In a heartening turn of events the new Agriculture Minister has taken an stand for Alberta farmers with an announcement that the NDP government will move this year to protect farm workers who aren’t covered by workplace safety legislation.
“It’s a priority of this government, a priority for me personally, and a priority of the labour minister.”
-Oneil Carlier
Agriculture workers in Alberta aren’t included in protection provided by occupational health and safety laws, the provincial labour relations code, the employment standards code or the workers’ compensation act.
Alberta is the only province with an OHS exemption, an issue that has been raised repeatedly by labour groups.
Provincial data shows 447 Alberta farmers died on the job between 1985 and 2010. Last year, 24 deaths in Alberta were related to farming — including five who were employees, and 15 who were the owners of a farm or a family member working on it.
Carlier said the specifics and timing of the upcoming changes will be co-ordinated with the province’s labour ministry, but he hopes to tackle “big portions of it” this year.
There are some concerns regarding the advent of new legislation, however there are lobby group and farmer advocacy groups that have been working to make this reality for over 10 years. Similar legislation has been in place for years in other provinces and id believed to be ‘a long time due’ here in Alberta.