Author: editor

What do migrant farm workers’ wages and expenses look like?

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It’s important to ensure migrant farm workers are paid and compensated fairly for the hard work they do to help feed us. Many people automatically assume that workers in the federally regulated Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP) and Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) program are paid poorly or even below minimum wage, but this is not the case.

All migrant workers employed in Canada under one of these programs is guaranteed at least the minimum wage and often more. For example, wages for SAWP and TFW workers in Ontario are slightly above the minimum wage because under the terms of the programs they arrive through, they receive the higher of either the provincial minimum wage or a federally calculated wage rate that is based on inflation.

What is perhaps less known than this wage guarantee is that farm workers employed through these two programs receive other important employment benefits for the work they do in Ontario. The most substantial benefits are in the form of subsidized housing and travel during their employment here. For example, workers hired through the SAWP program receive fully subsidized housing at no cost to them and have half their flight to Canada paid; workers hired through other agricultural TFW programs receive highly subsidized housing – with a maximum of $30/week rent paid by a worker – and their flight to Canada is fully subsidized.  These subsidies must be provided by employers under the federal program rules and would add several dollars to the workers’ hourly pay if converted into their cash equivalent.

Several smaller but not insignificant benefits include that the housing provided to Ontario is typically fully furnished and in many cases, employers offer free Wifi and TV.  The housing for farm workers coming to Canada under the SAWP and TFW programs is regularly inspected by local and federal departments and also may be visited by officials from the workers’ home country at any time in order to ensure it is up to standard and comfortable for the workers to live in.

The largest expense for workers while they live in Ontario is groceries, as this is not an expense covered by employers. A lot of the workers LOVE to cook, and you can often find them cooking traditional dishes from the countries they are from. Read more about the restaurant Desrine owns back in Jamaica or watch Errol discuss his favourite meal to cook for everyone.

As most farms are located in rural areas, workers will have designated times each week when they head to the local grocery store to do their shopping for the upcoming week. While not required to provide any form of transportation for workers, many employers arrange times for workers to access the transportation needed to run their errands.

Other expenses include clothing, cellphone bills and other little things that workers may need during their time in Ontario.

If you’re curious about more information on the SAWP or TFW program visit https://www.morethanamigrantworker.ca/faqs/.

Migrant farm workers’ access to healthcare in Ontario

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“I can only say really good things about the healthcare system.”

A common misconception around migrant farm workers in Ontario is they don’t have access to the same healthcare as Ontario residents. While the workers may not be full-time Ontario residents, they do receive the same healthcare access to OHIP as permanent residents do in this province. In fact, it’s mandated under the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP) and Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) program that workers receive this coverage.

Elly Hoff, Human Resource specialist at Meyer’s Farms (check out this The Grower article. Heated floors!!) in Niagara-on-the-Lake indicates that employers are responsible for making sure that workers are registered with OHIP.

Every five years, that means taking them to a physical location like a Service Ontario office to have an updated photo taken; in other years card renewals are done online.

Importantly, international workers like those arriving through the SAWP and other TFW programs are covered by OHIP even while workers wait for their new or updated cards to arrive. Healthcare providers are not allowed to deny critical care to them, and for non-urgent care where up -front payment may be requested by service providers, there is a reimbursement process once OHIP registration is completed.

In addition to having the same OHIP coverage as Ontarians, international workers often purchase supplemental private medical insurance through bulk deals brokered by their home country and which covers medical expenses such as certain diagnostic services and prescription drugs that fall outside of the services and drugs covered by OHIP. This is done to ensure workers have the comfort of knowing that they are always covered in some way.

With the healthcare system under stress from the COVID-19 pandemic, there were important initiatives in place for workers to receive information regarding vaccinations and COVID-19 safety. These initiatives included a non-mandatory vaccination clinic at the airport if workers wanted to get vaccinated on arrival and several other safety resources to allow them to make informed decisions about their health.

Of course, in a perfect world everyone would stay healthy during their time in Ontario. Despite proper safety and healthcare procedures in place, just like anywhere accidents and illnesses do occur.

Hoff shared a recent story of a worker who was diagnosed with cancer just weeks before his contract ended, when he was supposed to return home to Jamaica. Under normal circumstances, when a worker’s work contract expires, so does their OHIP coverage. In this case, there was a phenomenal team effort between Hoff, the Jamaican liaison office and local doctors in Ontario to ensure the worker would receive the healthcare required at no cost – exactly the same as an Ontario resident would be treated.

“Everyone seems to be working together for this young man. They are on it, and they are there for him,” Hoff said.

The worker continues to undergo cancer treatment in Ontario. We continue to think of him and hope for a recovery. He’s got a tough road ahead.

Visit https://www.morethanamigrantworker.ca/facts-stats/ to learn more facts and stats about Ontario migrant farm workers.