Farm bus crash exposes vulnerabilities of foreign workers

ABBOTSFORD (NEWS 1130) – Following a crash in Abbotsford this weekend, we’re learning the safety of buses transporting farm workers is an ongoing issue – especially for foreign workers.

Not only are foreign workers transported in the buses, they’re often behind the wheel as well.

According to Byron Cruz with Sanctuary Health, which advocates for foreign workers, the drivers use international licenses and it’s not clear what regulations apply to them – and he wants clarification.

He also says drivers can be jittery when it comes to checkpoints set up by WorkSafeBC and take steps to avoid them. That may be because of the conditions in the countries they are coming from or because of visas that have just expired.

“We can see that people are coming from countries where there were civil wars. Despite that, they have working permits to work on these farms, they have vulnerabilities,” Cruz notes.

“Or there are situations where a visa has already expired and the farm needs the worker for two more weeks. This is a grey area for the worker.”

Checkpoints can problematic for those drivers, says Cruz.

“The workers are concerned that these will affect them. Then they might take a different road to avoid these road blocks.” Taking different roads could mean taking unsafe roads, says Cruz.

And there is continuing concern over how well-maintained the buses are.

Golden Eagle Farms – owned by the Aquilini family – was fined three separate times over the last eight years for poor upkeep of the vehicles used to transport workers.

Cruz says it appears no Mexican nationals were injured in this weekend’s crash, but he has yet to hear if any other foreign employees were on the bus.