Farmers take stand against Bill 6 in protest

Farmers opposing Bill 6 Alberta farmers say new legislation proposed by the NDP could kill their livelihood.

Hundreds of farmers descended on the Alberta legislature Friday, to show opposition for labour legislation tabled by MLAs last week.

Bill 6, the Enhanced Protection for Farm and Ranch Workers Act, was introduced in the legislature on Tuesday, November 17.

The province said the law would enact protections for the tens of thousands of farm and ranch workers in Alberta – likening it to introducing basic protections like the ones workers in other industries have had for decades – including workers’ compensation and Occupational Health and Safety regulations.

In the days since the legislation was tabled, opposition to it has grown within Alberta’s farming community – many farmers saying the legislation could destroy their livelihood.

About 200 farmers and their families gathered at the Alberta legislature Friday to protest Bill 6.

“We’re not upset about safety, we are safe, we want to be safe, we want our kids to be safe, but this isn’t the way to do it,” farmer Kate Dewindt said.

If it’s passed, farmers say the restrictions would keep their own children aged under 12-years-old from working on the farm.

“They’re trying to impose an urban industrial concept of employment upon families, families and employees are separate than that, they’re confusing the two,” Red Water rancher John Erdman said.

For some, Friday’s rally turned emotional– frustration and anger fueled by what’s seen as a lack of consultation.

At the rally, Jobs Minister Lori Sigurdson wouldn’t speak to reporters – but Municipal Affairs Minister Danielle Larivee did.

“The consultation piece is so important so we can develop that made-in-Alberta solution with our farmers together, to find out what we can do that works for all farms across Alberta,” Larivee said.

Later Friday, Sigurdson released a statement on the legislation, in it, she said concerns she’s heard most stem from what the legislation would mean for family, friends and neighbours who “pitch in on the farm”.

“These customary parts of farm life will go on as before, while enhancing protections for employees.”

The Minister said the legislation allows the province “the flexibility to develop common-sense regulations to achieve this goal” – and said officials have started consultations on those regulations.

“In the meantime, the legislation provides two simple things. A paid farmworker who is directed to do something dangerous can say no, just like other workers in Alberta and Canada. And if they are hurt or killed at work, they or their family can be compensated, just like other workers in Alberta and Canada.”

Alberta is the only jurisdiction without coverage for farm and ranch workers, if the bill passes, it will kick-in on January 1, 2016.

With files from Ashley Molnar