British Columbia Federation of Labour

Farm work exacting a terrible toll in BC and the carnage must stop

The families of men killed and injured in an incident at a mushroom farm in Langley in September are joining the B.C. Federation of Labour in calling for a public inquiry into working conditions in the agricultural sector.

On September 5th, three men were killed and three were injured, two of them critically, in an incident in a confined space used for processing mushroom compost. The families are seeking justice for those who died and those who were so seriously injured.

In discussions with the families of the men, it has become clear there were serious safety concerns which went unaddressed by the owners of the farm. Since the incident and the media attention that followed, the B.C. Federation of Labour has heard from other farmworkers who say safety regulations are routinely ignored at their agricultural worksites.

"The investigation and final report into what happened at the mushroom farm in September could take up to a year to complete," said Jim Sinclair, President of the Federation. "We already know there are far too many, entirely preventable, incidents happening almost every day in agricultural operations in the Province."

The families and the Federation are calling on the Province to hold a public inquiry on working conditions that would examine:

• the enforcement of health and safety standards in the agricultural sector;
• training requirements for agricultural workers;
• language barriers that make agricultural worksites more dangerous;
• the precarious nature of employment in the agricultural industry for workers on temporary foreign permits;
• Employment Standards for agricultural workers;
• the recent deaths in the agricultural sector.

"We have created a situation where too many farm owners ignore the safety of farmworkers," Sinclair added. "We need to acknowledge that modern farmwork is dangerous. We also need to ensure that agricultural workers are not carelessly exposed to preventable workplace hazards whether it's chemical handling, dangerous equipment or unsafe transportation."

The current inspection system has failed to protect farmworkers. Agriculture workplace inspections and prevention orders conducted by the Workers' Compensation Board (WCB) have dropped significantly. From 1994-2001, an average of 523 agriculture workplace inspections were conducted annually. That number dropped 62 percent, to an average of 200 annually, in the period 2002-2006. Over the same time period, prevention orders dropped 73 percent. A sudden increase in inspections in 2007 came after three farm workers were killed in an unsafe passenger van in March of that year.

The B.C. Federation of Labour is also calling on the Crown to act on any recommendations made by the RCMP in regards to the laying of criminal charges against the owners of the mushroom farm where the September 5, 2008 incident took place. The RCMP recommended that criminal charges be laid in the case of the March 2007 van crash that killed three people. The Crown did not proceed with criminal charges.

"History tells us the Crown would prefer workplace incidents were handled entirely through the WCB," said Sinclair. "Farm owners need to know that criminal neglect of safety regulations will lead to criminal charges where it can be proven."

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For more information contact: Evan Stewart, Director of Communications, B.C. Federation of Labour (604) 430-1421.