Upgrading of conditions sought for field hands

Fines for West Kelowna farmers who provide substandard housing for foreign workers could be doubled from $500 to $1,000.

Stiffer penalties are among the recommendations suggested in an overhaul of rules governing seasonal workers that are brought in from Mexico and Jamaica to help with agricultural operations.

Farmers would also be required to provide washrooms, bathing facilities and kitchens for field hands who sleep in tents and recreational vehicles.

Currently, there are no municipal requirements for such facilities and provincial regulations kick in only if the property owner is providing accommodation for more than five field hands.

Another proposed change is to allow temporary accommodation for field hands to be used for 10 months instead of eight months, in line with the limit in other Okanagan jurisdictions.

Also suggested is lowering the minimum property size for temporary field-hand dwellings, such as a mobile home, from 3.8 hectares to two hectares. That’s consistent with practices in the South Okanagan.

All the proposed amendments will be discussed by members of West Kelowna’s advisory planning commission next Wednesday, then brought to city council.

There are 440 agricultural properties in West Kelowna where field-hand housing is permissible.

On April 9, local government officials will meet with Jamaican and Mexican consulates, and representatives of B.C. Tree Fruits, the Ministry of Agriculture, and the Agricultural Land Commission to discuss farm worker housing.

More than 2,500 Mexicans were employed on Okanagan farms last year.