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MARCH 2019 • COUNTRY LIFE IN BC


Labour remains a priority for


fruit growers BC Liberals urged to counter NDP changes to piece rates


by TOM WALKER KELOWNA – A major


snowfall in the Okanagan delayed delegates attending the 130th annual BC Fruit Growers’ Association convention on February 12. “Even though we delayed


our start by half an hour, we did not have a quorum (until 45 minutes in),” noted BCFGA president Pinder Dhaliwal. “But to balance that, we probably had the shortest election time ever, as all the candidates who were nominated were acclaimed.” A bigger issue than


weather, however, was labour. “This was the year of labour


issues,” Dhaliwal told BCFGA members. Many growers who employ


foreign workers through the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP) were left scrambling as integrity reviews and audits delayed the arrival of hundreds of workers in 2018. “We were able to organize a meeting with integrity division and help them understand the importance of timely labour,” says Dhaliwal. “Nature doesn’t wait.“ Dhaliwal says applications


for SAWP workers are proceeding much more smoothly this year, following work by BCFGA in partnership with the BC Agriculture Council, Western Agriculture Labour Initiative (WALI), the Canadian Federation of Agriculture and the Canadian Horticulture Council.


“Our involvement and engagement with these organizations further strengthens the program needed by our growers,” says Dhaliwal. “It is imperative to lead and build support for the SAWP and make sure that government actions do not disrupt the supply of labour we need to grow and harvest our crops.”


BCFGA general manager


Glen Lucas, who also serves as assistant general manager of WALI, elaborated on the improvements. “Service Canada specialized


SAWP processing (and now Ag Stream Processing) have really upped their game and the turnaround on LMIA applications is excellent at present,” says Lucas. On the home front, growers will see the second minimum wage increase in as many years on June 1. The minimum hourly wage will increase to $13.85.


“Remaining economically viable in the quest to continue producing the highest quality fruit has become even more difficult,” says Dhaliwal. “As price-takers, we are unable to pass on these costs to the consumer.” A convention resolution called on the province to offset the minimum wage hike with increased funding of agricultural programs, tax credits for employing low-skill workers and reducing regulatory costs. The convention also


discussed possible changes to


11


The BC Fruit Growers Association gave past president Fred Steele, second from right, a lifetime achievement award for his contributions to the industry during its annual convention in February. He was joined by BCFGA executive director Glen Lucas, left, BCFGA vice-president Peter Simonsen and president Pinder Dhaliwal. TOM WALKER PHOTO


the well-established piece-rate system. Piece rates are very important to fruit growers. “They function so


effectively that the vast majority of travelling pickers make professional wages,” says Dhaliwal. “We are vigorously defending piece rates as the government considers making changes.” Kelowna apple grower Amarjit Lalli explains that an average picker can fill a bin of apples in an hour and receive $20 for the work under the piece-rate system. “If I pay that picker the minimum wage, he loses money,” says Lalli. “That is a disincentive for the good picker and a support for the picker who is not interested in putting in a good effort.” Delta South MLA Ian Paton,


agriculture critic for the BC Liberals, weighed in on the discussion with an example of how the loss of piece rates would affect blueberry growers in the Lower Mainland.


“There is a core of very


skilled pickers who are well beyond middle age who enjoy picking premium blueberries for the fresh market,” Paton says. “They go out for the day – it’s almost a social occasion – and they make good money. If you take away the piece work, they simply won’t bother to come out.” Kelowna grower Sam


DiMaria urged Paton to work to keep piece rates. “I’m expecting your party to fight tooth and nail to retain the piece rate,” says DiMaria. “I’m going to be paying attention when this is before the house.”


CHC labour chair Beth


Connery, a fruit and vegetable grower from Manitoba, gave an outline of current CHC


labour initiatives. Connery ended her address with an impassioned plea to look after the welfare of the most important worker on the farm, the orchardist. “We are finding that farmers have much higher stress levels than was previously thought,” she says. “The loss of crops, the poor returns, the long hours on the tractor by yourself. I know these issues because I live them every day.” Connery spoke to growers about her own challenges. “As a suicide survivor, I can


tell you, your family is never better off without you,” she says. “Depression is an illness, it is not a weakness. Please, please, do something to get help.”


Tree Fruit Competitiveness Fund


The Province of BC has provided funding to enhance the competitiveness of the tree fruit sector.


The fund is open to tree fruit growers, producers, and processors to support three key areas of priority: ● Research: cultivar, disease and pest research. ● Marketing: export market opportunities and market development research.


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● Infrastructure: sector-based infrastructure modernization such as new equipment.


The Tree Fruit Competitiveness Fund is jointly delivered by the BC Fruit Growers’ Association and Investment Agriculture Foundation BC.


For details about the Tree Fruit Competitiveness Fund, including eligibility, deadlines and application forms, please visit www.bcfga.com or iafbc.ca/tree-fruit, or contact funding@iafbc.ca.


Deadline for the next project intake is MARCH 29, 2019


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BC FRUIT GROWERS’ ASSOCIATION 1-800-619-9022 (ext 1) email: replant@bcfga.com www.bcfga.com


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