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The Conservative Party is calling for an end to the Temporary Foreign Workers program; in its place, they are calling for a single program for the agriculture sector.
Leader Pierre Poilievre quoting the latest employment stats from July, points out we now have 14.6 per cent unemployment rate and 1.6 million Canadians unemployed.
He says the principle behind ending the program is very simple. "Canadian jobs for Canadian Workers"
In a media statement, Fruit and Vegetable Growers of Canada says the importance of the Temporary Foreign Workers Program and its agricultural streams, - specifically the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP), cannot be overstated.
Chair Beth Connery says labour shortages are one of the most acute threats to the availability, affordability, and diversity of Canadian-grown fruits and vegetables, and by extension to Canadians’ food security.
She points out that without access to the international worker programs, growers would be unable to secure the workforce they need to plant, care for, and harvest perishable crops - leading to higher food prices, more waste, and increased reliance on imports.
Poilievre says he'd like to see a separate standalone program for "legitimately difficult to fill agricultural labour."
Connery says that while that's reassuring, they are concerned about any move to scrap the existing agricultural temporary worker programs, noting that the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program must be preserved.
The FVGC says while discussion on how to improve the programming of the current agricultural streams is welcomed, throwing out programs that have served growers, their workers, and Canadian families well for over half a century would be ill-advised at any time and reckless today, given the current risk situation in the agriculture sector.