[Sanctuarycity_hamilton] FW: Article: Temporary Foreign Workers Subject To ‘Quasi-Indentured Status,' Jason Kenney Says

[Maria Antelo (HCLC)]

From: Karl Flecker [mailto:kflecker at gmail.com]


Hi folks

I have been tracking how the Cons have been trying to spin their mess with the TFWP.

In addition to the about turn that Kenney is using, (thx for the fwd MBM)  Clement tried a while ago to spin the TFWP was a problem created by the Liberals.

In both cases, I believe they are exploring trial balloons on how to deflect the ire that this program creates with various parts of the electorate in the lead up to 2015.

Below is short piece I wrote that got published in the Kitchener Waterloo Record after I saw Clement let go of his trial balloon during an editorial board meeting with that paper.

Activists may want to challenge how the Con's attempt to spin their culpability

in sol
k.

Lies and trial balloons

Tony Clement released a trial balloon at an editorial board meeting with the Kitchener Record this month, Commenting on the disastrous Temporary Foreign Worker Program, he passed blame for the massive growth and absence of integrity inherent with the program to the Liberals.[1]

He said, "This program was created prior to (us taking) office, and has grown (since 2002) by 1,818 per cent. That to me sounds a little bit excessive."

In the same manner that Clement ignores excesses taking place under his watch to finance the overzealous insecurity of the G20 meetings, he overlooks the following:

The Conservatives were responsible for:


*      Tripling the number of temporary work permits granted to employers over the last decade.


*      Enabling lower wage rates for both migrant and members of the national workforce.


*      Expediting temporary work permit applications with special offices and multi-million dollar allocations and next to no oversight.


*      Opening every legally recognized Canadian occupation for employers to recruit temporary workers.


*      Granting employers a $35.5M annual subsidy to process applications up until 2013.


*      Reducing national advertising standards obliging employers to recruit nationally.

*      Making insignificant efforts to ensure compliance and enforcement of labour standards.

Furthermore, it was on their watch that human trafficking charges of domestic workers, innumerable labour rights violations and corporate abuses of the TFWP by RBC, HD Mines and MacDonald's came to the public's attention.

With less than 400 days before the next federal election, troublesome issues for the Conservatives like the TFWP, procurement of expensive F-35's, climate change obfuscation, Robo-calls, and corrupt Senate appointments (to name a few) are in desperate need of reframing for the electorate.

Clements's disingenuous statements amount to letting go of a trial balloon intended to dodge their own record before the electorate judges them in 2015.

His mistruths went further: He said, “No other country operates temporary labour migration schemes for unskilled workers”.   For such a worldly fellow, Clement should know better.

India, the Philippines, Mexico, Guatemala, Jamaica, Nepal, and numerous OECD countries to name just a few, all embraced temporary migration schemes for unskilled workers.  This type of labour mobility was heavily promoted in 2006 at the first United Nations High Level Dialogue meeting -where Canada was present.

Letting go of balloons based on lies tend to burst when they run into the sharp point of facts.

Karl Flecker has written extensively on the struggles facing migrant workers nationally and internationally.

On Wed, Oct 1, 2014 at 10:21 AM, Marisa Berry Méndez <mberrymendez at ccrweb.ca<mailto:mberrymendez at ccrweb.ca>> wrote:
Hi All,

I'm sending this out more than a week after it was published but I was only just made aware of it.

Sounds like Jason Kenney is making a huge about turn in his approach to the TFWP - I'm a little flabbergasted!

http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2014/09/20/jason-kenney-foreign-workers_n_5851974.html#<http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2014/09/20/jason-kenney-foreign-workers_n_5851974.html>

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________________________

Marisa Berry Méndez
Settlement Policy Director / Directrice de la politique en matière d'établissement
Canadian Council for Refugees / Conseil canadien pour les réfugiés
mberrymendez at ccrweb.ca<mailto:mberrymendez at ccrweb.ca>
www.ccrweb.ca<http://www.ccrweb.ca>
Tel. : 514 277-7223 x 5<tel:514%20277-7223%20x%205>

________________________


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