abusesaffiliationarrow-downarrow-leftarrow-rightarrow-upattack-typeburgerchevron-downchevron-leftchevron-rightchevron-upClock iconclosedeletedevelopment-povertydiscriminationdollardownloademailenvironmentexternal-linkfacebookfiltergenderglobegroupshealthC4067174-3DD9-4B9E-AD64-284FDAAE6338@1xinformation-outlineinformationinstagraminvestment-trade-globalisationissueslabourlanguagesShapeCombined Shapeline, chart, up, arrow, graphLinkedInlocationmap-pinminusnewsorganisationotheroverviewpluspreviewArtboard 185profilerefreshIconnewssearchsecurityPathStock downStock steadyStock uptagticktooltiptwitteruniversalityweb

这页面没有简体中文版本,现以English显示

文章

24 八月 2022

作者:
Libby Brooks, The Guardian

Kenya: James Finlay Kenya accused of ‘vexatious and oppressive’ attempts to block lawsuit by tea workers over working conditions; court order permits workers to continue class action

"Kenyan tea pickers on Scottish-run farm to pursue health issues in UK court", 24 August 2022

More than a 1,000 Kenyan tea pickers who say that harsh and exploitative working conditions on a Scottish-run tea farm have caused them crippling health complaints can now pursue their class action in an Edinburgh court.

Lawyers acting for the tea pickers have won an order from the court of session, Scotland’s highest civil court, telling James Finlay Kenya Ltd (JFK) to abandon attempts to block the suit through the Kenyan courts.

The judge, Lord Braid, condemned the company’s “vexatious and oppressive” practices in trying to derail the claim...

The company has defended its health and safety record, and carries the Fairtrade mark on its products, as well as certifications from the Soil Association and the Rainforest Alliance. On its company website Finlays describes its Kenyan estates as “a thriving community of thousands of employees and outgrowers and their families who live, work and study there”.

But in previous testimony, workers claimed that oppressive working conditions caused them significant and permanent musculoskeletal damage. They said they had to work up to 12 hours a day in a six-day week, carry up to 26lb of the tea leaf pickings on their back over rough slopes, and in some cases meet a weight target of 66lb of tea a day or not get paid.

This work, as well as the prolonged bending, twisting and reaching required to gather tea leaves, is argued to have accelerated the ageing of pickers’ backs by as much as 20 years.

JFK originally tried to stop the suit going ahead in Scotland and more recently pursued blocking action in Kenya, arguing that the Scottish claim was an assault on Kenyan sovereignty. But the workers’ lawyers argued that JFK had engaged in a “deliberate campaign to defeat the ends of justice and cause distress”.

The lawyer for the pickers, Patrick McGuire of Thompsons, said the claim was based around a combination of “oppressive” working conditions and a pay model often based around impossible picking targets....

JFK has been approached for comment.

The company’s argument that Scottish courts do not have jurisdiction over Kenyan work injury claims will be heard at the court of session at a later date.

时间线

隐私资讯

本网站使用 cookie 和其他网络存储技术。您可以在下方设置您的隐私选项。您所作的更改将立即生效。

有关我们使用网络存储的更多信息,请参阅我们的 数据使用和 Cookie 政策

Strictly necessary storage

ON
OFF

Necessary storage enables core site functionality. This site cannot function without it, so it can only be disabled by changing settings in your browser.

分析 cookie

ON
OFF

您浏览本网页时我们将以Google Analytics收集信息。接受此cookie将有助我们理解您的浏览资讯,并协助我们改善呈现资讯的方法。所有分析资讯都以匿名方式收集,我们并不能用相关资讯得到您的个人信息。谷歌在所有主要浏览器中都提供退出Google Analytics的添加应用程式。

市场营销cookies

ON
OFF

我们从第三方网站获得企业责任资讯,当中包括社交媒体和搜寻引擎。这些cookie协助我们理解相关浏览数据。

您在此网站上的隐私选项

本网站使用cookie和其他网络存储技术来增强您在必要核心功能之外的体验。