Complaint states worker couldn’t access the care he needed
By Diego Flammini
Assistant Editor, North American Content
Farms.com
A discrimination complaint has been launched against WSIB after a Jamaican farm worker was allegedly unable to access the care he needed after suffering an injury working on a London, Ontario farm, according to the Toronto Star.
The complaint was submitted by Robert Sulph and relates to a 2013 incident. Sulph has been a season farm worker in Canada for some 25 years.
The Star reports he was working under the Season Agricultural Workers Program in August. Sulph claims WSIB (Workplace Safety and Insurance Board) didn’t grant him the access to health care he needed after slicing his neck and his left arm while cutting metal on a tobacco farm near London.
After leaving the hospital, Sulph returned to his yam farm in Jamaica to be with his family when modified duties at his employer’s farm were unavailable.
According to his claim, WSIB didn’t ensure he’d be able to get the care he needed in Jamaica. It says he was forced to pay out of pocket for different expenses including transportation and physiotherapy – costs WSIB said they would reimburse.
His claim says he bought international calling cards to communicate with WSIB but calls went unreturned. The Star reports that if he stayed in Ontario, he would’ve received WSIB benefits, which are billed directly to the board and not the workers.
The Star reports Sulph’s complaint says his treatment made him feel like a lesser member of society and that he’s not alone.