Farm employee insurance is a reoccurring topic for Alberta's Agriculture Minister during his farm safety consultation tour across the Province this Summer.
Devin Dreeshen stopped at the Claresholm Community Centre on Tuesday, August 20 to collect feedback from roughly 40 people in attendance regarding the United Conservative Party's proposed Farm Freedom and Safety Act set to replace Bill 6.
Back in 2015 when the NDP introduced the Farm Workers Protection Act, many producers were outraged as it forced them to maintain Workers Compensation Board (WCB) coverage for employees.
Dreeshen says he's hearing from farmers saying they want a choice between WCB or private insurance coverage.
"Lots of farmers, they have private insurance, but now they're forced to pay a WCB policy premium, so they end up having two insurance policies, and it just doesn't work for them."
He adds, a need for an educational component in the legislation has also been a theme throughout his meetings, where a proactive promotion of farm safety will be included.
Livingstone-Macleod MLA, Roger Reid, hosted the event, and was pleased with the turnout from local producers.
"We know we're tight on the timing in terms of getting into harvest, but to have a broad selection of people show up says how important this is to our ag folks down here."
Dreeshen was also in Okotoks and Airdrie for consultations earlier this week before making stop number 18 in Claresholm, according to Reid's Twitter page.
Among the crowd was Foothills County Division One Councillor, Rob Siewert, who says it's important farmers get a say.
"The last time the Government made changes to this, it was under very different circumstances. There was a lot of public outcry and people were very upset," Siewert said when reflecting on farm safety legislation changes in 2015. "It's great to see today. It's a lot quieter crowd and people are quite happy to be able to give their input."
Siewert says he's heard from producers in the Foothills who are looking for flexibility in this new legislation, as working hours on the farm are most often seasonal and weather dependent.
However, the day didn't come without its criticisms from the Alberta Federation of Labour, who say August 20 marks Alberta Farm Workers Day.
In a statement, the group says they're fearful the UCP are reducing the most protection farm workers in the province have ever had , as "Agriculture is the most dangerous industry in Alberta."
Gathering feedback isn't over for Dreeshen quite yet, with the consultation tour set to wrap up at the end of the month.
Dreeshen says consultation attendance has ranged from smaller events with 30 to 40 people, with a couple stops hosting over 100 attendees, attributing the variation in numbers to weather.
"At the end of the day, we're getting a good mix of livestock, crops, farm workers, ranchers, farmers," he explained. "Even young and old. It's been just a good mix of people."
The UCP says they plan to introduce the Farm Freedom and Safety Act in the Fall sitting of the legislature.
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