Raising a glass of wine shouldn’t come with hidden human costs. But in an industry that depends heavily on seasonal workers, human rights abuses can often go overlooked. Hotter summer days and unpredictable growing seasons caused by climate change mixed with a demand from retailers to maintain affordability for the consumer puts pressure across the entire wine supply chain, often putting the most vulnerable workers at risk. Fortunately, some wine producers are exploring ways to protect and support their staff, particularly their seasonal workers, resulting in fairer labour practices, a happier and more productive workforce, and potentially, better-quality wine.
‘There is a lot of know-how behind a bottle of wine,’ says Jean-Jacques Dubourdieu, owner and winemaker at Château Doisy-Daëne in Barsac, Bordeaux. ‘If we are not respectful with our seasonal workers, it means we are not respecting our wine.’
Why are human rights an issue in wine production?
The seasonal harvest is at the heart of winemaking. Picking grapes at their prime is key to a successful vintage, but to do so often requires hiring an influx of workers for a short amount of time. ‘The first question I would ask myself is where is all this seasonal labour coming from?’ says Dom de Ville, Director of Sustainability and Social Impact at The Wine Society. ‘Is a third-party labour agency being used? How do I know that the agency is paying a fair wage? There are many opportunities for exploitation.’
Seasonal work in the wine industry – which historically would be taken up in part by people in the local community – now often depends on vulnerable populations such as migrant or undocumented workers who already have limited employment options. The International Labour Organisation estimates that almost 5% of the global workforce is made up of migrant workers – around 169 million. The UK alone requires up to 60,000 seasonal workers annually just to harvest our food, with many labourers not earning above a poverty wage.
At the same time, vineyards are struggling to find seasonal staff. ‘It’s more and more complex to find people to work in the vineyard’ explains Dubourdieu of Château Doisy-Daëne. ‘[But] if we don’t respect our workers or treat them well it will only get worse.’
One assessment suggests about half of wine producers are impacted by labour shortages during peak harvest times. The same survey shows that these shortages can lead to staff working longer hours or wine producers potentially using third party brokers to quickly fill in labour gaps. But what exactly are the human rights issues that can occur during harvest?
Human rights issues in wine: key hotspots
- Labour exploitation and reliance on third party employment brokers
‘Exploitation during harvest can come in many forms,’ says de Ville. ‘There can even be a criminal element to it.’ One recent news report in Al Jazeera cited that 4,000 to 5,000 people are estimated to work in the vineyards in Italy, with at least two-thirds of them facing the risk of exploitation.
This type of treatment is well documented throughout an Oxfam study examining human rights issues in Italy’s wine industry. The report found that almost half (40%) of migrant workers interviewed in Sicily were pressured to pay illegal brokers thousands of euros upfront to secure employment, increasing the risk of forced labour and mistreatment.
Brokers are not unique to Italy – and not all brokers are predatory – but many wine producers depend on third-party services to fill labour gaps. According to Al Jazeera, the General Confederation on Italian Agriculture estimated there are 2,500 wine companies that hire seasonal workers with various contracts – more than half of them are migrant workers.
A recent high-profile case in Champagne – an area that hires around 120,000 seasonal workers each year – highlighted just how easily labourers can be coerced and exploited, even in one of the world’s most expensive wine regions. A group of migrant workers, some from west Africa, were recruited in Paris to pick grapes with the promise of making 80 euros a day. In reality, the workers were not paid, given a bag of rice and grapes to eat, forced to live in extremely unsafe conditions, and were essentially ‘treated like slaves’.
2. Poverty wages and excessive working hours
Poor wages in seasonal work is not new, but it’s an issue that persists. And even without third-party brokers, temporary workers are still at risk for being undervalued and overworked. The same Oxfam study looking into Italian wine exposed how the majority of seasonal wine workers (80%) in Puglia were barely making enough money to meet basic needs, forcing workers to put in longer hours. The report also found there to be a high risk of pay disparities between men and women, and between Italian workers and migrants. In the Al Jazeera report, one of the workers interviewed claimed to be making just 3-4 euros an hour (with an average low wage in Italy being around 7 euros), and that they had to work longer days to make up the difference.
The way people are paid also matters. Piecemeal pay, or a fixed rate based on weight of grapes harvested, can be discriminatory against older or less agile workers, or pressure people to work excessively to make it worth their while.
3. Health and safety
The long and laborious workdays during harvest feed into a wider challenge of health and safety in seasonal wine work. Climate change is causing record-breaking temperatures every year across popular viticulture regions, with pickers (and all outdoor workers) on the frontlines. In 2023, at least four pickers in Champagne – one only 17 years old – died while working in extreme heat. One union rep stated on French radio: ‘With climate change, the situation is bound to get worse.’
Beyond the rising risk of heat-related incidents, issues including lack of safety equipment on the field, exposure to pesticides and harmful chemicals, unsanitary and unfit living conditions, and harassment of women, all combine to paint a harrowing picture of some of the very real conditions seasonal workers might experience across the wine industry.
But a shift is starting to occur. And winemakers who are investing in ethical labour practices are starting to see a benefit both for the workers, and for themselves.
How wine producers are addressing human rights issues and protecting workers
Winemakers can take a number of concrete steps to protect their seasonal workers, and by doing so, minimise risk in their own operations. With an increasing amount of legislation being proposed focused on sustainability and Environment, Social, Governance (ESG) – the EU Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive (CSDDD) for example – large companies will have to start demonstrating labour best practices across their supply chains.
‘Firstly, we need producers to be paid a proper price for their wine,’ says de Ville. ‘It starts at the retailer. By trying to keep costs down, producers are forced to try to minimise costs elsewhere. Secondly, all companies involved need to start thinking about the S in ESG, especially across the supply chain. It’s so important to invest in the local community and in your workers, then ultimately you have a reliable workforce, and can build resilience in the supply chain.’
To tackle the issue of illegal or predatory brokers, producers can bypass exploitative middlemen and directly recruit workers, offering transparent contracts and fair wages. ‘We try to hire our workers directly to make sure they are staying in good conditions,’ says Dubourdieu. ‘It’s always more difficult when you work through a sub-contractor.’
Collective action can be one way to ensure ethical labour practices and avoid human rights issues in wine. Châteaux Doisy Daëne and Dutruch Grand Poujeaux, for example, have joined with between ten and 20 other estates to create their own labour sourcing sub-contractor. ‘We’ve created our own contractor company called GEA Sauternes (Groupement d’Entreprise Agricole),’ explains Dubourdieu. ‘We have a team of 200 workers that we take care of in terms of training, and recently our company was certified RSE (Responsabilité Sociétale des Entreprises) – equivalent to B-Corp status – so it’s part of our company strategy.’
Producers can also ensure safer working conditions with proper training and equipment. Decent housing with basic amenities and a culture of respect are essential. The members of the collective that Chateaux Doisy Daëne and Dutruch Grand Poujeaux are part of each contribute towards the costs of one or two people whose job it is to find out what each estate’s labour needs are going to be throughout the year. They source enough people to satisfy those needs and make the right number of workers available when needed. The estates then all share the workers throughout the year (pruning, harvest, bottling).
‘We try to keep the same people from one vintage to another,’ says Dubourdieu. ‘We train our manager to ensure they have the most appropriate behaviour with the seasonal workers, and as an estate owner, I try to engage every week to show our workers that we are not a big group, but a family business who care for its team. I believe in personal relationships with the team.’
With care, time and concerted effort, human rights issues in the wine industry can be minimised, and by prioritising ethical labour sourcing and fostering trust with migrant workers, wine producers can create a more sustainable and truly enjoyable product - one that consumers can feel good about buying and enjoying.
‘There is no magical recipe,’ emphasises Dubourdieu. ‘But with proximity, personal relationships and respect, an estate can keep a stable team of seasonal workers.’
