Canada’s Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP) could point the way to reforming how foreign workers are treated in Canada, according to a United Nations report. Tomoya Obokata, special rapporteur on the global scourge of modern slavery to the UN Human Rights Council (UNHCR) issued a statement on September 6 at the end of a two-week …
SAWP
Foreign worker consultation planned
BC Agriculture Council and the Western Agriculture Labour Initiative are preparing to survey temporary foreign workers this summer in an effort to understand how employers can improve workers’ experience and reduce complaints. “The goal of the work is to collect anonymous information directly from workers on their experience in BC,” a bulletin circulated to fruit growers this week says. “At …
Industry looks to move needle on labour shortage
Two new initiatives are digging into solutions to the perennial labour shortage facing BC producers. A report released by the BC Fruit Growers Association on March 31 analyzes temporary foreign worker programs in the US and Canada with a view to helping smaller operations access labour. The report proposes a pilot project that could reduce …
Strict pandemic plan keeps workers safe
SUMMERLAND – Carcajou Fruit Co. is a 160-acre family business that typically hires 60 domestic workers to pick their cherries over a six-week period each summer. But the COVID-19 pandemic last summer changed the labour game for the family-owned orchard. While the farm was lucky to receive 13 foreign workers through the Seasonal Agricultural Worker …
Growers scramble for flights
New international travel restrictions have farm employers scrambling to arrange charter flights for workers, making it a numbers game that hinges on having enough workers for flights to be viable. Air Canada, WestJet, Sunwing and Air Transat announced January 29 a voluntary suspension of all service to the Caribbean and Mexico from January 31 until …
Provincial quarantine program working
Seasonal workers and farm businesses continue to benefit from the province’s publicly funded quarantine program, which covers the cost of meals and accommodations for incoming foreign workers during their mandatory self-isolation period. The program remains in place despite a federal requirement since January 7 for all international arrivals to test negative for COVID-19 prior to …