Press Release: Senate committee report highlights vulnerability faced by migrant workers

Halifax, Nova Scotia – On Tuesday, May 21, 2024, the Senate Committee on Social Affairs, Science and Technology released its long awaited report entitled Act Now: Solutions for temporary and migrant labour in Canada. They began their study in November 2022.

“The Temporary Foreign Worker Program is not working well for employers or workers. The employer-specific work permit inherently makes migrant workers more vulnerable to abuse at the hands of bad actors as well as imposing structural barriers to accessing rights and protections…,” reads an excerpt of the report.

The report makes recommendations in six areas. The report’s top recommendation is the creation of a tripartite Migrant Work Commission. Additional recommendations include phasing out employer-specific work permits, conducting unannounced inspections as the standard, and increased funding to migrant worker support organizations.

The report also “stresses the importance of ensuring that all migrant workers have barrier-free access to health care.”

“From June to February alone, we received reports of workplace abuse from over 60 migrant workers throughout Nova Scotia. Their stories - like those of Kerian Burnett and Orlando Rosas - highlight the vulnerability faced by migrant workers in our current system. While we are in agreement with a number of the report’s recommendations, they do not go far enough in some areas.” said Stacey Gomez, Executive Director of the Centre for Migrant Worker Rights Nova Scotia.

“While the report makes recommendations to improve access to permanent residence for migrant workers, we and other migrant support organizations across the country continue to call for permanent residence on arrival for all migrant workers. This would enable migrant workers to benefit from family unification, access essential services like healthcare, and ensure equal rights in the workplace and in their communities,” she added.

Data recently released by Statistics Canada highlights the increasingly important role which migrant workers play in Nova Scotia’s agriculture and seafood sectors. According to Statistics Canada, 2,909 Temporary Foreign Workers (TFWs) were employed in Nova Scotia’s agricultural industries, as well as food and beverage manufacturing in 2023.