Farmworkers fear eviction from Paarl wine estate

On Saturday, farmworkers and their families picketed outside the Plaisir Wine Estate in Paarl. Photos: Marecia Damons

• Fourteen farmworker families at Plaisir Wine Estate say they were told their right to occupy their homes ended when their employment was terminated. Some have lived on the farm for decades.
• Plaisir Wine Estate said the 14 families represent a “small minority” of the roughly 42 families living on the farm, most of whom hold secure, lawful occupation rights, including some pensioners entitled to remain for life.
• The affected families remain in their homes despite the 31 May deadline to vacate.
• Dozens of residents and supporters picketed outside the estate on Saturday, saying they have nowhere else to go.

Fourteen farmworker families living on Plaisir Wine Estate near Paarl say they fear eviction after receiving notices to vacate their homes earlier this year. Although the deadline has passed, none of the families has moved.

At the weekend, dozens of residents picketed outside the estate.

Some of the families have lived on the farm for decades and say they have nowhere else to go.

Plaisir Wine Estate, formerly known as Plaisir de Merle, is located between Paarl and Franschhoek. Distell owned the property for about 45 years before selling to Michael and Rosemary Jordaan in 2020.

Around 44 houses on the estate are occupied by farmworker families. 14 of these families received notices to vacate in April, giving the residents until 31 May to vacate.

The notices state that residents occupied their homes under employment agreements with the farm and that their right to remain ended upon termination of their employment.

They reject any claim that the affected families have “tacit consent” to remain under the Extension of Security of Tenure Act (ESTA). ESTA generally requires a court order and alternative accommodation before long-term farm occupiers can be evicted.

Plaisir Wine Estate is home to over 40 farm worker families.

Nowhere to go

Zelda Phillips, 52, and her husband have lived on the farm for more than 30 years. Her husband worked as a plumber on the farm until he was dismissed in 2023. The family received a notice to vacate soon after but did not move. “Nothing happened after that,” she said.

They received another notice to vacate in April.

“I was at work, and my husband was home. My neighbour called me and made it sound as if they were carrying my things out already. I was anxious. I wondered, ‘Where must I go? What about my children?’ So I left work and came here immediately.”

Phillips said the uncertainty has taken an emotional toll on her.

“Some nights I can’t even sleep because I don’t know what might happen the next morning. When I’m at work, I’m anxious because I don’t know what could be happening at home. I’m worried.”

Malcolm Dirk and Dudley Abrahams are amongst those who received notices to vacate. They moved to the farm in 2024 to care for Abrahams’s 90-year-old grandfather, who worked on the farm for 50 years. “We want Rose [Jordaan] to have some mercy on the people and just reach common ground with those living here. They have grown up here … and deserve to be here. She needs to delve down and just have a heart,” Abrahams said.

Dudley Abrahams, 33, and Malcolm Dirk, 38, moved to the farm in October 2024 to care for Abrahams’s 90-year-old grandfather. He had worked as a farmworker for over 50 years and was struggling to take care of himself. Dirk said they notified the farm’s office of the move at the time.

Dirk said they first received a notice to vacate in August 2025 and were soon denied entry.

“We went to buy him diapers at the stores. When we came back, we told security the old man was alone and a danger to himself. But the security guard said he was just doing his job and couldn’t allow us in. We had to go to the police station and sleep in the cells.”

After Abrahams’ grandfather died in October 2025, Abrahams and Dirk stayed in the house but were later again denied entry.

They approached Legal Aid for help and obtained a spoliation order (in which the court orders the restoration of property unlawfully taken from them). But Dirk said when they returned home, the door was locked, the handles removed, and the windows covered with sheets.

They regained access after Legal Aid intervened. But the repairs since have been incomplete. “We have to close our doors with a broom,” said Dirk.

Martha Visagie, 61, has lived on the farm for 34 years and worked as a farmworker for 25 years before retiring due to chronic back pain. Although she did not receive a notice to vacate, she said many elderly residents are unhappy with current conditions.

“Things were better under Distell. We were given bread every week … they painted our homes every six years, and we didn’t pay for electricity. There were performance bonuses, free transport to the shops and clinics … Now, all our privileges are gone. We feel imprisoned,” she said.

Zelda Phillips has lived on the farm for over 30 years. Phillips says the looming eviction has taken an emotional toll on her and her family, and they are living in uncertainty.

Electricity hikes

Prepaid electricity meters were installed in the farmworkers’ homes in July 2022. Under Distell, electricity had been free. Purchases can now only be made at the farm’s offices on weekdays. The offices are closed on weekends, leaving residents who run out on a Friday night without power until Monday.

According to a notice from Noble Savage Investments, the Jordaan-owned company, prices increased on 1 May. Card payments for 50 units increased from R135.50 to R147, while 100 units increased from R271 to R295. For cash payments, 50 units increased from R150 to R160, while 100 units increased from R300 to R330.

Abrahams said the R147 minimum purchase puts electricity out of reach for many pensioners. “They don’t always have R150 to buy electricity. They’ll have R40, but they can’t buy electricity elsewhere because they can only buy from here.”

Plaisir responds

Plaisir Wine Estate said the 14 families represent a “small minority” of the roughly 42 families living on the farm, most of whom hold secure, lawful occupation rights, including some pensioners entitled to remain for life.

It said the cases involve former employees whose contracts were “lawfully terminated for serious breach, individuals whose occupation rights lapsed following the death of the primary employee, and persons who never held any legal entitlement to occupy in the first instance”.

It said it covers residents’ basic municipal costs, including water, sewage, refuse and rates, and that residents pay only for the electricity they use, purchased in bulk from Eskom.

“The specific homes involved carry no title and are required for ongoing farm operations. Against the backdrop of a well-documented downturn in both the South African and international wine industry, our resources are constrained,” they said.

The estate said its engagement with the affected families has, in some cases, been ongoing for “more than four years”, predating the current legal process.

The estate said it would “remain in ongoing engagement with local government regarding their responsibility for alternative accommodation”.

Martha Visagie looks at photos from the earlier years when she worked on the farm. She worked here for 25 years before retiring due to chronic back pain. She and her husband have lived on the farm for over 30 years. Visagie said they were happier before the farm was sold in 2020. “I have no more love for this place. I don’t even plant roses anymore,” she said.

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