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The Canadian agriculture industry is calling for changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker program in an effort to solve a labour shortage it says costs farmers $1.5 billion annually in lost sales.
The Canadian Federation of Agriculture, as well as more than 20 Alberta-based farm groups representing a wide spectrum of producers, has made a submission as part of a federal review of the “primary agriculture stream” of the Temporary Foreign Worker program. Recommendations stemming from this review are expected to be presented to the federal minister of employment in September.
“We are certainly seeing farm labour needs increasing and getting worse over time,” said Scott Ross, assistant executive director for the Canadian Federation of Agriculture. “Farmers are struggling to access capital and sales opportunities are being lost because they don’t have the certainty they’re going to be able to harvest their crop in a timely manner.”
Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker program — which allows employers to bring in foreign workers if they can prove they cannot find Canadian workers to fill vacancies — was given a major overhaul in 2014 by Stephen Harper’s Conservative government. In 2016, the new Liberal government announced its own review of the program.
The changes made by both governments so far have been aimed at cracking down on alleged abuses within the system, and ensuring that TFWs are used by Canadian employers only as a last resort. But while agricultural producers have been exempt from some of these changes — for example, farmers are not subject to a government-imposed cap on the number of TFWs they can employ — industry groups say it has become increasingly difficult to bring in foreign workers to pick vegetables, feed cattle and help with harvest.
“Processing times have increased to where we regularly hear about it taking five, six months,” Ross said. “We certainly hear from some farmers who haven’t used the program in the past and are now looking at it, but saying, ‘I can’t be bothered with the regulatory and administrative burden associated with it.’”
According to the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council, the labour shortage in the country’s agriculture industry has doubled to 59,000 workers in the past 10 years and is expected to double again to 114,000 workers by 2025. Job vacancy rates on the farm hover between seven and 10 per cent, versus a national overall job vacancy rate of about two per cent.
“Labour continues to dominate as the No. 1 risk to business success for Canadian producers,” said Portia MacDonald-Dewhirst, the council’s executive director. “It’s an impact that happens at the farm, but it also expands through the value chain.”
In 2017, primary agriculture accounted for 62 per cent of approved TFW positions in Canada. Farm groups say agriculture has a particularly tough time attracting Canadian labour, in part due to its rural location and the physical nature of the work.
In addition to processing times, agriculture groups are frustrated by “excessive” housing requirements that mean employers must secure housing for their TFWs long before they find out if their application has even been approved. They are also concerned about mandated random worksite inspections, since in most cases a farmer’s worksite is also his or her private residence.
In Alberta, the two agricultural sectors that rely the most on foreign workers are the greenhouse and the cattle feeding industries. Bryan Walton, CEO of the Alberta Cattle Feeders’ Association, said at some feedlots up to 10 per cent of the workforce is made up of foreign workers….(Readmore)