{"id":35306,"date":"2025-06-27T01:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-06-27T04:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/redept.org\/blogosfera\/posicionamentos-para-reportagens-sobre-condicoes-de-trabalho-da-colheita-de-cafe-na-colombia\/"},"modified":"2025-06-27T01:00:00","modified_gmt":"2025-06-27T04:00:00","slug":"posicionamentos-para-reportagens-sobre-condicoes-de-trabalho-da-colheita-de-cafe-na-colombia","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/redept.com.br\/blogosfera\/posicionamentos-para-reportagens-sobre-condicoes-de-trabalho-da-colheita-de-cafe-na-colombia\/","title":{"rendered":"Posicionamentos para reportagens sobre\u00a0condi\u00e7\u00f5es de trabalho da colheita de caf\u00e9 na Col\u00f4mbia"},"content":{"rendered":"

Leia o relat\u00f3rio completo aqui<\/a><\/p>\n<\/p>\n

FAIRTRADE<\/strong><\/h1>\n

Responses to questions from Rep\u00f3rter Brasil about coffee farms and worker conditions in Colombia<\/strong><\/p>\n

Please note: Cooperativa Departamental de Cafeicultores de Hu\u00edla (Cadefihuila) and the Cooperative de Caficultores de Salgar are Fairtrade certified producer organisations and therefore must adhere to the Fairtrade Standard for Small-scale Producer Organisations not the Fairtrade Standard for Hired Labour Organisations that Rep\u00f3rter Brasil referred to.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n

The small scale producer organisation certification does not recognise individual farms but the members who own the farms and therefore further investigation is needed to confirm that the farms named \u201cFinca La Siberia\u201d and \u201cLos Naranjos\u201d are owned by members of a Fairtrade certified cooperative.<\/em><\/p>\n

1) In the case of certified producers who hire workers, Fairtrade includes the obligation to formalize written employment contracts for temporary workers who work for three months or more on the estate (Criterion 3.5.7.). A copy of this employment contract is provided to the workers (Criterion 3.5.8.). Has this criterion been breached in the cases presented?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Cooperativa Departamental de Cafeicultores de Hu\u00edla (Cadefihuila) is a Fairtrade certified small producer organisation and therefore must adhere to the Fairtrade Standard for Small-scale Producer Organisations. Section 3.3.24 of the Standard requires that all permanent workers have a legally binding contract and that they understand the terms of the contract. These contracts may be verbal as per Colombian national law. Furthermore, Section 3.3.23 states that migrant or seasonal workers who are employed must also meet the requirement of the Standard.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

This applies to farmers who employ more than 10 workers, who work more than 30 hours per week, and who work for at least one month during the year.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Any violations of the Fairtrade Standard must be reported to FLOCERT, Fairtrade\u2019s independent certifier, who checks for these breaches in their thorough investigations. FLOCERT will have to investigate to determine any breach of the Fairtrade Standard.<\/p>\n

2) Fairtrade also requires that temporary workers\u2019 accommodation \u201cguarantees structural security\u201d and \u201creasonable levels of decency, privacy, safety and hygiene, and includes regular maintenance\u201d (Criterion 3.5.27.). Sanitary facilities must have toilets and showers with clean water. Has this criterion been breached in the cases presented?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Fairtrade Standard for Small-scale Producer Organisations Section 3.3.32 requires clean toilets\/latrines with hand washing facilities close by for workers. These facilities must be separate for women and men and the number of facilities is in proportion to the number of workers.<\/p>\n

This applies to farmers who employ more than 10 workers, who work more than 30 hours per week and who work for at least one month during the year.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Again, any violations of the Fairtrade Standard must be reported to FLOCERT, Fairtrade\u2019s independent certifier, who checks for these breaches in their investigations. FLOCERT will have to investigate to determine any breach of the Fairtrade Standard.<\/p>\n

3) Fairtrade also points out that the maximum weekly working hours allowed by certification is 48 hours a week (Criterion 3.5.9.). However, workers on certified farms interviewed by the report claim to work from sun up to sun down, exceeding the maximum limit of 8 hours a day. How does Fairtrade monitor compliance with this criterion?<\/strong><\/p>\n

The 48 hours refer to the Fairtrade Standard for Hired Labour Section 3.5.9 that states that companies must comply with applicable national and local legislation and industry standards regarding working hours and overtime regulations.\u00a0<\/p>\n

While we have identified the two organisations you mentioned as being certified as small producer organisations, which means the Hired Labour Standard does not apply. Fairtrade only certifies SPOs in coffee, no estates\/plantations, as 95 percent of\u00a0Latin American coffee\u00a0farms are smaller than five hectares.\u00a0<\/p>\n

For small producer organisations, section 1.1.0.21 of FLOCERT\u2019s Compliance Criteria is applicable. It states that \u201cthere are no indications that you or your members violate national legislation on the topics covered by this standard.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Only in case that one of the small producer organisations members or the small producer organisation itself has more than 10 workers that are present for one month or more during a year working more than 30 hours per week or equivalent, must the SPO also adhere to additional Compliance Criteria from the Small-scale Producer Organisation Standard.<\/p>\n

Regarding the way FLOCERT conducts its checks \u2013 FLOCERT checks during any audit\/investigation if working hours are in compliance with the applicable legal requirements in Colombia. We do this by checking contracts and records of overtime and potentially conduct worker interviews. Under Colombian law the weekly working hours are 46 hours, allowing for up to two extra hours per day\/12 extra hours per week.<\/p>\n

4) Does Fairtrade believe that the cases presented in the report are in line with Fairtrade\u2019s mission to \u201cmake trade fairer for the people who grow our food\u201d?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Fairtrade International does not all believe that these allegations are in line with our mission and values. We believe that farmers and workers should be paid a fair price and that they have decent working conditions and can help build sustainable livelihoods. We have chosen to work in areas where producers struggle with poverty and lack of stability so that we can make a difference. We take all allegations of workers\u2019 rights violations very seriously, and we view any form of exploitation and abuse as unacceptable.\u00a0<\/p>\n

It is important to remember that no certification scheme can guarantee that there are no worker rights violations. However, compliance with our rigorous Standards is checked through regular audits by our independent certifier FLOCERT. The audits involve physical inspections of fields, plants and offices as well as document and finance reviews and confidential interviews with staff members.<\/p>\n

5) What actions will Fairtrade take after becoming aware of the cases presented by Rep\u00f3rter Brasil?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Fairtrade Standards contain clear language prohibiting these violations based on the International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions and recommendations. Fairtrade takes immediate steps to follow-up to act to protect the people involved when an allegation is made.<\/p>\n

To address these allegations, here\u2019s what we have done:<\/p>\n