Those in agriculture have been encouraged to “tell their story” for years, all in the name of maintaining the social license to operate, or to gain acceptance and understanding of farm practices by the public. But there’s another reason for farmers and agri-business owners to tell a good story: to attract and retain great staff… Read More
Category: Labour
Workers with agriculture experience will receive priority as part of a new category-based selection process for Canada’s flagship economic immigration system. Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, on Wednesday announced the launch of category-based selection and priority categories for the Express Entry system in 2023. As part of the program, invitations can be… Read More
The federal government will extend the Agri-Food Pilot until May 14, 2025. Launched in May 2020, the pilot program is designed to facilitate the transition of agricultural and food industry workers to permanent residency in Canada. Recruiting and retaining a skilled workforce is key to success for Canadian farmers and food processors, the government says…. Read More
Olymel has announced the closure of its Vallée-Jonction, Quebec, plant, and will layoff about 1,000 people in the process. It’s expected to plant will take eight months to wind down, and staff will be offered positions at other Olymel plants. The hog slaughtering, cutting and deboning plant has wracked up nearly $400 million in losses… Read More
Many entrepreneurs struggle with finding the right people to join their team. Right now, the employment market is also very tight as supply is low, and competitiveness for workers is so strong. So much attention is paid to the recruitment of new employees, but how often do we actually focus on the onboarding process? Research… Read More
Premier Doug Ford’s government released its latest budget for Ontario, with a major focus on health care and housing. Tucked in the budget, however, are a few items directly or indirectly applicable to agriculture in the province, including a focus on improving veterinary access in under-serviced areas, support for trades, and a manufacturing credit. In… Read More
Given how demographics are shifting, it’s only going to get more difficult to find new employees for the farm. Looking bigger picture to agriculture as a whole, there are far more career opportunities than there are those lining up to work. While there are longer-term issues that need attention, in the short-term farms have immediate seasonal… Read More
There’s a saying that goes hire slow and fire fast. But does that old adage hold true? Amber Johnson, CEO and owner of Forge Performance Group, based in Alberta, says that there isn’t a simple answer to that; if you’ve done the right preparation work ahead of time, asked key questions, and offered a comprehensive… Read More
Cold weather calving is tricky and that can be compounded by rapidly changing weather conditions. Bringing cattle in to a new environment because of cold or wet weather can introduce a new management issue: pathogen spread. Gerald Stokka, the extension veterinarian at North Dakota State University, says that increased snowfall or wet weather means that… Read More
For our latest poll, we’ve asked the question: how do you get new equipment operators some seat time? The poll is still up (so feel free to participate, here), but so far we’ve received some interesting feedback, which is worth a discussion. Almost half of participants so far have said that they’ll send new recruits… Read More
If you’re like me, the image that the word “exports” evokes is container ships and railways and huge water-side ports. While all of that is very true, there’s more to exports than just commodities and large volumes, says Mairead Lavery, president and CEO of Export Development Canada. Lavery spoke at the Canadian Agriculture and a… Read More
Jennifer Wright has been appointed to the role of executive director of the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council (CAHRC). Wright has worked with the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council as a consultant for more than ten years, and joined the organization as a staff member in 2019. In April 2021, she was appointed to the… Read More
Agriculture and food issues often cross provincial, national and international boundaries. Being a leader of a farm organization frequently requires representatives to look well beyond the farm gate to tackle issues that impact their members. That’s certainly the case for Thunder Bay, Ont., dairy farmer Peggy Brekveld, who in 2023 will again lead the Ontario… Read More
Dairy farming is labour intensive 365-days of the year. It’s also an industry that can be both physically and technologically demanding all at once. Because of the round-the-clock care dairy farms require, it takes a certain kind of temporary work force to fill in when farmers need time off. Martin VandenHoven, of Relief Herdsmen Services,… Read More
If you’ve been a fan of RealAgriculture a while, you’ll know we’re committed to few things, including covering the issues that matter most to the agriculture industry and having a sense of humour. As we heard on the Farmer Rapid Fire this week, qualified farm workers are increasingly harder to find. The labour shortage isn’t… Read More