Workers at Astral Foods’ Festive chicken operation in South Africa have today (29 October) begun strike action over pay.
In a statement today, employee representatives - the Casual Workers Advice Office (CWAO) - said “thousands of workers” from Festive have “begun an indefinite strike" in Gauteng and Mpumalanga”.
The action centres on Festive’s primary processing facility in Olifantsfontein, Gauteng, which processes approximately 2.3 million chickens per week.
It also involves chicken catchers, live bird handlers and farm workers, according to the employee representatives.
Astral Foods, in a statement, countered that only about 400 of more than 2,500 employees at its Olifantsfontein plant are participating.
It said the participating employees belong to a community-based workplace forum, not a recognised trade union, while most workers were represented by recognised unions with no ongoing disputes.
The Public Order Policing unit of the South African Police Service had declared the industrial action illegal, the company added.
Workers are demanding a minimum monthly wage of R13,500 ($811.6). Employees currently receive as little as R5,600 per month for a 45-hour work week, while farm staff earn R7,300 for 48-hour weeks without overtime pay for Sundays and public holidays.
“The workers deserve R13,500 per month and cannot continue to survive on R5,600 per month," the CWAO said, adding that public boycotts of Festive products are being organised.
In an alleged ultimatum issued to staff at the Olifantsfontein plant shared by CWAO, Astral Foods said the industrial action would result in “a severe financial impact on the company”.
The management also instructed employees to return to work or face disciplinary action, including possible dismissal.
Lawyers for Human Rights (LHR), representing the employees, said the strike was protected under Section 67(4) of the Labour Relations Act, according to the CWAO. In a formal letter to Festive management, the legal group warned it would approach the Labour Court for an urgent hearing if the company dismissed workers.
In its statement, the poultry group said it noted the allegations made by the striking employees and had become aware of “malicious and false information” being circulated by parties unrelated to the negotiations.
"Astral fully respects the constitutional right of employees to organise, to bargain collectively and to participate in protected strike action," the company said. "Astral nevertheless believes it is important to correct several inaccuracies in the statement in the interest of fairness and transparency."
The strike coincided with a trading update published by Astral today, forecasting a recovery for the financial year that ended 30 September.
The JSE-listed company expects headline earnings per share (HEPS) to increase between 95% and 105% year on year to between 4,277 cents and 4,496 cents, up from 2,193 cents in fiscal 2025.
Astral attributed the expected growth to lower feed costs driven by softer maize and soya prices, improved broiler farming efficiencies, and stronger poultry sales.
For the year ended 30 September 2025, Astral Foods’ revenue increased 10.4% to R22.60bn, while operating profit rose 10.9% to R1.25bn.
Profit for the year increased 16.4% to R876.4m, with EPS up 16.2% at 2,276 cents and HEPS up 14.2% at 2,193 cents.
