Agricultural workers in Mauricie, as well as business owners who hire agricultural workers, can now contact us to take advantage of our new services adapted to their reality.

The SANA of the MRC of Maskinongé was selected by the Ministry of Immigration, Francization and Integration (MIFI) to participate in a two-year pilot project. Indeed, SANA will intervene directly with seasonal agricultural workers and temporary foreign workers in the agricultural sector of the Mauricie holding a work permit of less than one year to accompany them and offer them information on initial settlement procedures in Quebec, until June 2024.

The SANA of the MRC of Maskinongé is one of three organizations selected in Quebec to fulfill this mandate. It is taking advantage of additional financial assistance from the MIFI Integration Support and Coaching Program to hire a new resource for this task.

“The working conditions of some agricultural workers may be affected by a lack of awareness of their rights and may constitute an obstacle to their establishment in Quebec. That is why SANA is proud to be able to expand its services to seasonal agricultural workers and temporary foreign agricultural workers throughout Mauricie.” said Jonner Mina Sanchez, Director General of the SANA of the MRC of Maskinongé.

As part of this pilot project, SANA will offer a welcome and information session to these workers upon their arrival to facilitate their settlement in Quebec. This meeting can be held at the workplace or at SANA offices. The following topics could be discussed: learning french, important documents to obtain to settle in Quebec (health insurance, social insurance number, driver’s license, etc.), how to open a bank account, housing, tax return, consumer and labour rights, human rights and freedoms in Quebec, etc.

In addition, one-on-one meetings are scheduled with workers to offer personalized services, answer their questions and refer them to the various resources they may need.

Finally, social and cultural activities will be organized to break the isolation of these workers and build relationships with the population.

“We are pleased to have an active and committed organization on our territory for immigrant people, such as the SANA of the MRC of Maskinongé, which responded by sharing its expertise with agricultural workers in our region.” said Éric Leclair, Regional Director for Mauricie and Centre-du-Québec at the Ministère de l’Immigration, de la Francisation et de l’Intégration.

In 2022, 438 temporary agricultural workers arrived in Mauricie, half of whom settled in the MRC of Maskinongé.