Shortage of good workers a struggle for many farmers

A Pointe de Bute farmer is speaking out about the challenges he and others face when it comes to hiring and retaining workers.

Kent Coates owns Nature's Route Farm, an organic vegetable farm about 60 kilometres southeast of Moncton. He also sells at three farmers markets year round.

Coates said that because organic farming requires a lot of physical labour, including hand-weeding, it is hard to find people willing to do the work.

During the peak season, Coates looks to employ six people part time to work Saturday farmers markets, and around 15 people working on the farm. This past summer he only had between five and seven people in the fields.

Maintaining workers through each season is one of the biggest struggles.

"Each one of those that that doesn't stay for a whole season is a big stressor for us," he said, because of the time that goes into training each worker.

Coates said selling at the markets and the growing of the actual produce are so intertwined, it's important to strike the right balance of people to grow vegetables and people to make sure they get sold.

The past few years he's even had to bring in three agricultural workers from Mexico.

"That's been a phenomenal solution for our labour problem, but it does not help with our middle management problem."

Fewer workers, less growth

It's toughest to find people who can organize and supervise others, he said. 

And it's those workers who allow business to grow.

"The lack of our ability to find those middle managers — it is limiting how I'm going to do business in the future," Coates said.

And it's not a just a problem for him. Driving by other farms in the area, he said, he sees a lot of "now hiring" signs that never seem to go down.

"I'm not sure if we're not finding those middle managers because there's competition. I'm not sure if we're not finding them because those skill sets aren't being trained and aren't in our school system or in our post-secondary system."

Coates said when he does find people to fill those positions, they inevitably move on to start their own business, leaving him to start the cycle over again.

He said his wages are competitive with what other vegetable farms in Canada pay, minimum wage for labourers, $14 to $17 an hour for middle management and $20 an hour for his farm manager.

Coates feels farmers are underrepresented when officials discuss labour shortages in New Brunswick.

"The farming voices as a whole are not heard as loudly as other voices."

Employment summit

The Chamber of Commerce for Greater Moncton and 3+ Economic Development Corp. are presenting a two-day summit in Moncton this week to develop solutions for meeting New Brunswick's current and future labour needs.

John Wishart, the CEO of the chamber, said labour challenges in the province are common across the business community.

"We want the summit to be more solutions-oriented," he said. 

Susy Campos, the CEO of 3+, said research shows youth in the community have a perception there are no available jobs and they need to leave to find opportunities.

Campos says the younger generation also places a higher value on workplace culture, which requires companies to adjust to provide its employees with a sense of purpose.

"To some degree, you know, companies need to sell themselves, instead of the candidates selling themselves to the company," she said.

A report will be compiled from the breakout sessions at the summit that will contain both short-term actions and longer-term policy changes to pursue.