Industrial action brings Sundays River Valley citrus to a standstill

An industrial dispute is affecting South Africa’s citrus industry in the Sundays River Valley area in the country’s Eastern Cape region. On 30th May, pickers and packers downed tools and have refused to return to work until employers meet their demands for a 13% salary increase. South African National Civic Organisation (Sanco) representative Xolani Jonas said that farm workers and co-operative workers had gone underpaid for long enough.

The companies affected include the Sunday’s River Citrus Company, Unifruitti, Sun Citrus Packers, Citrus Run and Golden Ridge. Meanwhile, Sunday’s River Citrus Company CEO Hannes de Waal said his company had offered workers a 10% increase last Saturday.