Ontario Greenhouse Vegetable Growers (OGVG) have heard the call to action, as they state in an article in Windsor Star.
"Our farmers – along with everyone in Ontario – are in an emergency situation and our collective path out of this crisis requires an all-hands-on-deck approach to respond to the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ontario’s greenhouse vegetable growers have and will continue to do whatever is necessary to protect our employees’ health and well-being while producing safe, local and healthy produce.
We will continue to be a partner with all levels of government, including collaboration with our public health unit and other key community stakeholders to ensure businesses have the resources they need to keep their employees safe, address vaccine hesitancy, plus contribute to infection prevention and control efforts.
We thank the Ontario government for its recent announcement for a temporary paid sick program for the duration of the pandemic.
Ensuring people can afford to stay home is the right thing to do – both morally and economically. We are committed to working with government officials of all levels to ensure protections and supports are in place for the health, safety and well-being of workers, businesses and our communities.
Ontario’s greenhouse farmers will never compromise our focus on the health of our employees and communities, while at the same time, ensuring a safe and secure food supply chain.
To do this, we call on the provincial government for:
• Vaccinations for essential workers. We must ensure that individuals working in high-risk but critical businesses along the food supply chain are prioritized for vaccination including farms, manufacturing facilities, warehousing, grocery stores, pharmacies, the trades and more.
• Clear, accountable, evidence-based decisions that reflects the evolution of the pandemic. Businesses need to understand the rules, how they will be enforced and why rules are implemented."
Read the complete article at www.windsorstar.com.