Safe at Work, Unsafe at Home COVID-19 and Temporary Foreign Workers in Prince Edward Island

This report is one of the first in a series of community-based research projects undertaken by the Migrant Workers in the Canadian Maritimes partnership under the COVID-19 and the Health and Safety of Migrant Workers in Maritime Canada initiative. It draws on desk research and qualitative data collection consisting of 15 interviews conducted with temporary foreign workers who arrived in Prince Edward Island after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. Global, national and regional media accounts have detailed the hazardous occupational conditions of migrant workers throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. These include the outbreaks at construction sites in Singapore and meat packing plants in the US, but also in Canada, at meat processing plants in Ontario and Alberta, and at farms in Ontario where several workers died. In light of these reports, the Migrant Workers in the Canadian Maritimes partnership came together in June 2020 to explore the labour and housing conditions of temporary foreign workers in the region during the COVID-19 pandemic. Throughout 2020, temporary foreign workers formed an important part of the workforce in Prince Edward Island. While the province saw lower COVID-19 infection rates compared to other parts of the country, the second and third waves of the pandemic brought higher numbers of cases to the Maritimes, along with numerous risks for future infections. This research examines how COVID-19 has affected the health and safety of temporary foreign workers in Prince Edward Island, a province reliant on foreign labour for its agricultural and seafood processing needs. It also provides policy recommendations to improve the work conditions of migrant workers in the province.