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an ability (and willingness) to work out-side
early in the morning and late at
night – in the cold of spring and fall, heat
of summer, during rainy periods, and
most other weather in between.”
Stephanie Cruikshanks, industry
development specialist – labour and
immigration with Manitoba Agriculture
and Resource Development, says that
the largest agriculture labour gap in
Manitoba tends to be in vegetable pro-duction
and beekeeping, which together
account for 650 to 750 temporary foreign
workers in the province each year.
“When that travel ban hit on
March 18, it changed everything,” said
Cruikshanks. “Now (late May) we have
200 temporary foreign workers in the
province, not the 600 we expected to see
at this time.”
Cruikshanks says farmers need reli-able
workers who will return to the job
year after year. Although there may be
Canadians who find jobs in agriculture,
they are not applying as farm labourers
in the numbers that are required to keep
these farm businesses in operation.
“You also have to understand that
under the rules of SAWP, the job offered
to Canadians must be the same as the
one assigned to temporary foreign
workers, including staying in dormito-ry
housing, and performing all of the
same tasks under the same conditions,”
said Cruikshanks. “Everyone has to cut,
grade, and package. They all have to do
the same physical labour and operate the
same machinery. It’s hard work, but it’s
valued work. Without temporary foreign
workers, the vegetable industry simply
wouldn’t happen.”
The Canadian Federation of
Agriculture (CFA) notes that nearly all
vacant positions in Canadian agriculture
are filled by temporary foreign work-ers.
A shortfall of 76,000 unfilled vacan-cies
was filled in each of 2017 and 2018,
with close to 60,000 workers brought in
under SAWP and the Temporary Foreign
Workers Program.
In an April press conference, CFA
president Mary Robinson cautioned
that without temporary foreign work-ers,
Canadian farmers will be forced
to rethink the types of crops that they
grow, perhaps opting for feed crops rath-er
than hand harvested tomatoes and
other vegetables. An extended short-age
of labour could impact the amount,
TEMPORARY FOREIGN WORKERS
variety, and price of agricultural goods
at Canadian stores.
“Without these workers, many of
the hand harvested crops would not be
grown in Manitoba – on our farm that
would mean no asparagus, broccoli, or
squash,” said Connery. “It is extremely
important to follow all the food safety
rules, health rules, and quality require-ments.
All of this training is a huge
investment on the part of the farmer,
and it takes a lot of time for the worker to
become good at the job to where they are
an effective part of the team.”
Gregory also describes beekeeping
as a cumulative investment in skill
and knowledge.
“Every colony has a story,” said
Gregory. “But the story changes all the
time; no two springs are the same, no
two harvests. Over time, you learn to
read what’s best for your bees.
“The challenge of beekeeping is
learning to be aware of the bees’ tem-perament,
the presence of disease, when
and how much to feed. As a beekeeper,
you’ve got six weeks to build strength in
the hive, and a limited time to harvest.
Our workers have to be out there in all
weather, providing dependable and reli-able
maintenance of the colony.
“When a worker is properly trained,
they recognize what is needed in the
hive, and can be responsive. It can be the
difference in not killing the queen and
destroying the 200 pounds of honey that
she produces.”
Gregory says that the Canadian agri-cultural
labour shortage is an important
factor in the health and growth poten-tial
of his operation. Without reliable
and trained part-time help like the kind
provided by temporary foreign workers,
Interlake Honey would be operating with
600 or fewer hives, only one-third of their
current business.
Cruikshanks says that if any good
has come of the delay in receiving for-eign
workers this year, it is the increased
attention on the issue of the Canadian
agriculture labour shortage, and that
may draw more people to work in
the sector.
“If there is a silver lining in all of this,
it’s that the problem has been brought
into the limelight and people are asking
questions. We get to remind ourselves
that food security is important. It’s a
privilege to not have to worry about it.” FV
Manitoba Farmers’ Voice § Summer 2020 § 21
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