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PREVIOUS WINELAND ARTICLES   |   WINELAND HOME Boland farms to become Aids danger zone Farmers can make the world of difference by Beverly Farmer The mining industry is considered the sector that has been hardest hit by HIV/Aids until now. Research by gold and coal mines indicates that more than 20% of their current labour force has been infected. Broken homes, the use of migrant labour and the establishment of workers in hostels during the apartheid years created fertile breeding ground for HIV/Aids. Warning lights have been flickering for some time that the Boland farm labourer communities might possibly follow the same path as the mining industry and become an Aids danger zone, warns Francis Jacobs, a health worker of the Provincial Administration Western Cape, under supervision of the Boland District municipality. Francis specifically targets general health counselling among farm labourers in Klein Drakenstein, Suider-Paarl, Nuwedrif, Soetendal and Hermon. The rate at which HIV/Aids has been identified on farms in the course of the past year is frigthening, she says. On one farm the number of HIV+ workers increased from 7 to 21 within a year - and includes an entire family. Francis says that although these statistics are upsetting, both employers and employees deny that HIV/Aids is a problem. "For many farmers HIV/Aids is not yet a reality, while some of their workers have already been infected. It is only a matter of time before they start feeling the effect of HIV/Aids on their wallet." Since Aids is not a notifiable disease, Francis explains, a clear-cut picture of the conditions on farms cannot be drawn. This may only be the tip of the iceberg. The Boland District Municipal Clinic is one of four places in Paarl where people may be tested for HIV/Aids. Francis says her experience has shown that initially people come to the clinic for tuberculosis testing, flu treatment or to be treated for a sexually transmitted disease. If the patient does not respond to treatment, the person is asked to consider an HIV/Aids test. The test is only done if the person agrees, has received pre-testing counselling and is thoroughly prepared for the possible result of the test. Socio-economic factors on some farms, such as terrible poverty, serious alcohol abuse and high levels of illiteracy accelerate the transmission of HIV/Aids. "In addition, people are uninformed and do not realise that there is a direct link between HIV/Aids and unsafe sex," says Francis. Other contributing factors are the low status of women in the relationship, their economic dependency, and physical abuse, which makes it difficult for women to protect themselves against HIV-infection. Francis says it often happens for older men to abuse their position of authority in the farming community to have sex with minor girls in exchange for financial security. "The divergent factors that play a role in the transmission of HIV/Aids on farms, complicate the health worker's task," says Francis. "To arrest the effect of HIV/Aids on farm worker communities, a holistic approach should be followed. All role players should work together to curb the epidemic." The Department of Health has limited resources and Aids is simply one of several health programmes to be addressed by health workers. Farmers have an extremely important role to play in the restriction of HIV/Aids, reckons Francis, since they employ thousands of people. HIV/Aids awareness campaigns on farms and the distribution of information are small initiatives as far as the farmers are concerned, but could make the world of difference. A prevention programme that includes the distribution of condoms and the treatment of sexually transmitted diseases can also be successful in the restriction of HIV/Aids. Farmers can also teach workers with HIV/Aids to remain productive for as long as possible without using expensive medication. Pro-active behaviour can reduce the cost implications of Aids for a business by as much as 30%. However, it is only possible to conquer the epidemic if the entire country is mobilised against HIV/Aids. Sombre picture for the economy More than 4,5 million people have already been infected and the number is expected to double in the next ten years. Aids related deaths will soon exceed all other causes of death among the South African labour force. The impact of HIV/Aids on the South African economy looks sombre: An annual reduction of 1,5% in GDP (Gross Domestic Product). 18% of the total labour force (age 15 - 59) is HIV+, with 190 000 deaths in 1999/2000. By 2005 23% of farm workers will be infected. In five years' time 26% of the total work force will be HIV+, with the death toll three times higher. The cost of training workers will be ten times higher in 2005. Group life assurance will double by 2005. Average domestic expenses will increase as a result of additional medical expenses. Metropolitan predicts that it costs approximately R15 000 per annum to take care of a person in the final stages of Aids. The amount does not include anti-retroviral medication. The effect on business The effect of HIV/Aids on a business is determined by factors such as the kind of business and the production process. Labour intensive businesses are not necessarily at a higher risk where loss of production is concerned. The actual impact depends on the ease with which one will be able to replace employees. For a business which employs highly skilled labour, it will be expensive to train staff, but in the case of semi- and unskilled labour, it will be easier to replace staff. The effect of HIV/Aids on a business includes furthermore: Increased absence due to illness, but also as a result of workers who have to take care of family members who are ill and workers who have to attend funerals. The low morale of the labour force. Workers who are ill are less productive and will not be able to perform labour intensive tasks in the later stages of the disease. Workers who die or are declared unfit to perform their tasks, have to be replaced; the replacements will be less skilled and experienced and may require training. An increase in new appointments. Employees enlarge their labour force to make provision for untimely deaths and absences during in-service training. An increase in overtime payment.

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