Ontario. Agricultural Manpower Service

• Agricultural Manpower Service

• Ontario. Farm Service Force (1941-1949)

• Ontario. Farm Labour Service (1950-1967)

The Agricultural Manpower Service was established as a branch of the Ontario Department of Agriculture in 1941 and was initially known as the Farm Service Force. In the beginning, the service worked with the Department of Education and Department of Labour in supplying urban and student workers to alleviate the shortage of war-time and harvest agriculturists. By 1950, it was known as the Farm Labour Service.

In 1954, the student-related programs and youth camps were closed. The service's mandate became the administration of the Federal-Provincial Agricultural Manpower Agreement, which assisted adult seasonal farm workers.

The operations of the service were supervised and administered by the Ontario Federal-Provincial Farm Labour Committee, which consisted of appointees from the federal and provincial governments. In 1966, the name of the service was changed to Agricultural Manpower Service, and the name of the supervisory committee became the Ontario Federal- Provincial Agricultural Manpower Committee.

Within the Department and Ministry of Agriculture and Food, the service was considered part of the Marketing and Special Services Division from 1966 to 1977, and part of the Production and Rural Development Division from 1977 to 1982.

With the ending of the Federal- Provincial Agricultural Manpower Agreement, the service was dissolved on April 1, 1982. Some of its programs were transferred to the Rural Organizations and Services Branch.

The Agricultural Manpower Service initially co-ordinated the recruitment of summer and harvest-time labour to Ontario farmers. Later, the service supervised the immigration, transportation, housing, and working conditions of seasonal harvest and processing labour.

RAD: Rules for Archival Description, 2nd edn (2008)

2026-11-16: migrated to AtoM

Annual Reports of the Department of Agriculture, 1940-1966

Annual Reports of the Department of Agriculture and Food, 1967-1972

Annual Reports of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food, 1972- 1983.

Canadiana Authorities, 1996-12- 24

Archivist(s):
Paul McIlroy