Empty promises in post-apartheid South Africa. The inability of the labour and tenure legislation to protect South African farmwomen

Abstract

In this study, it is shown that the post-apartheid labour and tenure legislation is unable to protect South African women who work on farms. There is a tendency among scholars to attribute this weak legal position of farmwomen tothe country’s legacy of colonialism and apartheid. This studyproposes a different narrative, by focusing on the inclusive nature of post-apartheid legislation. It is the aim of this paper to examine to what extent the inability of this legislation to protect farmwomen can be explained by using an intersectional lens. This lensexplores the effects of ‘rurality’ and gender on the legal position of farmwomen. The laws examined are the Labour Relations Act (LRA) 66 and the Extension of Security Act (ESTA). Thestudy shows that these Acts seem to hold a narrow-minded approach to rights, in assuming ‘employees’ and ‘occupiers’ to be male, urban workers with permanent contracts. This does not cover farmwomen, as they are hindered by the intersectionalimpact of gender and rurality. It is therefore recommended to develop amendments to these Acts.