Increased farm inspections are planned.   Ottawa—The federal government is making $58.6 million available to improve farm employee protection provisions in the Temporary Foreign Workers Program. There will be $35 million for improving living quarters for the workers on a 50-50 cost shared basis with employers and $16.2 million will go to strengthen the inspection of the working and living conditions of the TFWs. The remaining $7.4 million will be for increased supports to the workers. The funding was announced by Employment Minister Carla Qualtrough and Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau July 31. They said despite extra efforts to protect workers this year from COVID-19, “there have been COVID-19 outbreaks on a number of Canadian farms that have significantly impacted the health and safety of workers.” While three workers have died, they didn't say how many farms were affected. The government will work with the provinces, employers, workers and the countries the workers come from to develop mandatory requirements to improve employer-provided accommodations to prevent future outbreaks, the ministers said. For the Windsor-Essex County region, the government “is also currently collaborating with the Canadian Red Cross and Ontario to set up temporary housing for those affected in order to support them to self-isolate, in accordance with public health guidance. This work is being advanced under the Government's previous commitment to provide up to $100 million to the Canadian Red Cross.” They noted the provinces are responsible for setting health care, employment standards and housing requirements in the agriculture sector after TFWs undergo a 14-day quarantine following their arrival in Canada. “While most employers in the temporary foreign worker program follow the rules and have taken important steps to help mitigate the risks of COVID-19 in their workplaces, there are reported cases of inappropriate behaviour and unsafe working conditions,” Qualtrough said. The federal assistance “is about workers' rights and employers' obligations. … In addition, we are developing a coordinated national approach to employer provided accommodations for temporary foreign workers. This includes working with provinces and territories, employers, workers and foreign partner countries on national guidelines for on site accommodations. It also includes developing mandatory requirements for employer provided accommodation as a condition of the temporary foreign worker program.” The $7.4 million available to migrant worker support organizations will be for increasing outreach and improving “workers' understanding of how to protect themselves from COVID-19, their rights in the workplace, services available to them as well as information on how to access health, income and emergency supports when needed,” Bibeau said. “Step by step the government is giving our farmers, food processors and workers the support they need to continue their vital work,” she said. “Most of the farmers have been taking that responsibility. They care for their employees and they have put in place all the necessary measure to protect the employees starting with the 14-day isolation period, then putting in place additional measures to protect them while they started working.” Qualtrough said the government wants to understand why workers who went through the post-arrival quarantine now are getting sick. Her department, the Canadian Public Health Agency, the province and local health authorities investigate on-farm COVID outbreaks. A group of migrant food and farmworker organizations dismissed the federal announcement as more aid for farmers without providing real protection for the workers through full and permanent immigration status, better housing and protection from employer exploitation. Alex Binkley is a freelance journalist and writes for domestic and international publications about agriculture, food and transportation issues. He's also the author of two science fiction novels with more in the works.