BC farms and agricultural companies hoping to return to normal life

As spring arrives and COVID-19 restrictions are lifted across the country, farmers and agricultural companies in the Okanagan are preparing for another influx of temporary foreign workers.

As of Thursday, the British Columbia government will no longer require vaccinated temporary foreign workers to self-quarantine upon arrival. Incoming workers will travel directly to their farms and the employer will be responsible for ensuring that federal quarantine requirements are met for those who have not been vaccinated or have been partially vaccinated.

British Columbia Fruit Growers’ Federation (BCFGA) executive director Glenn Lucas told Castanet that the quarantine program has helped keep workers safe and healthy, but it has also cost farmers and business money.

“The farmers had to pay them (temporary foreign workers) for 60 hours of work while the workers were in quarantine, even though they weren’t working.”

Lucas says he’s optimistic there will be enough temporary foreign workers to cover demand this year, but points to lower-than-expected harvest yields over the past three years — particularly for cherries and apples — as a reason why there isn’t a labor shortage in the Okanagan already.

“I haven’t heard of anyone giving up crops because of a labor shortage, and I think if we didn’t have the heat damage, we would have a labor shortage,” Lucas says.

This year is shaping up to be a little more normal, Lucas says, but there are still challenges like the slowness of the Mexican program.

“Part of it has to do with the earthquake in Mexico City and the Department of Labor having to move, along with all the computer systems and everything else. So we noticed a slowdown,” Lucas says.

The BCFGA told its members last fall that there may be challenges, but noted that it is taking longer to get Mexican workers into Canada.

“It’s frustrating when you expect something to happen and it’s late,” Lucas says.

Each year, about 3,500 workers from Mexico arrive in the Okanagan and another 1,500 workers from Jamaica.

“Jamaica really supports our recruiting program very strongly. So they have enough resources and a good response time, but if it’s not one thing, it’s another. All commercial flights from Jamaica to Canada are full.”

Lucas says there is still time to sort out these issues, but the BCFGA is also closely monitoring the situation in Ukraine.

“There is some sense of panic among farmers about the labor supply. (Ukrainians) have a very strong agricultural sector and we feel that Eastern European countries have very strong agricultural knowledge.”

Lucas hopes the BCFGA can strike an agreement with the federal and provincial governments to allow interested Ukrainian refugees to work on farms.

“We are very grateful that the Temporary Foreign Workers Program is still open and operating. We can’t wait to get back to normal from COVID-19 and let’s not have all these bumps and hurdles to deal with every year.”

Lucas says the BCFGA is still looking for ways to encourage domestic workers to accept farm jobs, but that has been an uphill battle. Canadians were usually unwilling to accept farm jobs that could be physically demanding.

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