Financial Relief and Essential Services

Financial Relief

The Government of Canada has announced number of programs to help Canadians facing hardships as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response plan:
https://www.canada.ca/en/department-finance/economic-response-plan.html

In addition, the Government of Canada has recognized that farmers and agri-food businesses will need supports to help them through this uncertain time. That is why Farm Credit Canada will receive support from the Government of Canada that will allow for an additional $5 billion in lending capacity to producers, agribusinesses, and food processors. More details available: https://pm.gc.ca/en/news/news-releases/2020/03/23/prime-minister-announces-support-farmers-and-agri-food-businesses

https://www.fcc-fac.ca/en/about-fcc/media-newsroom/news-releases/2020/lending-capacity-increases-to-alleviate-industry-financial-pressure.html

https://www.fcc-fac.ca/en/covid-19.html

Chicken Farmers of Canada has also outlined stimulus announcements of provincial governments to help farmers navigate the supports available to them:

British Columbia

Some provincial taxes have been deferred, delayed or reduced
$1.5 billion in provincial funding will support economic stimulus once the pandemic has passed

Source: https://news.gov.bc.ca/releases/2020PREM0013-000545

Alberta

Agriculture specific funding:
- Utility payment deferral
- Residential, farm, and small commercial customers can defer bill payments for the next 90 days to ensure no one will be cut off from these services during this time of crisis.
  - This will cover electricity and natural gas, regardless of the service provider.
(More broadly) ATB Financial customers impacted by COVID-19:
- For other business and agriculture customers, ATB will work with customers on a one-on-one basis and further solutions are being considered at this time.
- defer the collection of corporate income tax balances and instalment payments, due after today, until Aug. 31, 2020. This gives Alberta businesses access to about $1.5 billion in funds to help them cope with the COVID-19 crisis.

Source: https://www.alberta.ca/release.cfm?xID=698455D70096B-DF57-A62A-778266237F3241C8 & https://www.alberta.ca/release.cfm?xID=699045A66118C-FA03-F4F5-959455E3316B8564

Saskatchewan

The Saskatchewan Employment Act that introduced a new unpaid public health emergency leave and removed the 13-week employment requirement to access sick leave and the requirement for a doctor’s note to access sick leave, The Employment Standard Regulations have been amended to:
- Ensure that during a public emergency, businesses will not have to provide notice or pay in lieu of notice when they lay-off staff if it is for a period of 12 weeks or less in a 16-week period.
- And if an employer lays off employees periodically for a total of more than 12 weeks in a 16-week period, the employees are considered to be terminated and are entitled to pay instead of notice as outlined in the Act. This will be calculated from the date on which the employee was laid off.

Source: https://www.saskatchewan.ca/government/news-and-media/2020/march/20/covid-19-financial-support

Manitoba

Budget 2020 sets aside money for emergency expenditures, and Manitobans should be reassured by this unprecedented level of fiscal resilience and flexibility to quickly deliver the resources required to respond to any emergency.
The budget supplement outlined key measures that contribute to Manitoba’s resiliency:
- reinvestment in the rainy day fund – over the coming month, the province will increase the Fiscal Stabilization Fund to $800 million from $571 million, and transfer an additional $72 million by the end of the 2020-21 fiscal year

Source: https://news.gov.mb.ca/news/index.html?item=47117&posted=2020-03-19

Ontario

Agriculture specific funding:
- Supporting more affordable electricity bills for eligible residential, farm and small business consumers, by providing approximately $5.6 billion for electricity cost relief programs in 2020-21, which is an increase of approximately $1.5 billion compared to the 2019 Budget plan.
- Further supporting more affordable electricity bills by setting electricity prices for residential, farm and small business time-of-use customers at the lowest rate, known as the off-peak price, 24 hours a day for 45 days to support ratepayers in their increased daytime electricity usage as they respond to the COVID-19 outbreak, addressing concerns about time-of-use metering.
(More broadly, funding not agriculture specific):
- The government’s plan also includes measures that will make available $10 billion in support for people and businesses through tax and other deferrals to improve their cash flows over the coming months, including:
- Making available $6 billion by providing five months of interest and penalty relief for businesses to file and make payments for the majority of provincially administered taxes.
- Over $1.8 billion by deferring the upcoming June 30 quarterly municipal remittance of education property tax to school boards by 90 days, which will provide municipalities the flexibility to, in turn, provide property tax deferrals to residents and businesses, while ensuring school boards continue to receive their funding.
- Making available $1.9 billion by the Workplace Safety and Insurance Board (WSIB) allowing employers to defer payments for up to six months.

Source: https://budget.ontario.ca/2020/marchupdate/index.html

Quebec

Agriculture specific funding:
- “La Financière agricole du Québec” continues to foster the development of the agricultural and agri-food sector and has thus implemented measures to support agricultural producers through the crisis
  - By offering a six-month moratorium on loan repayments to all La Financière agricole clients who request it. This payment holiday period will lighten business obligations and provide liquidity for the coming months
  - And for the Crop Insurance Program, the enrolment date is extended from April 30 to May 21, 2020, and notices of assessment are extended from June 1 to July 1, 2020.

Source: https://www.fadq.qc.ca/en/news-room/news/details/la-financiere-agricole-du-quebec-implements-new-measures-to-support-agricultural-producers/

Nova Scotia

Agriculture specific funding:
- Government will defer payments until June 30 for:
  - all government loans, including those under the Farm Loan Board, Fisheries and Aquaculture Loan Board, Jobs Fund, Nova Scotia Business Fund, Municipal Finance Corp. and Housing Nova Scotia.
  - small business fees, including business renewal fees and workers compensation premiums (a list of fees will be posted online early next week)
- (More broadly, non agriculture specific): ensuring more Nova Scotians can access the internet to work from home, by providing $15 million as an incentive to providers to speed up projects under the Internet for Nova Scotia Initiative and complete them as soon as possible

Source: https://novascotia.ca/news/release/?id=20200320003

New Brunswick

The Finance and Treasury Board tabled today a $10.2 billion 2020-21 budget designed to strike a balance among lowering the debt, addressing priority areas and providing money to New Brunswickers.

Source: https://www2.gnb.ca/content/gnb/en/news.html

Prince Edward Island

The Employee Gift Card Program (offers a $100 Sobeys gift card to any employee, living and working on Prince Edward Island, who has received a lay-off notice as a direct result of the impacts associated with COVID-19)
the $25 million COVID-19 Emergency Contingency Fund to support Island workers, the self-employed and small business are:
Emergency Income Relief Fund for the self-employed,
Emergency Working Capital Financing for small business, and
Emergency Relief Worker Assistance Program for employers to provide temporary financial support to their employees who have experienced a significant reduction in their hours of work.

Source: https://www.princeedwardisland.ca/en/news/province-announces-additional-supports-individuals-and-families

PEI also has a great resource for farmers, farm families and farm workers on mental health supports through the Farmer Assistance Program http://farmerstalk.ca/fap or call 1-800-736-8006.

Newfoundland

New support for essential workers struggling to find childcare in the midst of the novel coronavirus pandemic – regulated childcare services will be free of charge to the children of police, firefighters, paramedics, health care workers and other public servants required to continue working.
As well as $500,000 in new funding for Food First NL to provide relief for residents experiencing food insecurity due to COVID-19.

Source: https://globalnews.ca/news/6729717/premier-health-minister-will-update-newfoundlanders-on-covid-19/

Essential Services

Over the past few weeks, governments across the country have deemed certain occupations as essential to the functioning of communities, and thus requiring its workers to be present at the workplace.

Up until April 2, 2020 the essential services lists have been province specific, however now the Government of Canada has provided a: Guidance on Essential Services and Functions in Canada During the COVID-19 Pandemic. This Strategy classifies critical infrastructure in Canada according to ten sectors. One of the sectors listed is Food, and includes:

Workers supporting groceries, pharmacies and other outlets that sells food and beverage products
Restaurant employees necessary to support take-out and food delivery operations
Food manufacturer employees and their supplier employees—to include those employed in food processing (packers, meat processing, fish processing, cheese plants, milk plants, produce, etc.) facilities; livestock, poultry, fish and seafood, slaughter facilities; pet and animal feed processing facilities; human food facilities producing by-products for animal food; beverage production facilities; and the production of food packaging
Workers including those employed in animal food, feed, by-product and ingredient production, processing, packaging, and distribution; manufacturing, packaging, and distribution of veterinary drugs; truck delivery and transport; farm and fishery labor needed to harvest and produce our food supply domestically
Agriculture and aquaculture workers and support service workers including those who field crops; those responsible fuel ethanol facilities, storage facilities, and other agricultural inputs
Workers undertaking traditional harvesting activities, including fishing, hunting and agricultural activities
Employees and firms supporting food, feed, and beverage distribution, including warehouse workers, vendor-managed inventory controllers
Workers supporting the sanitation of all food manufacturing processes and operations from wholesale to retail
Company in-house cafeterias used to feed employees
Workers in food testing labs
Employees of companies engaged in the production of chemicals, medicines, vaccines, and other substances used by the food and agriculture industry, including pesticides, herbicides, fertilizers, minerals, enrichments, and other agricultural production aids
Animal agriculture workers to include those employed in veterinary health; manufacturing and distribution of animal medical materials, animal vaccines, animal drugs, feed ingredients, feed, and bedding, etc.; transportation of live animals, animal medical materials; transportation of deceased animals for disposal; raising of animals for food; animal production operations; slaughter and packing plants and associated regulatory and government workforce, including provincial, territorial and federal inspectors
Employees engaged in the manufacture and maintenance of equipment and other infrastructure necessary to agricultural, aquaculture, and fishery production and distribution

The following list outlines the requirements of workers in the chicken industry value chain.

British Columbia

Food and agriculture service providers
- food cultivation, including farming, livestock, aquaculture and fishing, and businesses that support the
- food supply chain, as well as community gardens and subsistence agriculture;
- food processing, manufacturing, storage and distribution of foods, feed products and beverages;
- workers essential to maintaining or repairing equipment in food processing and distribution centres;
- workers, including temporary foreign workers, to support agricultural operations to enhance food security;
- retail: grocery stores, convenience stores, farmers markets and other establishments engaged in the retail
- sale or provision of food, pet or livestock supply, liquor, cannabis (including producers), and any other
- farming supply, including seed, fertilizer, pesticides, farm-machinery sales and maintenance;
- inspection services and associated regulatory and government workforce and supporting businesses
- required for slaughter of animals, dairy production and food safety; and
- businesses that provide for the health and welfare of animals, including veterinarians, farms, boarding

Alberta

The businesses and services on the essential services list can continue to provide services at locations accessible to the public and must have proper risk mitigation measures in place.

Of note:

Supply chain, distribution and wholesale staff, including inspectors and food safety staff
Key retail staff of food distribution facilities, including grocery and convenience stores
Food production staff, especially of staples such as butchers, bakers, and fishmongers
Restaurants and other food preparation facilities, including those with alcohol service only for delivery or takeout (no dining room service)
Food delivery services
Services or businesses that farm, harvest, process, manufacture, produce or distribute food, including beverages, crops, animal products and by-products, aquaculture, hunting and fishing
Businesses that support the food supply chain including assembly yards, livestock auctions, food distribution hubs, feed mills, farm equipment dealerships and suppliers, feed suppliers, food terminals and warehouses, animal slaughter plants and grain elevators, all farm input including fertilizer plants and distribution
Business that support the safety of food including animal and plant health and animal welfare
Businesses that provide veterinary services, and that supply veterinary and animal control medications and related supplies and testing kits
Environmental services for agriculture, mining, oil and gas