By Rachel Fioret, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Woolwich Observer
Tackling labour shortages in the agricultural sector is an ongoing priority for both the federal and provincial governments, which recently launched the Labour Force Management Strategies Initiative to attract and retain Ontario agri-food workers.
Some $4 million in funding will be provided through the Sustainable Canadian Agricultural Partnership, a five-year, $3.5-billion investment by federal, provincial and territorial governments to strengthen competitiveness, innovation, and resiliency of Canada’s agriculture, agri-food and agri-based products sector.
“The agri-food industry relies on skilled workers, which is why the governments of Canada and Ontario developed the Labour Force Management Strategies Initiative,” said Meaghan Evans, a spokesperson for the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness.
The program builds on the Canadian Agricultural Partnership–funded Ontario Agri-Careers Support Initiative (OACSI) to address agri-food labour challenges.
“It supports primary producers in attracting and retaining Ontario agri-food workers through pilot projects that implement innovative attraction, recruitment, and retention strategies,” Evans said.
Producers can receive a maximum of $40,00 or up to 50 per cent in cost-share support per project.
Industry organizations or business collaborations can receive a maximum of $100,000 per project or up to 50 per cent of costs.
The program also supports the Grow Ontario Strategy, which aims to increase employment in the agri-food sector by 10 percent within the next eight years.
“The initiative will help fund projects to provide job training and new recruitment marketing campaigns, introduce new worker supports such as ridesharing programs and language training and support the planning of on-site amenities and recreational facilities,” said Evans.
“Recruitment strategies could include workforce attraction marketing campaigns, such as career and job opportunity promotion and awareness building, as well as recruitment and job promotional events like career expos and job fairs.”
In Ontario, more than 871,000 domestic and international workers are employed across the entire agri-food supply chain, representing one in nine people in the province’s labour force.
Nonetheless, workforce availability is one of the sector’s most pressing barriers – a significant constraint for growth and competitiveness, the government says.
“Our government is tackling the skilled worker shortage in rural areas through the Skilled Trades Strategy, including the Skills Development Fund,” said provincial spokesperson Manuel Alas-Sevillano.
Specific skilled trades include heavy-duty equipment operators, horticulture technicians, agriculture equipment operators, millwrights, and process control and machine operators.
This fund has invested nearly $1 billion in some 760 projects, with $93 million supporting 69 rural initiatives that benefit over 13,000 participants.
“Key projects like Cultivating Best Practices III and Elevate Plus focus on recruitment, training, and employment solutions for agriculture and manufacturing, driving growth in Ontario’s agri-business sector,” said Alas-Sevillano.
“Other skills needed in the sector range from business and entrepreneurship to science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
“Occupations across these skill sets include specialized livestock workers, large animal vets, precision agriculture specialists, agriculture engineers, controls systems analysts, data analysts, logistics managers, farm supervisors, communications and marketing roles, and many more,” he noted.
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