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38 CANADA'S FARM SHOW Presented By Viterra June 2022
CHALLENGE OF HIRING
As any farmer knows, there’s a gap between agricultural
operations’ needs for hourly and seasonal employees
and the candidates willing or able to take on this type of
role. This difficulty has plagued the industry for years,
and only intensified in 2021.
But to look on the bright side, if you’re experiencing
recruitment difficulties, especially for hourly/non-exempt
staff, you’re not alone. Competition for talent remains
the top human resource challenge reported in the
2021-2022 Canadian Agribusiness HR
Review.
Recruiting hourly staff is notoriously difficult.
’s survey of agricultural operations
illustrates that this challenge intensified over the past
year. Agriculture and farm employers noted hourly staff
as one of the most difficult levels and types of roles to
recruit for (2021-2022 Canadian Agribusiness HR Re-
view).
Agricultural operations deployed various strategies to
meet staffing needs throughout the year. Flexibility in
schedule and employment of part-time staff were the
top two strategies to meet staffing needs. Over 20% of
organizations employed temporary staff and more than
20% employed contractors.
Nearly 30% of agricultural employers hired tempo-
rary/contract staff for 3 to 9 months, with this number
expected to stay the same over the next year. One-third
of operations employed skilled seasonal staff, typically
from 3 to 6 months of the year.
How are employers hiring hourly employees? First is
reaching prospective applicants with employee referral
programs, followed by online job boards, like
. The top strategy to compete against
other Canadian employers is a positive work culture.
Providing employees with the opportunity to use their
skills and abilities was the top method to maintain or
improve company culture.
As many agricultural production operations gear up
for the season, is offering a $150 job
posting special for seasonal or temporary employees
through August 1, 2022. Employers can use code
SEASONAL2022 on to receive the
discounted price.
THE NOTORIOUS CHALLENGE OF HIRING HOURLY & SEASONAL STAFF
By Bonnie Johnson,
The Agribusiness HR Review provides a range of human
resource practices relevant to participating agribusi-
nesses over the last 12 months. The annual Agribusi-
ness HR Review survey, conducted by ,
highlights various strategies used in both large and
small ag businesses, across a variety of agricultural
sectors, to win talent. Download a free copy of the full
2021-2022 Canadian Agribusiness HR
Review report at
to receive a
single job
posting for
Are you hiring seasonal or
temporary employees to fill gaps
in your workforce?