Farmworkers' jobs not yet secure after dry year's bitter harvest

JOB losses in the drought-stricken agricultural sector are set to continue unless the weather improves ahead of the next planting season, AgriSA CEO Omri van Zyl said this week.

The sector shed 44,000 jobs during the second quarter of this year - one of the biggest declines among various sectors in South Africa, StatsSA said in its Quarterly Labour Force Survey published on Thursday.

Nationally, employment contracted 0.8%, or by 129,000 jobs, indicating a potential contraction of growth during the quarter. One of South Africa's biggest employers, the transport industry, shed 39,000 jobs.

This comes at a time when growth expectations for South Africa for 2016 have already been revised downwards.

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The Reserve Bank said last week it expected zero growth. The National Treasury may also amend its forecast of 0.9%.

Wandile Sihlobo, head of economic and business intelligence at Agbiz, said in a normal year for the sector there was crop harvesting during the second quarter and a large number of seasonal workers were employed. "This year, we didn't see much of that come in."

The primary agriculture sector constitutes 5% of employment in the country - more than mining and almost on a par with the transport industry. The sector's contribution to GDP declined to 2.5% during the second quarter from 5.3% in the previous quarter.

Van Zyl said the jobs lost in the last quarter were relatively few, compared to the 850,000 workers the agricultural sector employ s.

"It's something we did expect ... It just shows the robustness of the industry."

He said the fact that the sector had survived the climatic crisis - and that it had registered that number of job losses in a sector that is labour-intensive - "speaks to the versatility and diversification of our farmers". Agricultural jobs showed a 5% decline year on year.

He said the third quarter was unlikely to show an improvement, but if the expected higher rainfall during the fourth quarter materialised, "the trend should be reversed".

Most job losses in agriculture were in the game sector, logging service, animal husbandry and crop farming.

Aquaculture and forestry showed gains.

Even given the second quarter's job losses, perceptions regarding employment in the sector improved the Agbiz/IDC Agribusiness Confidence Index that was published this week. But policy uncertainty remains a key stumbling block and could potentially discourage investment , the index showed.

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The country has been affected by the worst drought in decades due to the El Niño weather phenomenon. The red meat, potato and sugar cane industries were hit hard by the water shortage. Farmers had to cull livestock and some crops failed.

The summer planting season starts in September/ October.

Van Zyl said the agricultural sector would remain in recession until crops planted in the fourth quarter this year were harvested next year.

"The next six months will be the challenge to see what the production output will be. By all indications the end of El Niño is here," he said.

Meanwhile, the sector is continuing to lobby the government for financial aid ahead of the next planting season.

Van Zyl would not comment on the discussions but said an outcome was expected in the next few weeks.

From mid-August farmers will begin to approach lenders for loans to fund planting.