Canadian Mennonite
Volume 12, No. 22
Nov. 10, 2008
Migrant hands help harvest
Niagara’s Mennonite farmers bring in workers from Mexico and Jamaica each summer to help pick crops
Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ont.
 |
The Niagara region of Ontario is known for its lush orchards and picturesque vineyards, which produce much of Canada’s fruit and wine. While farmers work throughout the year to manage their businesses and prepare the fields, the actual harvesting season is quite brief. As the industry requires a large workforce to harvest and package the produce for a short length of time, migrant workers are a natural fit.
In the late 1960s, the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program was created, matching Canadian employers with potential employees from Mexico and the Caribbean. Mennonite farmers in the Niagara region are often program participants.
John I. Janzen of Janzen Farms in Niagara-on-the-Lake began farming in 1960, taking over operations from his parents. A member of Bethany Mennonite Church in Virgil, Ont., he employed workers from Mexico in his fields this season, a long-standing practice for him.
Appreciative of his employees and their strong work ethic, Janzen offers bussing to the local grocery store, a city plaza and the area’s largest shopping mall, and provides winter storage space for them to keep their goods while they return home each winter.
A direct consequence of his faith, Janzen ensures his workers have Sundays off, saying he “made that policy many years ago,” although it is a feat difficult to manage in peak production season.
George Lepp of Lepp Farms in Niagara-on-the-Lake has been farming for 35 years, building his parents’ hobby farm into a substantial business. He currently employs Jamaican workers. He puts a lot of effort into meeting the strict government standards and inspections of employee living quarters.
“To me, it’s important that the men have really appropriate accommodations,” he says.
As well, he takes time to get to know them personally. “I take the opportunity to ask each one of them about their families,” Lepp says. “I meet personally with my men three times a year for a celebration meal. It gives me an opportunity to talk and fellowship with them on an individual basis, rather than in a large collaborative group.”
Dave and Shirley Froese of Cornerstone Community Church, a Mennonite Brethren congregation in Virgil, have been running Froese Farms together for more than 30 years. They seasonally employ Jamaican and Mexican workers, and enjoy sharing their faith with them when the opportunity arises.
“We hope that our faith has an effect that everyone can see,” Shirley says, “that our attitudes are ones that are pleasing to God and that we live in a way that is obedient to God.”
She makes a point to comfort employees if they ever take ill, making hospital visits and even bringing co-workers along. To further foster good spirits, the couple has organized volleyball games, domino tournaments and barbecues. Shirley also began Peaches Café 12 years ago, a community event that provides an opportunity for farm workers to meet with locals.
Edith Epp of Bethany Mennonite Church helps manage Abe Epp and Family Farms, begun by her in-laws in the 1950s. The farm employs both Jamaican and Mexican workers. Bethany Mennonite provides free space for Sunday evening services for the area’s Jamaican workers.
Epp annually collects clothing donations for employees and arranges trips to the local MCC Thrift Shop. This year, the female workers were also taken to Niagara Falls for a day of sightseeing and entertainment.
Epp Farms marks the end of the season with a large party. Proceeds from a raffle at this year’s party went to cover funeral costs for a long-time employee. As a farewell token, Epp hands out photo DVDs, allowing her employees to take summer memories back home.