2. Thriving workforce

We employ 414 people full-time, rising to over 800 at harvest. We aim to promote internally, providing people with opportunities for growth and advancement. We run an internship scheme, offering work experience and training to undergraduate and graduate students. Significant growth in areas such as wine tourism in particular, means that more new jobs are likely to be created in the near future.

We offer a wide range of staff benefits including free lunch to all full-time employees, company health and life insurance, travel insurance, pensions insurance, access to a complementary private company pensions fund, access to a company doctor and nurse, additional holiday and other rewards after 25 years of service, a prize to Year 12 children of employees who receive the best exam results each year, and Best Idea prizes for people who contribute internal optimisation and innovation suggestions.

We are committed to equal pay opportunities for men and women in all areas of our operations, including permanent employees, contractors, and seasonal workers at harvest time.

We support the ongoing learning and development of our employees, providing opportunities and incentives for further training and qualifications. Regular in-house training is organised across all areas of the company and staff are encouraged to attend relevant seminars and obtain appropriate additional qualifications, such as Wine & Spirit Education Trust diplomas.

We organise a calendar of company events through the year which includes a Summer Picnic (an away-day with every employee) and a Christmas Lunch. We also subsidise an office running club, company Padel tournaments and football tournaments. Every employee with children aged below 14 are given free circus tickets each Christmas.

With people working in a variety of environments - from the vineyard to the winery and from the bottling hall to the wine cellar - we take the safety of our employees extremely seriously. We have strict and rigorous health and safety procedures and we monitor and report workplace accidents. We regularly review our systems and processes to ensure our company Health and Safety is continuously improving.

We run the last remaining team of professional coopers in the port trade, maintaining and preserving an ancient craft. We provide apprenticeships to young coopers, ensuring a new generation is learning the skills to keep this tradition alive.