listened to when they have grievances. Lack of grievance handling procedures sometimes leads to conflicts.

The employee also needs training as technology keeps changing. When employees are not trained, this leads to poor workmanship and hence conflicts.

What we emphasise to achieve results is having a conducive working environment that is safe and good industrial relations.

Most farm workers are casual labourers. What can be done to change this situation?

A casual employee is one who is engaged and paid at the end of each day and should not be engaged for more than 24 hours.

The new Employment Act in a way has discouraged casualisation of jobs by setting a time limit of two months. The employee who is a casual should then be converted into a fixed term contract employee.

Most companies, especially in agriculture, have reduced, if not abolished casuals and are now on fixed term contracts. They then enjoy all benefits of employment.

Besides salary or wages, what other benefits is the farm worker entitled to?

Farm workers are entitled to many other benefits like maternity or paternity leave, travelling allowance, funeral expenses and annual leave.

Some farms even offer accommodation. The entities, which have negotiated collective bargaining agreements such as flower farms even provide transport, housing and gratuity. Others even provide lunch.

Why was it necessary to form the Agricultural Employers Association (AEA)?
There will always be crises between employers and employees just as it happens whenever people are interacting. But most employers may not necessarily have the legal, human resource and other knowledge necessary to handle the issues.

Yet, others may not have time to resolve their issues and this is where an association comes in handy.

What should a small farm owner do to join your association?
We are open to membership for both large and small-scale farmers. Currently, we have members who have as low as four employees and we are open even to those who have just employed one or two as long as they are in the agricultural sector.

AEA is an association for the farmers, formed in 1962 to represent their collective interest. We welcome members to join by filling in the forms and paying an annual subscription.

They then access all service from the association. The minimum payment is Sh10,000.

Besides legal and human resource, there are other benefits of being our member. For example, we work with breeders’ associations to advise farmers on the best breeds.

We also lobby for reasonable labour costs on behalf of the employers. AEA sits at the Wages Council on behalf of the member farmers.

In case our member is sued by an employee, we offer legal services as compared to non-members who have to seek the same services independently.

That doesn’t mean we don’t care about employees. We strive to empower them to become potential employers.

For example, we have developed a floriculture curriculum and trained over 200 flower farm workers on how they can manage a farm. We are currently planning to take them for practicums and they will soon be empowered to establish their own farms.

Is there a minimum salary an agricultural employee should earn?
I would not give a specific amount, but this would depend on many factors such as the amount of work and the income of the employer.

However, we normally negotiate with relevant unions such as the Kenya Plantation and Agricultural Workers Union and others on proper remuneration.

Most workers complain of their rights being violated. What do you advise them?
They should keep in touch with the employment legal framework. I would blame lack of knowledge on rights on ignorance.

Employees too have rights to join unions that can work together with the employers’ union to create harmony as they work together.

Many small farmers use family labour with the members not being paid. What are the merits and demerits of this practice?

The practice of families working together on the farm is a good one. It reminds me of growing up in the village and going out when schools closed to pluck tea on our farm.

It helped me cultivate the spirit of hard work and to understand nothing is easy. I also got to appreciate the efforts by my parents to pay my school fees.

The practice helps families reduce on cost of labour but it should not deprive a child time to play and grow up as child.

Child labour is rampant in the agricultural sector. What should be done to eliminate the practice?
Child labour has reduced significantly on the farms. It is a violation of part VII of the Employment Act 2007 on protection of children.

The International Labour Organisation, working together with employer associations, has several initiatives in the industry that has helped eliminate the vice in sectors such as coffee.

The government has also enforced the law quite strongly on child labour.

The court this week awarded workers in the tea sector a 30 per cent pay rise, how is this development going to affect the entire industry?

The court award is so unfortunate because it failed to balance the economic issues that was raised by employers. The ability of the employer to pay hinges on profitability, which was overlooked.

The tea industry has always given 8-10 per cent increase when things were better, but the court gave 30 per cent when the tea industry is struggling.

Prices have plummeted and farmers have resorted to planting other crops.

The courts also failed to look at the other side of the coin, which is to protect employment. The last time the courts ruled in such a manner employers opted for tea harvesting machines, the resultant effect was massive loss of jobs.

Also, in his budget reading two weeks ago, Treasury CS Henry Rotich tried to address concerns raised by the farmers.

He removed some levies charged on tea in an effort to cushion farmers. The same has now been taken away by the court ruling.