SEASONAL AGRICULTURAL WORKERS PROGRAM MEXICO – CANADA

The Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program was established in 1974. It has proven to be a successful labour mobility program between Canada and Mexico; it is a model of international cooperation that has demonstrated the possibility to maintain an effective and regulated flow of migrant workers between the two countries.

The Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program is beneficial for both countries; it allows the organized entry of Mexican workers to work in agricultural labourer occupations in Canada to fill labour shortages.

The Program has been in existence for more than 30 years, during this time the number of Mexican Seasonal Agricultural Workers has increased steadily. In 1974, approximately 200 Mexican agricultural workers benefited from the program. This number increased to 8,648 in 2008 in the provinces of Ontario and Manitoba alone.
The Ministry of Labour is responsible for recruitment of agricultural workers in Mexico, once in Canada the workers are assisted by the Consulate General of Mexico in Toronto, Montreal or Vancouver.

Most Canadian provinces participate in the program. However, Ontario and Quebec employ the majority of these workers. 57% of the Mexican workers go to Ontario, 21% to Quebec and 22% to Manitoba, British Columbian, Prince Edward Island and Alberta.

The Mexican workers work in approximately a thousand different farms in agricultural areas including tobacco, vegetables, fruit and greenhouses. The majority of the workers arrive to Canada during the summer but some arrive as early as January. The maximum time that a Mexican worker can spend in Canada is 8 months.

While in Canada, Seasonal Agricultural Workers are protected by Canadian laws and they have life and medical insurances. The program is under constant surveillance from the Mexican Consulates in Canada and it is revised annually by the two countries.

The Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program is an important program for Canada and Mexico. Canadian farmers depend on this labour force and it is estimated that the program generates for the Mexican workers in Ontario and Manitoba an income of as much as $68 million American dollars and benefits approximately fifty thousand people.

If you want to download forms and applications related to the Agricultural Workers Program,please click here.



MINISTRY OF LABOUR

The program offers a reliable employment opportunity for Mexican agricultural workers facing unemployment at home.

The Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program recruits and selects agricultural workers that have extensive experience in agricultural labour and who do not seek to stay in Canada.

The program is completely free and both men and women can apply. To be eligible to participate in the program, a person must have agricultural experience, be between 22 and 45 years old, have a minimum third grade level education and a maximum of 9th grade, has to be married or have a common law partner, preferably with children and live in a rural community.

Does interested in applying must contact the nearest regional branch of the Ministry of Labour in Mexico. The final selection of the participants is responsibility of the Ministry of Labour in Mexico City, located at Lucas Alamán 165, 1er Piso, Col. Obrera, Delegación Cuauhtémoc, Mexico Distrito Federal C.P. 06800.

If you require more information about the Ministry of Labour offices please click here.