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14 Wednesday November 25 2015 POLITICS AGRICULTURE WESCLEAN NORTHERN SALES WESCLEAN NORTHERN SALES is the NWTs first choice for Janitorial and Industrial Supplies Flooring Paint and Wallcoverings Premium Wood Pellet Sales and Door to Door Truck Courier Service WESCLEAN 15 Industrial Drive Hay River NT Tel 875-5100 Fax 875-5115 www.wescleannwt.com Flooring Area Rugs Paint Window Coverings Janitorial Supplies W ESCLEA N N.W.T. HURRY IN Sale ends Nov. 27 Flooring Area Rugs Paint Window Coverings Janitorial Supplies interior design headquarters Buffalo Express AIR Toll-free 1 800 465-3168 salesbuffaloairexpress.com www.buffaloairexpress.com Yellowknife - 867 765-6002 Hay River - 867 874-3307 Edmonton - 780 455-9283 WE SERVICE ALL POINTS IN THE NWT that are accessible by commercial aircraft. Ask about our TRUCK AIR EXPRESS RATESTruck Air Express trucks from Edmonton and Calgary and flies out of Yellowknife. By CRAIG GILBERT New legislation extending workplace pro- tections to farms and ranches needs to be put back in the stable according to Albertas of- cial opposition. The Enhanced Protection for Farm and Ranch Workers Act or Bill 6 was introduced in the legislature last week. If approved the law would ensure that 60000 farm and ranch workers in Alberta will have the same basic protections that other workers in the province have received for decades according to a government press release. Everyone deserves a safe fair and healthy workplace Minister of Jobs Skills Training and Labour Lori Sigurdson said. The rules we implement must respect the unique quali- ties of the farm and ranch industry and I look forward to working with industry members to develop rules that make sense. The New Democrat government argues its high time to update the rules noting the provinces Workers Compensation Act 1918 is approaching its centennial Albertas rst comprehensive labour relations legisla- tion came into effect in 1938 and the Occu- pational Health and Safety Act was imple- mented in 1976. Changes would include Ensuring farms and ranches are subject to Occupational Health and Safety legis- lation to prevent incidents that can result in injury or death. Providing Workers Compensation Board insurance coverage so workers can con- tinue to support their families if they are injured on the job and protecting farm and ranch owners against the impact of workplace injuries and illness. Including farms and ranches in Employ- ment Standards and Labour Relations legislation. Farm and ranch workers will be protected by the Occupational Health and Safety Act and regulations and Workers Compensation Board coverage for farm and ranch work- ers will be mandatory beginning January 1. Changes to Albertas Employment Stan- dards and Labour Relations legislation will come into effect in the spring of 2016 follow- ing consultations with industry regarding exemptions that may be needed for unique circumstances such as seeding or harvesting. According to the government it will work with industry over the next year to develop detailed occupational health and safety tech- nical rules for farms and ranches. The rules are expected to be in place in 2017. We know Albertas farmers and ranchers are concerned about providing safe and fair workplaces and I look forward to our discus- sions with them as we work out the details on the best way to do it Agriculture and Forest Minister Oneil Carlier said. Dippers put cart in front of horse Wildrose Wildrose jobs critic Grant Hunter said in a release that those consultations should al- ready have happened. No one in Alberta cares more about safety on family farms than the moms and dads who run them he said. They are the experts and they need to have their voices heard on these important changes happening under sudden timelines. The NDP need to put this bill to committee instead of pushing it through in less than 45 days so Albertans farmers and industry are properly consulted. Wildrosehadpetitionedforaccommodations forsmallfamilyfarmsthatwouldbeimpacted by these changes Hunter continued but the newlegislationdoesnotincludeany.Theparty pointedoutthatinBritishColumbiaworkplace safetylegislationmakesacleardistinctionbe- tween large operators and family farms. A farmer himself Wildrose agriculture critic Rick Strankman said education is key to making farms safer. Farmers are the most passionate about en- suring farms stay safe but more can be done to provide education for families and small operations Strankman said. Nothing can be moreeffectiveandensurerealpositivechanges occur on farms across Alberta. Liberal Leader David Swann on the other handwasunabashedinhissupportofthebill. Opposition to this bill is opposition to a farm worker being able to refuse unsafe work it is opposition to any minimum wage what- soever for farm workers it is opposition to re- strictions on child labour it is opposition to requiring proper safety training before doing a new task and it is opposition to the protec- tions of WCB for farm workers and farm own- ers he said also in a press release. The days of a legal framework that would make Charles Dickens blush will at long last come to an end in Alberta. It is a great day indeed. New Democrats rushed ranch safety act Opposition PhotocourtesyoftheGovernmentofAlberta Jobs Skills Training and Labour Minister Lori Sigurdson and Agriculture and Forest Minister Oneil Carlier right with Dan and Mike Kalisvaart of Kalco Farms near Gibbons on Nov. 17.