Speech: Migrant Workers are Essential to Maintaining Canada’s Food Supply Chain and Should Have Pathways to Permanency
On June 1, 2021 Senator Robert Black spoke to Senator Omidvar’s motion calling on the government to create pathways to citizenship or permanent residency for essential temporary migrant workers across all sectors and table a status report on the issue. Watch his speech:
Hon. Robert Black: Honourable senators, I have risen on a number of occasions to highlight the important role that temporary foreign workers play in maintaining Canada’s food supply. Today, I rise to speak to the motion to call on the government to create pathways to citizenship and permanent residency for essential temporary migrant workers across all sectors, tabled by Senator Omidvar. I would like to begin by saying it is an honour to work with my colleague Senator Omidvar, the liaison for the Independent Senators Group. As the chair of the Canadian Senators Group, we are both proof that senators from different groups can work together on issues of mutual interest. As a CSG senator I look forward to collaborating on other issues with my colleagues from all sides of the chamber.
Temporary foreign workers have been an important feature of Canada’s labour market landscape for decades. Each year, thousands of foreign nationals travel north to fill shortages in our labour force. Agriculture is particularly dependent on these temporary foreign workers, who account for approximately 20% of the total employment of the sector. These workers come to Canada each year to work on our farms, provide care for our families and contribute to a wide variety of other industries. There is no doubt that these individuals positively contribute to our domestic workforce while also contributing positively to their home nations as they support their families from abroad.
While there are a number of ways that individuals from abroad can come to Canada for work, many of the agricultural workers come by way of the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program or the Temporary Foreign Worker Program. The Temporary Foreign Worker Program allows Canadian employers to temporarily hire foreign nationals to fill temporary shortages. The Temporary Foreign Worker Program is jointly operated by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada and Employment and Social Development Canada. While related to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program, or SAWP, is an eight-month program that targets workers from Mexico and the Caribbean to fill shortages related to agriculture and specific commodities sectors such as dairy, mushrooms, poultry and grains, among others.
According to Statistics Canada, there were about 550,000 temporary foreign workers in Canada in 2017, accounting for 2.9% of total employment. Although the overall percentage of temporary foreign workers may not be large, they are particularly important in agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting. In fact, Statistics Canada also reported that temporary foreign workers accounted for 41.6% of agricultural workers in Ontario and over 30% of agricultural workers in Quebec, British Columbia and Nova Scotia in 2017.
As we all know, COVID-19 has impacted every facet of our daily lives, from marking milestones with family, using Zoom on a screen, to hosting Senate sittings with only a handful of senators in the Red Chamber. No industry has gone untouched by this intrusive virus, including those requiring the services of migrant workers. According to research conducted by the Library of Parliament, almost 3,000 fewer Temporary Foreign Worker Program work permits came in effect in March 2020 compared to the average of the previous five years. This was, of course, a result of restrictions placed on travel early in 2020 to combat the effects of the virus. While restrictions were loosened and exemptions were made to account for the role of migrant workers, there was a decrease in the total number of workers who arrived in Canada last year, and a significant delay in the permit and travel process, which ultimately affected our agriculture producers and food processors.
The threat of COVID-19 also meant that workers faced increased risk as they made their way from their home countries to work here in Canada. Over this past year, we saw how the virus particularly impacted workplaces where workers can be found in close proximity to one another, which led to several outbreaks in locations such as meat processing plants and on farms. Tragically, some foreign nationals working in congregate settings lost their lives to COVID-19.
In an Ontario Farmer article from this past February, Ken Forth, a broccoli grower in Hamilton area and president of the Foreign Agricultural Resource Management Services, highlighted how the job of putting top-quality food on tables has always been difficult and risky, and that COVID-19 has only added to the already existing challenges.
Mr. Forth wrote:
. . . the vast majority of farmers responded overwhelmingly well to the health crisis. They went to great lengths very quickly in difficult and rapidly changing circumstances to limit the impact of COVID-19 on their workers and their communities.
He went on to say:
[Farmers] care deeply about the health and well-being of each individual who works for us, whether they were born here or elsewhere. We care about them as workers and, more importantly, as people.
While there are a few bad apples in any bunch, I would like to take this opportunity to say that the majority of farm operations across this great country that employ migrant workers do so with pride and respect for their workers. They know that it is because of these workers that their operations are able to feed Canadians year in and year out. Some workers have remained with the same farm for decades, and many of these operations would cease to exist without them.
Earlier this year, I asked the Government Representative in the Senate whether the government planned to prepare for the arrival of this year’s temporary foreign workers in advance of another harvest season. I was hopeful that the government would work to ensure that employers and workers were better prepared and supported to minimize the risk of COVID-19, safeguard the health of those at risk and ultimately avoid the tragic events, such as the outbreak and deaths that were witnessed last year.
Although I appreciate the steps the government has taken to support these vulnerable sectors, I would like to call attention to the fact that this government will be retracting the funding made available through the Mandatory Isolation Support for Temporary Foreign Workers Program on August 31. Unfortunately, planting, harvesting and growing does not have an end date.
It is clear that the associated costs of the 14-day mandatory quarantine and the potential additional quarantine days in the event of an infection or failed test cannot be recovered through the marketplace, and growers, producers and processors need further assurance of support to maintain stable production. I implore this government to revisit this phase-out funding plan and instead commit to continued, sustainable funding until the quarantine requirement has passed.
While the aforementioned Temporary Foreign Worker Program and Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program are multi-faceted and complex programs, public trust in federal work programs is imperative. In order to gauge trust in these programs and gain an understanding of the Canadian perception of these programs and temporary foreign workers, Senator Omidvar and I worked with Nanos Research to poll Canadians on the importance of the agriculture sector to the Canadian economy, the role of temporary foreign workers and related programs in the agriculture sector and paths to citizenship or permanent residency for temporary foreign workers.
This poll, conducted last fall, found that more than 8 in 10 Canadians would support or somewhat support providing a way for temporary migrant workers to remain in Canada. The poll also showed that the vast majority of Canadians agree or somewhat agree that temporary migrant workers are essential contributors to the agriculture sector in Canada and that they should be entitled to the same benefits and protections as any other worker.
While it is important to highlight that not all migrant workers are looking to attain permanent residency here in Canada and prefer to come for a few months and then return home to their families for the rest of the year, we should still offer additional pathways for those who are seeking to become permanent residents.
As Dylan Wiens, an Ontario peach and fruit farmer in Niagara said to me:
Farmers do not set the rules for immigration, but we are fully supportive of any international farm worker who wants to go through the government’s process of applying for permanent residency.
In 2020, the federal government also launched the three-year Agri-Food Pilot. While not launched specifically in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, this pilot aims to address labour needs in the agri-food sector by providing a new permanent residence pathway for certain agri-food workers. Unfortunately, I learned that this program has had very little uptake since being announced last year.
In a December briefing, department officials shared that as of last October, only 153 applications had been received, while the program has an annual capacity of 2,750 applicants. While this is certainly disappointing, I am hopeful that the government is doing its utmost to inform and promote the available programs to those who are interested in acquiring permanent residency.
Some positive news then came this April, when the Minister of Immigration announced an additional pathway to permanent residency for over 90,000 essential temporary workers and international graduates. This welcome announcement created a one-time limited opportunity for truck drivers, caregivers, health care workers and agricultural workers to apply depending on specific criteria. While this is a wonderful step forward in further engaging with those who are interested in obtaining permanent residency, we must remember that not all workers are looking to do so. It is critical that all of the workers who come to support Canada’s labour market, whether it is in agriculture, health care or otherwise, are supported by this country.
Offering pathways to permanent residency to those who are seeking it will only strengthen the Canadian workforce, support our economic recovery and enhance the fabric of our diverse society, but we cannot forget to support those who leave their friends and family to work abroad for only part of the year.
The popular Facebook page Faces Behind Food catalogues the stories of those workers who are often behind the scenes of our agri-food industries, including many migrant workers. I would like to share with you a post from earlier this year. On January 14, Faces Behind Food shared Percy’s story. Percy is a seasonal agricultural worker on an Ontario apple orchard and has been here for some time. He says:
I’ve been coming to Canada to work for 30 years. It’s nice to work here. When I come here to work, the money can go home and buy things. It helps feed my family, build a house, and then when I go back home, it’s like a holiday. I come here to work for seven months, then I’m back home five months then back here again. I’ve got three kids, they’re 28, 30 and 31. When you’re here, you get to know everyone so they’re like a family too.
Stories like this highlight the long-lasting relationships that have grown out of the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program. I wholeheartedly believe that there should be opportunities for permanent residency made available for those who are interested. However, as I have said before, many Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program workers rely on the fact that they get to go home. Again, I’m hopeful this government will work not only to propose additional pathways to permanency but to also further promote and engage with those who are utilizing the already-available programs.
Honourable colleagues, it is undeniable that the past year has presented some of the most challenging issues, the likes of which none of us have experienced in our lifetimes. Despite its many downsides, the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has given us all reason to re-examine our priorities, develop back-up plans and ensure that we’re ready for anything. While we continue to adapt to this new normal, it is important to also recognize those who have continued to dedicate themselves to serving us in essential sectors.
Although I can’t call myself an expert in many fields, I do know something about Canadian agriculture. As a lifelong advocate, I know that many farmers, producers and processors rely on the labour of migrant workers, many of whom have been travelling to work for the same employers for decades.
Canadian agriculture is a complex sector, with the labour needs of each farmer being different from the next, especially as the industry has faced increased stress, the result of COVID-19 and the pandemic. While the pandemic has exposed existing vulnerabilities in Canada’s agriculture industry, particularly in regard to its insufficient and unstable labour supply, and highlighted the need for a national agri-food labour strategy and strategic investments in the agri-food industry, it has also made it abundantly clear that workers in the agricultural sector are essential to maintaining the Canadian food supply chain.
Now, honourable colleagues, I would like to share with you the words of Cyr Couturier, Chair of the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council. When I asked what the industry itself was doing to support migrant workers in agriculture, he said:
Rest assured, the industry is working hard to develop sectoral strategies to develop pathways for recruitment and retention in Ag and Agri-foods sectors, including greater access to pathways to permanency.
In a time when almost nothing was certain, our agriculture sector has worked tirelessly to keep Canadian families fed without fear of shortages. It is critical that the Canadian government work to proactively support the many temporary foreign workers who return to Canada each year and to examine the possibility of additional pathways for permanent residency, as well as to encourage those who are seeking permanent resident status to apply. These temporary foreign workers do their best for Canada. Now, let us do the same for them.
To my colleague Senator Omidvar, I look forward to collaborating with you again in the future. Thank you for listening. Meegwetch.