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Agriculture Minister, AgCoalition agree to work together on safety FEB 25 2016 | Producers | News Release

The newly-established Alberta Agricultural Farm and Ranch Safety Coalition and the Government of Alberta would like to take this opportunity to provide the following update:

(Calgary, Alberta) Following a meeting yesterday, Agriculture Minister Oneil Carlier and the Alberta Agriculture Farm and Ranch Safety Coalition (the AgCoalition), reached a go-forward agreement on how to work together to improve safety on farms and ranches.

“No one cares more about farm and ranch safety than farmers and ranchers. I am pleased they have come together to work with us to ensure the Enhanced Protection for Farm and Ranch Workers Act serves their needs and the needs of their waged employees.” – Oneil Carlier, minister of agriculture and forestry.

“We are pleased that the AgCoalition is recognized as a positive means to move forward on upcoming consultation processes,” said AgCoalition co-chair Page Stuart. Co-chair Kent Erickson added that “the AgCoalition has developed internal governance structures to ensure broad-based participation in the consultation process, and looks forward to working with the government in considering processes to staff the consultation working groups.”

Representatives from across the AgCoalition will be meeting in central Alberta next week to review the recommended path forward for consultation.

Alberta Agriculture and Forestry, and the AgCoalition, continue to seek nominations for working group members to participate in the next phase of consultations on the Enhanced Protection for Farm and Ranch Workers Act.

The working group will be established to develop recommendations on how occupational health and safety practices, employment standards, and labour relations requirements can be effectively applied given the unique needs of employers and employees in the agriculture sector.

The AgCoalition was established on January 22, 2016 with a mandate to unify the farm and ranch community in effort to foster a culture of farm safety in Alberta.

Media Contact

Victoria Russell
Communications Specialist
E vrussell@agcoalition.ca
T 403.219.7906