BCFGA warns about radical labour activists
Okanagan orchardists are being warned about “radical labour activists” attempting to sow discontent among their Mexican fieldhands.
The BC Fruit Growers Association says the activists may use fake government ID to try get onto farms and meet clandestinely with some of the 2,500 Mexicans expected in the Valley this year.
“This summer, beginning immediately, we anticipate that radical labour activists will trespass and sneak onto your farm to disrupt your business,” says a message sent to the 450 orchardists who are members of the BCFGA.
“These activists wish to identify and even create problems with Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program workers on your farm,” the BCFGA message states.
The BCFGA says orchardists should not allow visitors to their farm during working hours. And it says seasonal workers should be told to tell farm managers immediately if they're contacted by someone unfamiliar to them.
“The radical activists may impersonate government officials, so please take your time (to) record and look at the identification,” the BCFGA advises.
Mexican and Caribbean workers are brought to the Okanagan as part of a federally-regulated program that has been in existence for decades. It’s designed to fill an ongoing labour shortage, with many orchardists unable to find enough Canadians willing to work on farms.
There have been some instances recently of Okanagan farmers not providing sufficiently highquality accommodation for the workers. Orchardists who don't improve their worker housing can be blocked from participating in the seasonal workers program.
On Sunday, BCFGA president Pinder Dhaliwal said the association's message to growers was simply to alert them to the possibility of labour activists trying to “stir up trouble” among the foreign workers.
“The program operates with the involvement of the federal government, the Mexican government, various provincial ministries, and the Mexican consulate in Vancouver,” Dhaliwal said.
“It’s a very well-run program, with lots of attention to worker housing and worker safety, as you can see by the fact that something like 85 per cent of the Mexicans ask to come back every year,” he said.
Rates of pay and work hours are the same for Mexicans as they would be for Canadians. The Mexicans are motivated to join the program because they can typically make much more money here than they could in their country.
Dhaliwal said he believed it was more likely that activists would try to contact Mexicans working in the Lower Mainland than in the Okanagan because the labour movement is more numerous down there.
Issues the activists might talk up among the workers, Dhaliwal said, could include getting farmers to pay for wives and children to visit during their months-long employment in Canada.
“There’s nothing stopping Mexicans from visiting Canada, but obviously a grower couldn't afford to pay the airfare and housing of people who aren't going to be working on the farm,” he said.
Another issue the activists might promote, Dhaliwal said, is the concept of an open visa, which would allow Mexicans to move from farm to farm once they arrive in search of better pay, rather than being restricted to one orchard.
“I use the hockey analogy,” Dhaliwal said. “If you’re the Edmonton Oilers and you've got a Wayne Gretzky under contract, you're not going to be too happy if suddenly the Toronto Maple Leafs come along, offer him more money, and away he goes.”
In addition to the government agencies involved in overseeing SAWP, a variety of local organizations try to help the Mexican farmworkers adjust during their time in Canada, Dhaliwal said. They provide translation service, and help with day-to-day needs like shopping, he said.