Occupational Health & Safety comes to the farm

[wd40]

CFIB: Your Voice on the Business Issues in Agriculture
During Alberta government consultations in the spring of 2009
on Occupational Health & Safety, the issue of extending the
legislation to farm workers came up and CFIB was there to push
back. In fact, CFIB was the only group at the table to call on the
government to abandon plans to extend OH&S to agriculture.
Labour Legislation and Farm Workers: The Threat is Real
In 2008, agri-business in Manitoba was dealt a severe blow:
• Expanding Employment Standards to now apply to most farm workers (excluding
those on family farms, and certain provisions for those on grain and vegetable
farms)
• Expanding mandatory workers compensation coverage to agriculture
Now, Saskatchewan is reviewing mandatory workers compensation coverage too.
Let’s not let Alberta be next. We all agree on the goal: healthier and safer farms in Alberta.
But, let’s explore meaningful solutions to achieve that goal, not just more regulation.

http://www.cfib.ca/legis/alberta/pdf/ab5965.pdf

[daretodiffer]

Let me try to understand your point. You are all for health and safety but you won't follow codes of safe practice, employment standards or WCB coverage. And you want the right to treat employees differently from all other employees in our society. And your family members are in that group as well when they work on a farm business. And the fact that all the education that has come and gone (yes cuts have been made in programs) has not lowered the incidence of death and injury from its illustrious category of top 4 occupations for fatalities and injury in Alberta. And yet you want us to trust the local farmer business operators to care and respect the environment, the customers and food safety as they take and continue to demand billions in public subsidies? And you continue to wonder why people don't want to work in a farm enterprise? Just wondering.