Ottawa has quietly eliminated the special parental benefits for foreign migrant workers who contribute an estimated $3.4 million annually to Canada’s Employment Insurance system.
Effective Monday, EI’s special parental, maternal and compassionate benefits are only available to those who are authorized to work in Canada year-round.
As a result, the 30,000 migrants workers employed under the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program can no longer take leave and collect a fraction of wages while caring for their newborns or sick children, said Chris Ramsaroop of Justicia for Migrant Workers, a workers’ advocacy group.
Migrant farm workers have never been eligible for full EI benefits because they are seasonal, but they had been able to access the special benefits for up to 35 weeks even if they were outside Canada during the off-season.
“These workers have been subsidizing Canada’s EI fund yet ineligible to receive full benefits,” said Ramsaroop. “Now they are being completely stripped away from the few special benefits they were able to get.”
The United Food and Commercial Workers Canada called the changes another attack on migrant workers’ rights after Ottawa introduced new regulations earlier in 2012 allowing corporate Canada to pay migrant workers 15 per cent less.
“It is grossly unfair, not in keeping with Canadian values,” said Wayne Hanley, the union’s national president.
Junior Sylvester, a migrant farm worker from Trinidad, was able to take time off to help out his wife after his son, Hasani, was born on Christmas Eve in 2009. While on leave, he received a $377 monthly support from the special EI benefits.
“All of us are still paying into Canada’s EI system, but we are not allowed to collect any of the benefit we help contribute to,” said the 48-year-old father of six, who has worked in tobacco and apple farms in southwestern Ontario the last 13 years.
“Canadian workers can access the special benefits and spend time with their children, but how about our children back home?”
At a meeting organized by Justicia in Windsor on Sunday, Ramsaroop said migrant workers were “shocked and angry” about the changes.
“They felt they were being treated like second-class citizens. This is the money some of them were depending on when they can’t work because they have to stay home and look after an ailing child,” said Ramsaroop.
The federal government said the old practice was “inconsistent” with the purpose of the EI program to help individuals transition back into the job market.
“Our government is intent on making sure that the EI program remains fair and consistent,” Human Resources and Skills Development Minister Diane Finley said in a statement. “Only those workers who are legally allowed to live and work in Canada are able to receive benefits.”
Advocates for migrant workers said they do not want migrant workers exempted from paying into the EI, but are simply asking Ottawa to restore the special benefits.
“To begin to exclude one group of workers from protections and entitlements under our social safety net can lead to the dismantling of our income security system for all workers,” said Ramsaroop.
Original Article
Source: the star
Author: Nicholas Keung
Effective Monday, EI’s special parental, maternal and compassionate benefits are only available to those who are authorized to work in Canada year-round.
As a result, the 30,000 migrants workers employed under the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program can no longer take leave and collect a fraction of wages while caring for their newborns or sick children, said Chris Ramsaroop of Justicia for Migrant Workers, a workers’ advocacy group.
Migrant farm workers have never been eligible for full EI benefits because they are seasonal, but they had been able to access the special benefits for up to 35 weeks even if they were outside Canada during the off-season.
“These workers have been subsidizing Canada’s EI fund yet ineligible to receive full benefits,” said Ramsaroop. “Now they are being completely stripped away from the few special benefits they were able to get.”
The United Food and Commercial Workers Canada called the changes another attack on migrant workers’ rights after Ottawa introduced new regulations earlier in 2012 allowing corporate Canada to pay migrant workers 15 per cent less.
“It is grossly unfair, not in keeping with Canadian values,” said Wayne Hanley, the union’s national president.
Junior Sylvester, a migrant farm worker from Trinidad, was able to take time off to help out his wife after his son, Hasani, was born on Christmas Eve in 2009. While on leave, he received a $377 monthly support from the special EI benefits.
“All of us are still paying into Canada’s EI system, but we are not allowed to collect any of the benefit we help contribute to,” said the 48-year-old father of six, who has worked in tobacco and apple farms in southwestern Ontario the last 13 years.
“Canadian workers can access the special benefits and spend time with their children, but how about our children back home?”
At a meeting organized by Justicia in Windsor on Sunday, Ramsaroop said migrant workers were “shocked and angry” about the changes.
“They felt they were being treated like second-class citizens. This is the money some of them were depending on when they can’t work because they have to stay home and look after an ailing child,” said Ramsaroop.
The federal government said the old practice was “inconsistent” with the purpose of the EI program to help individuals transition back into the job market.
“Our government is intent on making sure that the EI program remains fair and consistent,” Human Resources and Skills Development Minister Diane Finley said in a statement. “Only those workers who are legally allowed to live and work in Canada are able to receive benefits.”
Advocates for migrant workers said they do not want migrant workers exempted from paying into the EI, but are simply asking Ottawa to restore the special benefits.
“To begin to exclude one group of workers from protections and entitlements under our social safety net can lead to the dismantling of our income security system for all workers,” said Ramsaroop.
Original Article
Source: the star
Author: Nicholas Keung
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