Hivos in collaboration with flower sector stakeholders will convene the first ever “Producer of the Year Award” (POYA) as a platform to demonstrate the role of front runner farms (in horticulture) and the impact of better engendered workplace policies on business and changing the state of women workers.

This award ceremony is borne out of the realization that several corporate entities and organisations have consistently and eagerly integrated gender awareness approaches within their policies.

POYA strives to amplify the stories of change that organisations and farms are creating through entrenching better working conditions, culture and practices that serve to respect women worker rights and overall labor rights. Open to all horticultural farms, the award ceremony seeks to celebrate change across the spectrum of issues under decent work.

This year the award ceremony will take place on June 2nd, 2020 during the International Flower Trade Expo (IFTEX), in Nairobi and is organized under the theme: Equality blooms business: celebrating gender equality and decent work for women in horticulture.

The awards will be under five categories:

• Model farm award – exemplary in all aspects under listed categories (see below)
• Leading employer in female leadership
• Leading farm in employee safety and maternal welfare
• Leading employer in fair wages and wage equality
• Exemplary employee leader/educator

These awards are open to all horticultural farms in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Ethiopia to self-nominate. Nomination will be reviewed and followed by a verification exercise that will involve a visit to the farm, interviews with select staff and workers and non-confidential document verification.

Only eligible farms that have met the basic criteria under each award will be considered. Any farm seeking nomination needs to have met the basic threshold below:

• Is a producer of horticultural products with a presence in any of the 5 East African countries: Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, Rwanda and Tanzania.
• Has at least 100 employees (exception given to Rwanda farms).
• Can demonstrate a commitment to ensure continued awareness creation on gender equality, decent work and sexual harassment prevention that involve both management and non-management staff in the past 18 months.
• Has an effective gender committee that has clear performance structures.
• Has adopted an anti-sexual harassment policy with clear grievance and reporting mechanisms / structures.
• Can submit demonstrable changes to policy and employee satisfaction as a result of a commitment to gender equality.
• Has submitted a duly completed nomination form before the stipulated deadline.
• Has received a rating of at least 40% by their workers – satisfaction with the company practices and culture in enhancing female leadership, safety and security at work, fair work conditions etc. This satisfaction rate will be determined after the independent verification exercise.

Category specific eligibility and criteria

Under the desired nominated category, the farm needs to show a demonstrable and exemplary result and change in the area for which they have been nominated, that is:

• Model farm award – exemplary in all award focus areas (exemplary gender committee). Under this category, a model farm is one that:
  • Has an active gender committee with clear performance structures.
  • Can exhibit demonstrable changes to policy and employee satisfaction as a result of a commitment to gender equality.
  • Shows demonstrable achievements in every area under the POYA Awards.
  • Has a progressive, operational anti-sexual harassment policy and clear redress mechanisms.
  • Can demonstrate a decrease in sexual harassment incidences since implementation.
  • Shows commitment to anti-sexual harassment training/sensitization/awareness across all job levels of their workers.
    • NB: This category is only open to farms engaged with any of the Women@Work Campaign partners in your respective country
  • Leading employer in female leadership

• • The farm can demonstrate a commitment to supporting women’s leadership e.g. leadership training for their women workers.
  • The farm has women’s leadership as a priority across all levels of management.
• Leading employer in employee safety and maternal welfare
• • The farm has met all the minimum requirements of employee safety as stipulated within international and national labor standards. This includes protective wear and safety procedures that all relevant employees have been made aware of.
  • The farm has an exemplary support system and structure for maternal protections before and after birth as well as maternity leave for pregnant workers.

• Leading employer in fair wages and wage equality

• • The farm can demonstrate a commitment to wage equality with all workers being paid equally for work of equal value.

• Exemplary employee leader/educator

• • An employee (from any job group) nominated by their farm who has shown exemplary leadership qualities and a commitment to cascade knowledge on labor rights and sexual harassment to other workers.

Nomination forms can be accessed through this link.

Once submitted, the applications will be reviewed by an independent committee and nominee farms will be contacted to facilitate the verification exercise March to April 2020.

In case of any questions or clarifications contact: ekalevera@hivos.org

POYA Frequently Asked Questions

Who is the award nomination open to?

• Nomination is open to any horticultural producer within the 5 countries Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda and Ethiopia.

How many categories can one farm nominate itself under?

• There is no limit to the number of categories a farm can enter.

Can a farm withdraw its nomination after submission?

• You can withdraw your nomination under a specific category or altogether by sending an email to ekalevera@hivos.org

What does the verification exercise entail?

• The verification exercise will involve a visit to the farm, interviews with select staff and workers and non-confidential document verification.

Who makes up the selection committee?

• The selection committee will be multi-sectoral, made up of civil society, certification agencies, unions and producer organization representatives.

Read here the PDF version.