Since the very beginning of this pandemic, the Government of Canada has taken a number of important steps to ensure the safe arrival of temporary foreign workers, who play a vital role in preserving Canada’s food security. To protect the health and safety Canadian and temporary foreign workers, the Government has been working with municipal, provincial and territorial governments, as well as farmers, workers and other employers who participate in the Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) Program. Despite best efforts, there have been COVID-19 outbreaks on some Canadians farms that have significantly impacted the health and safety of workers.

That is why the Honourable Carla Qualtrough, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion and the Honourable Marie-Claude Bibeau, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food, today announced that the Government of Canada is taking additional action to reduce the incidence and impact of COVID-19 outbreaks on farms. With an investment of approximately $58 million, the Government is strengthening the TFW Program and making further investments to safeguard the health and safety of Canadian and temporary foreign workers from COVID-19 by:

• Investing $7.4 million to increase supports to temporary foreign workers, including $6.0M
  for direct outreach to workers delivered through migrant worker support organizations;
• Strengthening the employer inspections regime, particularly on farms, and making
  improvements to how tips and allegations of employer non-compliance are addressed
  through an investment of $16.2 million; and
•  Providing further assistance to employers, and potentially local partners, to help manage
  the costs of temporary housing, as well as other costs incurred to minimize the impacts
  of outbreaks on farms among workers, which include both Canadian and temporary
  foreign workers; and
• Increasing funding to enable farmers to put in place mitigation measures to improve on-farm workplace health and safety through an investment of $35 million.

The Government will also work to develop a national approach to employer-provided accommodations, focusing on ensuring long-term dignified and high-quality living conditions for workers. As a first step, the Government will consult with provinces and territories, employers, workers and foreign partner countries on a proposal for national accommodations requirements for the TFW Program in the months to come. Improvements to worker accommodations will also help reduce the risk of infection and spread of COVID-19 for foreign workers.
To support the response to the ongoing outbreak in of COVID-19 cases amongst temporary foreign workers in Windsor-Essex County, the Government of Canada is also currently collaborating with the Canadian Red Cross and the Province of Ontario to set up temporary housing for those affected in order to support them to self-isolate, in accordance with public health guidance. This spring, the Government of Canada published guidance for employers on how to manage the arrival and quarantining of exempt travellers to Canada, including temporary foreign workers to mitigate the importation and spread of COVID-19. In addition, the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion and the Minister of Health issued a letter to employers of temporary foreign workers outlining the Government of Canada's expectations of employers.

As well, the Government put in place amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations to hold employers accountable and to keep workers safe. These changes require employers to pay workers during their initial quarantine and ensure workers are able to observe the two-week quarantine period. The Government of Canada also recently announced the $50 million Mandatory Isolation Support for Temporary Foreign Workers Program to help farmers and food processors pay for the costs related to safely accommodating workers for the mandatory 14-day quarantine period.

While provinces and territories are responsible for setting health care, employment standards and housing requirements in the agriculture sector post-quarantine in their respective jurisdictions, the Government of Canada is committed to further federal action to help reduce
the incidence and impact of on-farm outbreaks.