CAHRC seeking information on farm labour challenges.   Ottawa—More seasonal farm workers will be allowed into Canada next year to help in the seed corn, grain and maple syrup production as part of federal effort to facilitate access to foreign farm workers when Canadians aren't available. Meanwhile, the Canadian Agriculture Human Resources Council (CAHRC) has launched a survey of farm employers to gain more information about the effects of COVID on their operation. It's about labour shortages and “increased costs to farm employers to reconfigure work places and how they used the myriad programs that were rolled out to help with finding Canadians to work,” Council manager Debra Hauer says. “Did absences because of self-isolation or childcare affect farms? We wish to quantify these issues in every province and across different types of agriculture production.” Employment Minister Carla Qualtrough and Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau said adding the three crops to the National Commodity List (NCL) “will allow farmers who cultivate or make these products seek the help next year through the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP). “At the same time, it is supporting the domestic workforce and ensuring that the health and safety of foreign workers are protected,” they said. In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, employers are encouraged to apply early to SAWP to avoid any delays. Consultations are underway with provinces and territories, employers, workers and other interested parties on a proposal to establish minimum requirements for employer-provided accommodations. People hired under these crops will be able to transfer to other employers during peak periods within the season, which will help reduce potential labour gaps resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic. Hauer said the CAHRC survey is seeking 800 responses from across the country, including 168 from Ontario farmers by Jan. 5, about increased costs to reconfigure work places and how they used the myriad programs that were rolled out to help with finding Canadians to work. “We wish to quantify these issues in every province and across different types of agriculture production.” Information can found on the Council's webpage at https://cahrc-ccrha.ca/programs/emerging-agriworkforce-issues/information-and-updates-coronavirus-covid-19 CAHRC wants “to learn about how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected farm businesses, the supports they need, and expectations for the future,” she said. “This information will help CAHRC understand the impact of the pandemic on the agriculture workforce and help ensure the agriculture industry is able to recover quickly in the coming years. “Chronic labour shortages are a real and very frustrating problem for many producers in Canada. Unfilled vacancies in agriculture result in production delays, lost production and/or sales, and delays or cancellations of expansion plans. The COVID-19 pandemic may have amplified these issues. CAHRC's current research is so important and needed to help to more clearly understand the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the agriculture workforce.” The NCL covers apiary products; fruits and vegetables; mushrooms; flowers; nursery-grown trees, including Christmas trees; greenhouses and nurseries; pedigreed canola seed; sod; tobacco; bovine; dairy; duck; horse; mink; poultry; sheep; and swine. Between 50,000 to 60,000 foreign agricultural, food and fish processing workers come to work in Canada each year, more than 60% of all foreign workers entering Canada under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program. In 2019, a total of 46,707 workers were approved under SAWP of which 12,858 were from the participating Caribbean countries, and the rest were from Mexico. 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.