‘Equal in rights, equal in dignity’

‘Equal in rights, equal in dignity’

Filipino temporary foreign workers, migrant advocates, union members and faith-based groups gather in Shediac, New Brunswick. (Photo courtesy of author)

First forum for Filipino Temporary Foreign Workers in the Maritimes Region

By Jesson Reyes

While Filipino families in Ontario took advantage of the Valentine and Family Day weekend to spend time with each other, our kababayans further east also gathered together, but not with their families. Filipinos employed in the temporary foreign worker program in Shediac, New Brunswick gathered with their fellow workers, migrant advocates, faith based advocacy groups and union members.

Migrante Canada together with KAIROS and CUPE National organized the very first forum for Filipino Temporary foreign workers in the Maritimes region. Entitled “Equal in rights, Equal in Dignity”, the forum was attended by more than 50 participants. They were mostly workers from Shediac, New Brunswick, a town outside of Fredericton, and they were joined by Filipino workers from O’Leary, Prince Edward Island.

Immigration and labor policies were discussed.

The migrant workers were seasonal workers in a lobster plant under the temporary foreign worker program, also known as TFWP.

The controversial Temporary foreign worker program is a federal program which brings in thousands of workers to Canada mainly to work as agricultural workers, or as employees in the “low skilled” work sectors of the fast food industry. In 2015 alone, an approximately 50,000 temporary foreign workers were brought in to work in agriculture, fast foods, factories and farms located all over Canada. This program is part of Canada’s pursuit of a cheap and disposable work force from the global south, one that can do flexible hours of work.

This program has been very controversial for many reasons. Organizers of this weekend’s forum entitled the gathering “Equal in rights, equals in dignity” because the forum’s objective is to forge solidarity between the local New Brunswick workers and the migrant workers from overseas. Touching upon the presence of migrant workers in Canada, often there is a narrative being spread around and causing hostilities between locals and migrants: that the migrant workers are “stealing the jobs of local Canadian workers”. The recently held forum aimed to change that narrative and thus started off with educating both groups about today’s global labor migration.

The 2-day forum featured several speakers: Josie Baker of Coopers Institute in PEI, Jesson Reyes from Migrante Canada and Alma Boudreau representing the workers. In the afternoon, participants heard from the president of the New Brunswick Labor association and a local Filipino multicultural leader.

Author, 2nd from right, was one of the speakers at the forum.

The messages coming from various sectors highlighted the struggles and the continuous efforts of the community which is to better the lives of migrant workers in Canada and to provide permanent residency for the workers. The workers who freely spoke in their native language (Tagalog) – shared their various struggles on their path to permanent residency.

Migrant workers in the province of New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island said that the Provincial Nominee Program seems to be their only way to settle in Canada. It is a program that requires workers to be hired full time for a minimum of 1 year. Applicants must also pass an IETLS examination which proves their language capabilities as Permanent resident. When workers apply under the temporary foreign worker program, particularly under the Season Agricultural Workers Program, they are hired on a part time basis. Consequently in order to get hired as a full time worker, they must comply with employers’ additional demands. Politics within the workplace becomes a reality for many workers.

“We’re survivors, and that’s why we are still here”, says Rafael Encarnacion. Formerly a chef for a cruise ship, he is now a fish plant worker.

Jesson Reyes, regional coordinator for Migrante Canada insists that the problem could be traced back to the Temporary Foreign Workers Program not having a pathway to permanent residency. Consequently, workers are left to exhaust other programs to attain permanent status in Canada and are having a hard time doing so.

Reyes believes the issue of today’s global labor migration must also be discussed in order to fully understand the existence of the guest worker programs such as Canada’s TFWP.

“We must understand that receiving countries like Canada will continue to have guest worker program because it is vital to the survival of its neo liberal agenda”. Reyes said “while sending countries like the Philippines will continue to propagate its Labor Export Policy to keep the status quo (poverty, inequality) at the expense of separating Filipino families.”

The forum lasted all day which saw lively discussions from the participants. The forum concluded with the workers agreeing to form two sets of organizing committees that weretasked to continue the discussions tackling the issues of the workers in New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island.