Employee benefits on the farm

Attracting and retaining the right employees on the farm can be tough, says Viktoria Schuler, director of products and services at the Canadian Agricultural Human Resources Council. There’s stiff competition from comparatively higher-paying fields, such as construction or the petroleum industry.

To succeed with recruitment, producers may need to offer many of the same formal benefits common in other industries, including health and dental benefits, retirement savings contributions and more competitive wages.

Here are four out-of-the-box ways to offer health coverage to farm employees:

1. Join forces

While it can drive up costs on the farm, some farms successfully partner with other businesses to lower health plan costs through joint purchasing.

2. Set funds aside

Setting aside a specific amount of money for an employee health spending account – available to them should they need a specific product or service – is another way to help employees cover healthcare costs. This method also allows the employer to determine the exact limit they wish to spend.

3. Pay on sick days

Offering paid sick days is another way to attract employees . Agriculture is exempt from many employment standards provisions, such as sick leave. But to attract and retain employees, some are now offering three to five days a year.

4. Paid time off

Vacation pay and bonuses, given at certain times of the year or based on performance, can also go a long way – the latter can also help foster greater connection and commitment to the job.

The additional costs may add up, so it’s important for producers to decide ahead of time how much they want to spend and to consider the costs of administration and management.

Working with foreign workers

Yara Khankan, client executive, global technology sales, Canadian Public Sector, says when thinking about employee benefits in the agricultural community, it’s important to consider those for foreign workers. Recruiting foreign and seasonal workers is common in Canada, allowing employers to fulfil their mandate, often providing the competitive edge required to deliver services, products and projects – especially after long-standing vacancies or difficulty finding staff.

For an employer, considering all reasonable measures to ensure employees are accommodated is referred to as the “duty of care” and helps ensure that the new employee can fulfil his or her employment mandate. For in-patriates (those on a work visa, for example), understanding Canada’s single-payer healthcare system can be a daunting task that leads to unnecessary stress. In this case, the duty of care may include helping employees integrate into – and navigate – a new culture, society, and healthcare system.

It’s important to know where your foreign workers fit within the provincial healthcare system and the answers to questions such as:

• Is my worker eligible for provincial healthcare?

• What are the necessary criteria?

• Is there a waiting period?

• How do I ensure my employee is adequately covered to eliminate the risk of a catastrophic claim – and the financial liability that comes with it?

Although the requirements vary by province, foreign workers holding a valid work permit may be eligible for a provincial health insurance plan, such as the Medical Services Insurance (MSI) in Nova Scotia and the Ontario Health Insurance Plan (OHIP) in Ontario.

Eligibility is contingent on:

• Validity period of the work permit

• Duration of an employee’s consecutive physical presence in the province

• Employee’s full-time employment status for a minimum of six months

Once a foreign employee’s application for a provincial health insurance plan is approved, it can take up to three months for coverage to begin. During this waiting period, employees without privately obtained provincial plan replacement coverage risk significant and costly medical claims. This can pose a grave risk to employers financially and in their obligation to uphold their duty of care.

It’s imperative to educate employees on how to use their newly granted government health insurance plan (GHIP) or provincial plan replacement coverage, and how it integrates with your organization’s benefits program, if you have one.

Securing coverage is only as beneficial as the information and knowledge passed on to employees.

Article by: Kim Shepperd

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