By Alice McFarlane

Government announces plan to better protect foreign workers

Mar 17, 2021 | 9:36 AM

MELFORT, Sask. — The federal government has clarified how temporary foreign workers (TWFs) will get to farms this spring with regulations in place to stay in Government Authorized Accommodation (GAA).

If temporary foreign workers can find private transportation to their employment and they can complete their 14 day quarantine on-farm, they will not need to complete the three-day stay in a GAA.

Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada minister Marie-Claude Bibeau said asymptomatic TFWs will be able to travel directly to their place of quarantine after getting a COVID-19 test at the airport provided they travel by private transportation and are accompanied only with those who travelled with them to Canada.

“TFWs who will need to travel by public means to a secondary location upon arrival in Canada will be required to stay in a GAA and await the results of their COVID-19 test,” Bibeau said.

It’s estimated 95 per cent of temporary foreign workers will be able to go directly to farms to quarantine.

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Provided TFWs have a quarantine plan and safe transportation arranged to their place of quarantine, the government intends to ensure employers and TFWs will not assume additional costs associated with the three-day quarantine requirement at the point of entry. However, the financial mechanism to cover this cost is not yet established. Workers will also be provided with supports on arrival and during their hotel stay.

Farms could be hit with serious fines of as much as $100,000 if they do not follow the rules.

The federal government is committed to working with provinces to ensure employers are well prepared to safely welcome and quarantine workers including through safe travel arrangements to their place of quarantine.

Bibeau also said there will be increased inspections of agriculture employers to make sure they are meeting their quarantine obligations and will fund migrant worker organizations to provide direct assistance to workers affected by COVID-19 for the 2021 season.

There will also be improvements to the TFW tip line to help workers report mistreatment or abuse, as well as providing additional education for workers on their rights.

The federal government also announced a pilot project to conduct more in-depth inspections of employers at higher risk of committing Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) fraud and will assess the results in the next few months.

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alice.mcfarlane@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @farmnewsNOW