Extreme Heat Threatens Farm Workers in British Columbia: Urgent Climate Action Now
VANCOUVER, BC— Farm workers across British Columbia are sweating in the fields to produce food and profit for Canada as the province smashed dozens of temperature records this week. Facing severe challenges that threaten their health, safety, and livelihoods, farmers and farm workers are speaking out about the hazards of extreme heat in their workplaces. The National Farmers Union (NFU) is highlighting the urgent need for enhanced workers’ rights and decisive climate action to address the escalating impacts of the climate crisis on agriculture and reduce fatality and injury rates in the sector.
35 times more likely than the general public to die of heat exposure, farm workers are especially vulnerable to extreme heat events—due to both the nature of their work and, for many, their precarious employment status. The ongoing heatwave has brought dangerous working conditions for farm workers such as Elizabeth Cyr. Cyr spends long hours outdoors on a small mixed vegetable and flower farm near Victoria, BC, where the heatwave has been intense this week but mild in comparison to the extreme heat in the Okanagan and other parts of mainland BC. As an organiser with the NFU, Cyr is worried about farm workers in the Okanagan, where temperatures are expected to remain in the mid-thirties for multiple weeks.
“Farm workers are roasting out in the fields. We’re doing everything we can to keep safe this week, but at a certain point you start to wonder – is there a limit to what we can adapt to?” says Cyr. “I’m a Canadian-born farm worker with a great employer, but I know not all farm workers are so lucky, which is why labour standards are crucial to keeping us all safe when working in the heat and other extreme weather conditions. Working in the heat is not just uncomfortable, it can be life-threatening. I’m advocating for stronger labour standards and workplace safety not just for myself, but for the thousands of farm workers who are at risk right now. “
In 2021, during the heat dome event in British Columbia, outdoor workers comprised 74 of the 115 (~64%) total heat stress claims accepted by WorkSafeBC. Prolonged exposure to high temperatures can lead to heat exhaustion, dehydration, and heatstroke, and, in the worst case, death. A lack of access to cooling facilities and proper hydration exacerbate the dangers of prolonged heat exposure. Migrant farm workers are especially at risk, as many fear deportation and retaliation if they speak out against unsafe conditions.
“Extreme heat doesn’t just catastrophically impact our ability to grow certain crops, it can be deadly to workers and producers,” says Cyr. “That’s why we not only need workplace safety and labour standards, but also policy changes to address the climate crisis making conditions in the field more extreme and unpredictable each year. Climate action is a workplace safety issue.”
