Major changes to Manitoba's labour code that will extend protections and benefits to farm workers are being praised by union officials but criticized by the province’s largest farmers' organization.

The changes to the Employment Standards Code, which will come into effect June 30, will give farm workers the right to paid vacations, overtime pay and lunch breaks, among other provisions.

The new regulations are the first major labour reform for farm workers in 50 years, said Labour Minister Nancy Allan.

"It provides many of the same basic protections that Manitoba workers in almost every other industry now take for granted while recognizing the need for flexibility," Allan said in a release.

The United Food and Commercial Workers union, which represents more than 15,000 workers in Manitoba, including those in the food processing industry, welcomes the move, saying farm workers deserve the same rights as other labourers. Alberta, Ontario and other provinces should follow Manitoba's lead, spokesman Stan Raiper said.

New benefits too costly, farm lobby says

But Ian Wishart, the head of Keystone Agricultural Producers, which calls itself Manitoba's largest farm lobby organization, said the changes will mean extra costs that many cattle and hog producers don't have the money to cover. 

Wishart said KAP is concerned overtime pay and guaranteed holidays could negatively affect farm operations that have to run full-tilt during certain times of the year.

The new regulations extend full coverage of the Employment Standards Code to workers in large-scale, climate-controlled facilities, such as greenhouses, mushroom farms and indoor livestock operations.

Workers whose jobs are affected by weather and seasonal demands — such as those in grain and vegetable farming — will receive the benefits of the code's regulations on minimum wage, termination notice, child employment, vacations, breaks and weekly days of rest, among others.

Family farms will continue to be excluded from the regulations.

About 26,000 farmers work in Manitoba, contributing over five per cent to the province's GDP, provincial officials said. About one in 11 jobs in the province depends, directly or indirectly, on agriculture.