I sat down to write this post just prior to leaving to attend this year’s Harvest Party. If you are unfamiliar with the term ‘Harvest Party,’ I certainly would not be surprised. It is a term that is arguably used and well-known within farm families, and it is a get-together with all of the individuals who work for our family on the farm to show our thanks and appreciation for the incredible work they do for us.
Our farm, this year, employed just shy of 20 temporary foreign workers from Mexico and Dominica. These men are the backbone of Ontario agriculture for the majority of farmers who rely upon their tremendous help during the growing season, and they’re essential for our own family farm.
Some of our workers arrive here in Ontario as early as March, and some stay here as late as December. To put things into perspective, all of our workers have families back home, so they’re away from their loved ones, in a foreign country, for up to eight months out of the calendar year. They come here, to Canada, for temporary employment to provide for their families in the best way possible, and they have become our own family over the years.
One of our workers, Salmone, has been working with our family on the farm for 34 years. He has quite literally witnessed my sister and me grow up, and he is like an uncle to me. He has come to learn English rather thoroughly over the years, and I’m in the process of learning Spanish via Duolingo in hopes of one day being able to converse with our workers in their native tongue.
Individuals involved in the agricultural industry are aware of how significant these temporary foreign workers are for Ontario farming, and farming in general. This post is intended to educate folks who are not overly farm savvy on the importance of these workers and what they do for us, our economy, and the agricultural industry while they’re here working, and furthermore, the tremendous sacrifice they undertake to provide for their families.
Thank you, temporary foreign workers.
Photo by Tim Mossholder on Unsplash
ontheedgeofeverything 