Ontario Government reviews rules that exclude Domestic Workers

The Ontario government announced on May 30, 2017 that it would conduct a review of Employment Standards Act (ESA) and the Labour Relations Act (LRA) exemptions and special rules. The ESA exists to maintain a basic floor of rights in the province for all workers, while the LRA exists to provide access to the constitutionally protected right to organize collectively into unions. Phase 1 of the review was launched October 18, 2017 to review eight occupations with exemptions and special rules under the ESA and Labour Relations Act (LRA), including Domestic workers.

Exemptions disproportionately affect racialized, migrant and women workers. Limits on access to employment standards are a feature of precarious employment and compound existing labour market disadvantage. Caregivers, and particularly those who come to Canada under the former Live-In Caregiver Program, under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, or on other restrictive work permits, need access to full labour rights. This will not only protect this group of primarily racialized, poor and working class women; it will also improve the standards of the caregiving sector, the work that makes all other work possible.

CAC has consistently heard from caregivers across Ontario that access to unionization and to all of the same employment standards as other workers in the province are necessary steps towards being able to live and work in dignity. Caregivers see these as two key steps toward the recognition of caregiving and other Domestic work as real work.

CAC broadly recommends that the Ministry strike both the ESA and LRA exemptions for Domestic Workers. CAC further recommends that the Ministry work closely with workers and advocates to develop a model of broader based bargaining for Domestic Workers. We urge Ontario to eliminate these exemptions and to take the necessary steps to ensure that caregiving work is free of exploitation and abuse, including by implementing the kinds of “broader based bargaining” strategies that would make collective action and worker power a reality for caregivers.

In the next phases of this exemption review, we would also recommend that the Ministry of Labour prioritize those industries where workers are most vulnerable, including sectors that rely heavily on migrant labour. In particular, we urge Ontario to ensure that the agricultural sector is included in the next phase of the review.

See below for our full submission:

CAC Submission ESA LRA Exemptions

We will be closed for the holidays from December 23-January 9th. The phone line will mostly be closed during that time but if your concern is time sensitive, please leave a message and we will get back to you as soon as we can. If you are calling with a problem at work, please call the Ontario Ministry of Labour at 1-800-531-5551.

If you are in need of urgent emotional support over the holidays, please call the Gerstein Centre’s 24 hour a day hotline, at: 416-929-5200. For a list of other services across Ontario, please call 211 or visit their website http://www.211ontario.ca/.

Wishing you all a restful holiday. We look forward to working for change together in the New Year!

Caregiver Amalia Loyzaga (right) and her daughter, Apple. Ms. Loyzaga will speak at the press conference.

November 20, 2017

Media Contacts:
Anna Malla, Organizer, Caregivers Action Centre 647-782-6633

MIGRANT MOTHERS, DISABILITY RIGHTS ADVOCATES CALL FOR PERMANENT STATUS, IMMEDIATE END TO MEDICAL INADMISSIBILITY REGIME

Toronto – Migrant Caregivers and disability rights advocates are calling for permanent status on arrival and an immediate end to the medical inadmissibility regime as the parliamentary Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration (CIMM) continues deliberations to end this unjust system. Section 38(1)(c) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act denies permanent residency to an entire family if one member of the family is sick or disabled and deemed to pose an ‘excessive demand’ on the Canadian healthcare system. Nearly 1,000 people and their families were rejected on this basis in 2014. Several migrant caregivers whose permanent residency applications have been challenged based on their children’s diagnosed disabilities will be speaking out against the discrimination they are facing.

WHAT: Permanent Status Now, Repeal Section 38(1)(c) Press Conference
WHEN: 9:30am, November 20, 2017, first day of CIMM hearings
WHERE: Suite 202, 720 Spadina Avenue, Toronto, Ontario

SPEAKERS: Amalia Loyzaga (Caregiver – status challenged), Josarie Danieles (Caregiver – denied status), Mercedes Benitez (Caregiver – recently granted status after years of separation), Fay Faraday (labour and human rights lawyer), Dr Loree Erickson (Disability activist, seeking permanent residency in Canada for 14 years)

VISUALS: Caregivers telling their stories, with videos and photographs of their children from whom they have been separated.

Migrant caregivers and disability activists and their supporters are calling on the Federal Government to:

1. Eliminate Section 38(1)(c) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, which allows for discriminating against people with disabilities.
2. Immediately grant permanent residency to Amalia Loyzaga, Josarie Danieles and their families, and all of the families who have been denied permanent residency on disability grounds in the last 10 years.
3. Grant access to permanent residency status to migrant workers currently in Canada, with specific provisions to allow their families to join them. Ensure that all migrant workers arriving in the future come to Canada with their families, and with permanent residency status.
4. Ensure that all migrant workers are allowed to come to Canada with their families, and with permanent residency status, which is the norm for applicants in the Canadian Express Entry system.
5. Ensure all migrant workers have access to all public services, basic rights and the ability to change jobs through open work permits.

Thanks to the organizing of the Fight for $15 & Fairness campaign, we just won a $15 Minimum Wage in Ontario!

 

This is a huge victory that was only possible because of workers just like you who have been bravely speaking out against low wages and unfair working conditions. AND … we still have a lot of work to do to make decent wages, dignity, and fairness at the workplace realities for all.

Details of the announcement

$15 Minimum Wage The minimum wage will increase to $14 by January 2018, then $15 by January 2019. This minimum wage will apply to almost all adult workers – that includes you, caregivers!! BUT…farm workers still do not have access to minimum wage protections. We need to pressure Ontario politicians to make sure that everyone has access to a basic floor of rights.

Personal Emergency Leave This means that a worker who needs to take time off for any kind of emergency or illness is entitled to a minimum of 10 days of Emergency Leave, with 2 of those days paid. Starting January 1, 2018.

Unionizing Unfortunately, migrant workers were not mentioned at all in the government’s announcement today. Specifically, they did not make any changes that would allow for migrant caregivers and migrant farm workers to unionize. That means we have to push even harder to get them to listen to our demands that caregivers and farm workers should be able to organize into unions.

Enforcement The Ministry of Labour is increasing their staff to handle complaints filed by workers under the Employment Standards Act. They are also forcing employers to pay interest on stolen wages, as well as on illegally charged recruitment fees. But they could be doing more! We need proactive enforcement and protections for migrant workers.

What Can I Do?

Call or write your MPP

Your MPP is the Member of Provincial (Ontario) Parliament who represents your neighbourhood, also known as your “electoral riding.” To find a list of MPPs, go here. To find out which electoral riding you are in, enter your address here.

Here are some ideas of what you could say to your MPP:
Hi, my name is [name is optional] ___________________________and I live in your riding of _______________________________.

I am calling because I am excited about the changes to Ontario’s labour laws announced by Premier Kathleen Wynne, in particular the $15 Minimum Wage, the Personal Emergency Leave, and the increased fines for employers who violate workers’ rights.

I work with migrant workers who are some of the most precarious workers in this labour market, and know very well that migrant workers need specific protections. While we are optimistic, we also urge you to consider that there is room to extend protections to all workers, including migrant workers. We hope that you will help us by proposing these changes to any upcoming legislation.

1. $15 Minimum wage for ALL. That means no exemptions from minimum wages for agricultural workers or anyone else.
2. Right to Unionize. We need to remove all exemptions and allow everyone to have access to a union. All workers, including migrant caregivers and farm workers, should be able to form unions.
3. Enforcement. We need better, more proactive enforcement when employers break the law. We need inspections of the homes that caregivers live and work in. We need a faster process for resolving Employment Standards Act anti-reprisal claims when workers are at risk of being sent back home, and temporary permits while their claims are being processed.

Contact your local news outlets

There is going to be back-lash from the business community about the $15 minimum wage, and we need to counteract this with our words of why these changes (and more!) are necessary. Write a piece for your community newspaper, or write a letter to the editor for the Toronto Star at lettertoed@thestar.ca or the Globe and Mail at Letters@globeandmail.com about why you think a $15 minimum wage is a good thing! If you need inspiration, see the $15&Fairness website.

Get involved!

If you would like to get more involved with the Caregivers’ Action Centre and campaigns like this one, please send us an email info@caregiversactioncentre.org.

 

Are you a Caregiver? You deserve care too! Join CAC on May 13th for an afternoon of free workshops, food, and good company!

Do you have questions about your rights at work, or about your pathway to permanent residency? Join us!

Saturday, March 11th, 10:00am – 3:00pm

720 Spadina Avenue, Suite 202, Toronto

 

Attend free workshops about health care access, the immigration process, and your rights at work. Share stories and information with other caregivers, and meet one-on-one with a lawyer for free legal information.

 

Schedule
Feel free to drop in for a portion of the day or stay for the whole day. Some workshops will happen at the same time as individual meetings with lawyers

10:00 am – 11:00 am
Coffee, snacks, welcome, introduction: who is CAC and what do we do?
11:00 am – 12:00 pm
Workshop: Navigating the Immigration system as a caregiver
12:00 pm – 3:00 pm
One-on-one meetings with lawyers
12:00 pm – 12:30 pm 
Lunch
12:30 pm – 2:00 pm
Workshop by OHIP for All: Accessing quality health care, with or without OHIP
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Focus Group: the government changed the caregiver program in 2014. We want to hear from you about how this program is or is not working, and what we can do to change it

To attend, please RSVP to info@caregiversactioncentre.org. You can also call or text us at 647-782-6633. In your RSVP, please let us know if you will need to meet with a lawyer.

TTC Tokens, snacks and lunch will be provided. If you need childcare or have any other needs that we can help you with, please contact us in advance.

Please note: this clinic is for caregivers only. If you are already working with a lawyer, you are welcome to attend the workshops but please do not book an appointment with a lawyer.

We recognize and regret that this event coincides with International Women’s Day activities. We will try to wrap up as early as possible and head over there together!