While researching issues relating to our story about Zoran and Edgar, I was surprised to learn that there now about 250,000 guest workers in Canada – a number that has grown dramatically in the last five years with the rapid expansion of the federal government’s Temporary Foreign Workers Program.
Factory Life Feet - Photo by: Katayun - CC license
The trend seems to mark a major shift in Canada’s immigration policy – one that has occurred with little public debate. Did you know, for example, that in 2008, for the first time in history, more foreigners entered the country as temporary residents than as permanent immigrants?
With much of the country still mired in a protracted crisis – many of these guest workers find themselves in a precarious situation. While some work in decent conditions and are treated fairly by their employers, there are numerous accounts of temporary workers being exploited and mistreated. Many report being underpaid, or being saddled with surprise fees for recruitment or accommodation. As foreigners in a strange land, they are particularly vulnerable and isolated, with little recourse against mistreatment.
“We seen astronomical growth in the number of temporary foreign workers coming into our centre,” says Xavier Cattarinich, a caseworker at the Calgary Workers’ Resource Centre, a non-profit agency which offers assistance to workers, informing them of their rights and helping them gain access to benefits. “About 15 percent of our clients in 2009 were foreign workers,” says Cattarinich. “That’s up from 7 percent in 2008, and 3 percent the year before.”
About one fifth of all temporary foreign workers in Canada are in Alberta, where pre-downturn labour shortages prompted government and employers to bring in greater numbers of outside labourers.
“We’ve been dealing with all sorts of issues – unpaid wages, unfair deductions – but the big thing in recent months is the question of employment insurance,” says Cattarinich. “The same principles apply for temporary foreign workers as for Canadians workers. Temporary foreign workers pay into the EI plan and, provided they apply before their permit expires, they are entitled to benefits.”
Yet although the CWRC has been successful in securing access to EI payments for some workers, arguing their case before an internal EI tribunal, only a few temporary foreign workers have been able to benefit for EI payments. Cattarinich complains that EI rules are not being applied in a consistent manner across the country. (See Xavier Cattarinich’s further clarification in the comments below.)
All this is happening at a time when the entire EI system is being criticized for failing to meet the needs of Canadians who’ve been hit by the crisis. According to a recent report from the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, as of October 2009, there were 777,400 unemployed Canadians who were not eligible for EI, even with recent changes designed to make the system more accessible.
For more information, read Entrenching Exploitation, a report written by Yessy Byl, Temporary Foreign Workers Advocate for the Alberta Federation of Labour; and Adjusting the Balance: Fixing Canada’s Economic Immigration Polices, written by Naomi Alboim for the Maytree Foundation.
Philip Lewis, researcher
©2009 Le blogue PIB / The GDP blog
6 responses so far ↓
1 Doug Sinclair // Jan 29, 2010 at 1:03 pm
What kills me about this recession is i really feel sorry for the immigrant workers in that they come here hoping to have work. Then we start the recession. It’s so wonderful that the economy isn’t in a recession any more. As Per PM Harper.
But Mr Harper it would only be you that says we’re out of the recession. Try telling that to the unemployed that are unable to get work or any more than $840.00 per month to live on.
“Some that is, Not all!” My father was near 70 years old and on Disability and he was getting paid more money than we are today. “In the Land of Milk and Honey?” That was in 1964 or near then I just don’t recall the years.
Then we’re handing out millions of dollars to any foreign country that asks for it. Ya, they need the help Granted. While our people here go hungry or live in poverty, All that so we can look like good guys??? Give Your Head a Shake!!!
What’s wrong with this picture??? Am I the only one who sees this going on or are we as a country so overwrought with do gooders we can’t see the forest for the trees.
I spent 26 years as a community volunteer no body else does that least of all those that are immigrants. I’m not complaining but I’m always seeing volunteers working where a person could be employer. Surely you can see that, can’t you?
Venting you bet, because I for one am sick of the whole charade. Home is where the heart is, we should be looking around and helping those who are in need here first. Then when they’re looked after, if we have money left over Pass some around.
Then we end up with record numbers of foreign workers being mistreated by everyone and their dog. All whilst Canadians run out of EI benefits and those who can qualify for welfare are having their CPP deducted from the Measly $840.00 they are getting in the first place. Anyway you cut it our CONSERVATIVE GOVERNMENT ARE DOING PHOTO OPS and BRAGGING THEY ARE DOING A GOOD JOB, what a joke.
To my way of thinking the only people that our highly esteemed MP’s and the like are doing anything for is themselves and that really bothers me.
Well, Soon We’ll Have an Election and all those guys will still be sitting fat and sassy, while we are eating nothing. I honestly don’t like it. $840.00 Ha! We are met with the Idea that we should be happy we get that, while the person across the desk from us is making $50,000.00 plus per year, in a government job with soon to have a pension plan they will be making money on and no worries about where they are going to get food for the kids and keeping a roof over their heads on a little more than $840.00 because of the kids.
I wish I had something more positive to write about but first I have to take the thorn out of my foo “Myself” because health care is so screwed up!
Doug Sinclair,
Edmonton
2 George Popovic // Jan 30, 2010 at 9:43 am
Interesting statistics.
Fascinating that there are guest workers in Canada when our unemployment is so high and as you indicate three quarters of a million of Canadians don’t eve qualif for EI.
The system is clearly broken and needs serious attention in addition to the treatment the foreign workers receive here.
3 WP Themes // Jan 31, 2010 at 10:11 am
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4 Daniel // Feb 22, 2010 at 3:55 pm
I am trying to find out how many of these guest workers are Latinamerican and how many of them come to BC.
5 Xavier Cattarinich // Feb 24, 2010 at 7:37 pm
As the person being quoted in the blog, I would like to offer the following corrections/clarifications to the blog post:
“The same principles apply for temporary foreign workers as for Canadians workers. Temporary foreign workers pay into the EI plan and, provided their permit has not expired and they meet all standard E.I. eligiblility requirements (in this case, they would have to be actively searching for another employer with a valid authorization from the federal government to hire Temporary Foreign Workers, in additional to having the required insurbale hours and having lost their job through no fault of their own), then they are entitled to benefits. Foreign workers whose permits are on the verge of expiring must apply for a new work permit PRIOR to the expiry of their old permit—doing so grants them “implied status” with Citizenship and Immigration Canada, which can allow them to continue collecting EI benefits up to 90 days following the expiry of the original permit, while they seek to have their work permit restored. If a work permit expires and is not restored within 90 days of expiry, the worker will be cut-off from EI and will be expected to leave the country.”
“Yet although the CWRC has been successful in securing access to EI payments for a growing number of foreign workers in the Calgary area by arguing their case before an internal EI tribunal, many temporary foreign workers continue to be denied EI benefits by the EI Commission as a result of misinterpretation of the legislation and apparent ignorance of legal precedents.”
Xavier Cattarinich
Interim Director
Calgary Workers’ Resource Centre
6 Philip Lewis // Feb 26, 2010 at 4:24 pm
Thanks Xavier for the clarification. We’ll be continuing to follow this important issue – and appreciate the expertise of the Calgary Workers Resource Centre.
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