The systemized exploitation of temporary migrant agricultural workers in Canada: Exacerbation of health vulnerabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic and recommendations for the future

Vivianne Landry; Koorosh Semsar-Kazerooni; Jessica Tjong; Abla Alj; Alison Darnley; Rachel Lipp; Guido I Guberman

doi:10.1016/j.jmh.2021.100035

The systemized exploitation of temporary migrant agricultural workers in Canada: Exacerbation of health vulnerabilities during the COVID-19 pandemic and recommendations for the future

J Migr Health. 2021 Mar 19:3:100035. doi: 10.1016/j.jmh.2021.100035. eCollection 2021.

Authors

Vivianne Landry¹, Koorosh Semsar-Kazerooni², Jessica Tjong³, Abla Alj⁴, Alison Darnley³, Rachel Lipp³, Guido I Guberman⁵

Affiliations

¹ Faculté de médecine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC, Canada.
² Faculty of medicine, McGill University, Montréal, QC, Canada.
³ Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada.
⁴ Faculté de médecine, Université de Sherbrooke, Sherbrooke, QC, Canada.
⁵ Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, QC, Canada.

Abstract

In 2018, 55,734 jobs in Canadian agriculture were filled by temporary migrant workers, accounting for nearly 20 percent of total employment in this sector. Though referred to as temporary, those migrant workers often fill long-term positions and provide crucial support to the Canadian agricultural industry, which has seen an increasing disengagement from the domestic workforce in the last fifteen years. Health vulnerabilities faced by temporary migrant workers are already well documented. In addition, there are multiple systemic factors inherent within the structure and implementation of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program that contribute to the perpetuation of health inequities within this population. The COVID-19 pandemic has both exacerbated many of these disparities and further increased the risk of labour rights violations and vulnerability to exploitation for these workers. As Canada's 2020 growing season comes to an end, thousands of temporary migrant agricultural workers are returning to their native countries. With planning for next year's growing season already commencing, this timely analysis aims to examine health vulnerabilities faced by TMAWs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Five key areas are examined: occupational injuries, substandard living conditions, psychological difficulties, lack of access to healthcare and barriers in exercising labour rights. Building on this analysis, recommendations for policy and practice aimed at improving migrant workers' health are discussed.

Keywords: COVID-19; Canada; Foreign workers; Migrant health; Seasonal agricultural workers; Temporary migrant agricultural workers.