Thousands of workers come to Canada each year to work through the TFWP; Statistics Canada reports that temporary foreign workers represented around one-quarter of all agriculture workers in 2021. Many of these workers face exploitation and abuse.

Following a visit to Canada earlier this year, United Nations Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of slavery, Tomoya Obokata reported that “the agricultural and low-wage streams of the Temporary Foreign Workers Programme (TFWP) constitute a breeding ground for contemporary forms of slavery.”

Last year, migrant farm workers from Jamaica working in the Niagara Region expressed similar grave concerns in an open letter to Jamaica’s Ministry of Labour. The workers were seeking increased support, stating: “As it currently stands, the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP) is systematic slavery.”

A significant issue impacting migrant workers is employer-specific work permits, which bind migrant workers to a single employer. These work permits grant the employer control over the employment, compensation, working conditions, and immigration status of the migrant worker. Permits such as these can bar migrant workers from job security and mobility and make them vulnerable to abuse and exploitation by unscrupulous TFWP employers, labour recruiters and labour traffickers.

“It is imperative that, as a nation, we commit ourselves to upholding the rights and well-being of all workers, regardless of their immigration status,” said Larry Rousseau, Executive Vice-President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “It’s time to put an end to employer-specific work permits that ensure migrant workers remain in precarity and at risk of exploitation, abuse and mistreatment.”

Employer-specific work permits make it impossible for migrant workers to exercise their rights as workers and seek protections while working in Canada. Legitimate concerns about getting deported or losing employment traps these workers in involuntary servitude.

This exploitative system gives employers steady access to vulnerable migrant workers with precarious work and immigration status. This has led many TFWP employers to use the program as an ongoing business model, as opposed to a program of last resort to fill acute and temporary labour skill shortages.

On this International Migrants Day, Canada’s unions call on government to take concrete steps to enhance the protections afforded to migrant workers as it relates to the low-wage Temporary Foreign Workers Program (TFWP) streams:

• Replace the employer-specific work permits with open work permits;
• Provide permanent residency opportunities for low-wage workers; and
• Provide permanent residency opportunities for former low-wage workers who are undocumented.

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“On Refugee Rights Day, we recognize and celebrate the 1985 Supreme Court of Canada ruling that refugee claimants are entitled to fundamental justice. Today, Canada’s unions urge the federal government to uphold the principles of fundamental justice and fulfill its moral duty and international obligation to protect the well-being of people and families seeking safety, by suspending the Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA).

“We are deeply concerned by the recent decision between Canada and the United States to expand the Safe Third Country Agreement. Expanding the Agreement to the entire border, including Roxham Road, means that refugees crossing in both directions will be driven underground, forced to take even more dangerous routes, and put their safety and lives at risk. It will inevitably lead to harm and more deaths.

“Under the STCA, refugee claimants must request refuge in the first safe country they arrive in. Although the United States is the only country that has been designated as a safe country according to the Agreement, the reality is that the U.S. does not guarantee safety for refugees.

“We all want to do what is best for our families. Under international law, people have the right to seek refugee protection and to a fair process that determines whether they should receive it. People seeking refuge in Canada deserve to be treated with compassion and must have their claims processed fairly and efficiently, not be turned back to harm.

“Canada’s unions stand in opposition to the Safe Third Country Agreement, and in solidarity with our allies fighting for migrant and refugee justice.

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Canada’s unions have long called for the federal government to ratify and implement ILO Convention 189 Concerning Decent Work for Domestic Workers (C-189) and ILO Convention 190 on Violence and Harassment (C-190). Both global conventions prioritize labour rights and standards, with C-189 establishing rights and protections specifically for domestic workers. C-190 recognizes the right of all people to a world of work free from violence and harassment, including gender-based violence and harassment.

“Domestic workers are crucial in supporting Canadian families, households and the broader economy. From cleaning, to cooking, to caring for children, older people and people with disabilities, the work of domestic workers is critical and life-sustaining,” said Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “By signing and ratifying ILO C-189 and C-190, Canada has the opportunity to recognize the true value of domestic workers and start to put in place the infrastructure needed to protect their rights.”

Despite playing an important role in Canada’s care economy, domestic workers continue to be denied decent work and are often subjected to exploitation, poor working conditions and limited pathways to permanent immigration status. In addition, COVID-19 heavily impacted domestic workers in Canada and globally. In Canada, domestic workers experienced reduced hours, job losses, unpaid wages and increased precarity and struggled to access social protections, services or programs such as employment insurance.

UN Women estimates that one in every 25 women workers around the world are employed in domestic work, with one in six workers being migrants. In Canada, racialized and migrant women make up the majority of domestic workers, providing essential labour that is part of Canada’s care economy, supporting families and households across the country.

It’s time for our government to ensure decent and safe work for domestic workers across the country. It’s time for Canada to ratify ILO C-189 and C-190.

—

Learn about migrant care worker exploitation in Canada during COVID-19.

Learn more about the campaigns to Ratify C-189 and C-190.

Read more about our calls for pathways to permanent residency for migrant workers.

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The recent state of emergency in British Columbia (BC) is the latest example of the clear and increasingly disastrous impacts of our global climate crisis. Communities across the province experienced flooding, mudslides and extreme weather, leaving residents displaced or stranded. This extreme weather came after a summer of catastrophic forest fires in BC, causing untold distress for residents, including migrant workers living and working temporarily in the province.

“These events further exposed the magnitude of the climate emergency upon us. But they also underscored just how vulnerable migrant workers are in Canada, most without access to proper protections and supports” said Bea Bruske, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “Like other workers, migrant workers in Canada should have social protections, labour rights and full access to healthcare services.”

Furthermore, Canada’s unions continue to urge the federal government to provide a pathway to permanent residency for those workers who want it, and to end the closed work permit system which ties migrant workers to one employer and replace it with open work permits.

Climate change continues to be a considerable driver of migration worldwide, and as our global climate crisis worsens, the number of climate migrants – people who are displaced from their homes due to the effects of climate change – will only increase.

During the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the World Health Organization (WHO), and Lancet Migration urged all nations to make community-led interventions addressing the issue of migration as a result of climate change a priority, and to urgently strengthen services and systems for migrants.

In Canada, migrant workers are already a particularly vulnerable population when it comes to navigating major social and economic crises – like the climate crisis or the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. They face barriers to accessing critical social services, including health care and employment insurance, as well as worker protections, all due to immigration status. Their precarious status may also affect their ability to find employment if displaced or if these workers lose their jobs.

A new report from Canada’s Auditor General also demonstrates that the government checks and balances meant to protect the wellbeing of these workers are not working. The report, which reviewed inspections carried out by the department responsible for assessing the pandemic protections for temporary foreign workers, shows government failure to protect migrant workers in Canada’s agricultural sector. The report showed problems in almost three quarters of quarantine inspections assessed during the course of the study.

“Without comprehensive worker and social protections to safeguard against employer exploitation, mistreatment, abuse and discriminatory workplace policies, the safety and lives of migrant workers are being repeatedly put a risk,” said Bruske. “Migrant workers have played an essential part in keeping our communities cared for throughout the pandemic, and like all workers, deserve justice and a fair future.”

To arrange an interview, please contact:
CLC Media Relations
media@clcctc.ca
613-526-7426

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The federal government recently announced that it will be accepting applications for permanent residence from refugee claimants working in the healthcare sector. This important announcement recognizes the crucial contributions refugee workers have made to the safety and wellbeing of communities across the country, throughout the COVID-19 pandemic.

However, Canada’s unions are concerned that the eligibility criteria are too narrow.

“While we applaud the government’s recent announcement, the option to apply for permanent residency should be available to migrant workers in all sectors,” said Hassan Yussuff, CLC President. “The pandemic has shown that migrant workers provide essential services. All migrant workers deserve the opportunity to stay in Canada and to have their human and labour rights protected, just as any other worker.”

This week, the federal government also announced that it will allow seasonal migrant workers from Trinidad and Tobago – stuck in Canada due to COVID-19 travel restrictions – to apply for open work permits. This grants them job mobility, and gives them access to healthcare and employment insurance while Canadian officials negotiate their return home.

Although this is a step in the right direction, it highlights the vulnerability of migrant workers.

Migrant workers face insecurity, discrimination and often work in dangerous conditions. Their precarious position leaves them dependant on employers and makes them especially vulnerable to abuse and exploitation. The pandemic has only made this worse.

During the initial quarantine period earlier this year, migrant workers reported wage issues, food insecurity and a lack of required public health measures in their accommodations. By the month of November, nearly 2,000 migrant workers on farms across Canada had fallen ill with COVID-19, and three had died.

“The federal government must also ensure that migrant workers have comprehensive worker protections to prevent exploitation, abuse, mistreatment and discriminatory workplace policies,” said Yussuff. “These workers have been doing critical work throughout the pandemic to keep our families and communities safe and cared for, while they faced instability, insecurity and unfair working and living conditions. It’s past time for their efforts to be recognized and valued.”

Canada’s unions believe that all workers in Canada should be treated fairly. Migrant workers deserve a fair future just as all workers do. Our country’s recovery depends on the expansion of equal rights and protections for all workers so we can ensure a better, more inclusive, and just economic recovery.

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The proposed plan will bring skilled workers, family members and refugees to Canada between 2021 and 2023.

“For many years, Canada’s unions have called on the government to increase immigration targets. We welcome today’s announcement as an important part of our country’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic,” said CLC President Hassan Yussuff. “A robust immigration plan will help increase our workforce and productivity. This in turn strengthens the social programs and services that support our communities.”

Lockdowns and other measures meant to slow the spread of COVID-19 resulted in a significant shortfall in Canada’s immigration numbers this year. Only 128,425 people were settled in 2020, far under the 341,000 that was previously targeted.

Furthermore, there are worker shortages in various sectors across Canada, which necessitate a ramping up of the country’s immigration levels. Despite current high unemployment levels in Canada due to the pandemic, the need for immigration persists including to support essential services in health care, long-term care facilities, farms and in meat processing plants, among others, as well as in high-skill fields in STEM.

Canada’s unions also welcome the federal government’s signal today that it will offer a pathway to permanent residency to immigrants and migrant workers already in Canada.

These workers must also have comprehensive worker protections in order to prevent abuse, mistreatment and discriminatory workplace policies.

“Workers deserve a chance to continue their lives here, regardless of the industry they work in. The federal government has provided a temporary measure for asylum claimants working in healthcare to apply for permanent residency, and this should apply to workers in all sectors,” said Marie Clarke Walker, Secretary-Treasurer at the Canadian Labour Congress.

“Our country and our economy are stronger with a rich and diverse workforce.”

To arrange an interview, please contact:
CLC Media Relations
media@clcctc.ca
613-526-7426

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“It is important that we recognize the significant economic contribution of domestic work  – work performed in or for a household or households – as valuable work, and acknowledge the effect that the current pandemic has had on these vulnerable workers,” said Hassan Yussuff, President of the Canadian Labour Congress. “Many have lost work because employers are following public health guidelines on physical distancing or because their employers have lost income and can no longer afford these services.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has meant loss or reduction of income for many domestic workers, leaving them unable to support themselves and their families.

According to UN Women, 83 per cent of domestic workers worldwide are women, and a majority of those are racialized women. Wages are low and working conditions can be challenging – even abusive. The pandemic’s impacts are not gender neutral. There are increased demands on workloads with children at home from school, child care centres closed and more demands on household responsibilities in general.

Internationally, many domestic workers are migrants or part of the informal economy. In Canada, the pandemic has exacerbated the precarity of their situation, making them ineligible for government income supports. Moreover, migrant care workers should be granted fair and accessible pathways to citizenship in Canada.

“The pandemic has laid bare just how essential the labour of domestic workers is – cleaning, cooking, caring for children, the elderly and people with disabilities. All of this work is necessary to sustain our economy,” said Yussuff. “It is time we cared for those who care for us.”

Read more about Domestic Workers and COVID-19: https://idwfed.org/en/covid-19

Resources for Domestic Workers on COVID-19: https://idwfed.org/en/covid-19/the-idwf/educational-awareness/stay-safe-what-do-you-need-to-know-about-covid-19

Recommendations for employers, governments, and others: https://idwfed.org/en/covid-19/advocacy-to-the-target-groups

Read more on the campaign to Ratify C189: https://idwfed.org/en/campaigns/ratify-c189

Caregivers Action Centre: http://www.caregiversactioncentre.org/

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