Reading Time: < 1 minute In this week’s episode of Awkward Ag, Patti Durand answers a letter signed by “Trying to Find Balance” who asks Patti what they can say to other farm team members who make them feel guilty about trying to find a work-life balance. Do you need some advice on how to have an awkward conversation with […] Read more
VIDEO: Trying to find work-life balance on the farm
The farm isn’t just a great place to grow up
Summer Series: Farms of the future won’t look like they did just a few decades ago. Is the industry doing enough to sell the next generation on careers in agriculture?
Reading Time: 3 minutes Growing up I wanted to farm. I laugh now because what I defined as farming when I was young is not even identifiable in today’s operations: sleeping behind the seat of grandpa’s combine, driving the farm truck when I couldn’t reach the pedals and sitting shotgun in the grain truck with no air conditioning. This […] Read more
Trump promises immigration order soon on farm and leisure workers
Reading Time: 3 minutes U.S. President Donald Trump said he would issue an order soon to address the effects of his immigration crackdown on the country's farm and hotel industries, which rely heavily on migrant labor.
Summer Series: The importance of creating clear job descriptions
[Make It Count] If job descriptions sound like a waste of time, you haven’t looked deep enough
Reading Time: 5 minutes Yes, job descriptions do take time and effort. And yes, they can seem bureaucratic, like the sort of thing that makes you glad you don’t work for the government. But those in the know say job descriptions on your farm will be worth the investment, and their value will be even more valuable if your […] Read more
Farmworkers in the US cultivate their own heat safety standards
Fair Food Program seeks to circumvent slow regulatory process
Reading Time: 4 minutes While regulations to protect agricultural workers from the heat have been held up by political wrangling, Gonzalo and her colleagues have spearheaded an alternate strategy. They seek to sidestep the slow and increasingly politicized government machinery and instead appeal directly to consumers and large brands.
Summer Series: If you build it on HR…
[Leadership] This Alberta hay outfit is people first, business second, and boss Barry Schmitt says that’s why they post great numbers. So could their approach work for you?
Reading Time: 7 minutes If you build it, they will come, right? Dedicated and hard-working employees will if you follow the advice Barr-Ag has to offer about the “people factor”.– April Stewart, CG Associate Editor If you want something done, ask a busy person. We all sometimes say this, and there’s a good reason why. As generalizations go, this […] Read more
Improvements to temporary foreign worker program recommended: CFIB
Reading Time: 2 minutes Temporary foreign workers (TFWs) may help alleviate persistent labour shortages in Canada’s agricultural sector, but adjustments to the system would increase efficiencies and create better alignment with the practical needs of agri-businesses, according to new research from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) that includes several recommendations for policy makers. “While government is reviewing […] Read more
Farm wages, benefits have room to improve, survey says
Agriculture wages lag behind fields like construction, manufacturing, transport; jobs may lack basic benefits
Reading Time: 2 minutes "While some agriculture employers offered these benefits, many participating organizations do not offer any flexible work arrangements or basic benefits like sick days," CAHRC wrote in a report on its 2024 survey of compensation practices in Canadian agriculture.
Farm employee, employer’s perceptions differ on worker retention
Ag domestic labour gap will increase 15 per cent by 2030 as older workers retire: CAHRC
Reading Time: 3 minutes Manual labour and long hours may be less of a deterrent to farm workers than farmers think, a new report suggests.
Next gen talent scouting in agriculture
Reading Time: 3 minutes Taylor Schmitt, son of company founder Barry, is operations and business manager at Barr-Ag and is in charge of Middle East and domestic sales as well as domestic logistics. Yet it is on the HR side where Taylor has really come into his own. Over the last seven years, Taylor has interviewed 250-plus candidates and […] Read more
A message from April Stewart, Country Guide's Associate Editor
