Jamaican worker killed days after cry for help

Dana Malcolm

Staff writer

#Canada, August 25, 2022 – The Canadian government hosted Jamaican Minister of Labour Karl Samuda after migrant workers pleaded to him for help in a letter days before one of them died.

On Thursday, August 11 workers sent a letter to Samuda detailing the subhuman conditions they operate under.  The Jamaicans are employed under the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Programme (SAWP)

“We are living in a First World country but at both, these farm rats are eating our food.  We do not have clothes dryers so when it rains, we are forced to wear cold, wet clothing to work.  We live in crowded rooms and have zero privacy.  There are cameras around the houses, so it feels like we are in prison,” The Jamaica Observer who got a copy of the letter reported.

Three days later, on Sunday, August 14, Garvin Yapp was killed in an accident on the tobacco farm he worked at near Ontario.  The Ontario Ministry of Labor confirmed the death via Twitter, and said they were investigating but have not offered any updates

A distressing video circulating on social media while free of graphic content, shows the moments after Yapp’s death. It shows several migrant workers in the field in the throes of shock and grief.  Some of the men can be seen walking with their hands placed on their heads, while others sit in a similar position.  As the video progresses the person filming gets increasingly distressed to the point of tears as he laments over the seeming death of a colleague, and makes references to the stresses of the job.  As he speaks, an ambulance rushes onto the property.

In the letter to Samuda, workers expressed fear of losing their jobs if they spoke out directly.  Though there were specific farms mentioned, there is no confirmation of a connection between the workers who wrote the letter and those who worked on the farm where Yapp died.

Samuda and Permanent Secretary Colette Roberts Risden, and others visited four farms in the Niagara-on-the Lake area in Canada during the tour which started on August 16th.  Samuda has not yet made an official statement.  But a press release shared with the Jamaica Observer said that Samuda has “committed to facilitating an increase in the presence of liaison officers, encouraging the workers, and to making representation to employers on their behalf where necessary.”

Canadian officials have not addressed the letter.