Jamaican minister rejects workers’ abuse claims on Canadian farms

Foreign workers brought to Canada under the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program can have jobs for up to eight months a year, and many people have been coming to the country for decades under the scheme [File: Shannon VanRaes/Reuters]

Montreal, Canada – Jamaica’s labour minister has rejected complaints from Jamaican farm workers who say they face conditions akin to “systematic slavery” in Canada, saying he observed “no evidence of mistreatment” during a recent visit to farms in the province of Ontario.

In a statement sent to Al Jazeera on Friday, Karl Samuda said he toured nine farms between August 14 and 16, including the two farms employing the temporary migrant workers from Jamaica who raised the alarm over their work conditions.