Monday, April 30, 2012

Are you awake yet?

Consider the cost of this.
Immigration Minister Jason Kenney has always vehemently denied bringing cheap foreign labour into Canada. Employers had to pay foreign temporary workers “the prevailing wage,” he pointed out.

That indeed is what the rules said – until Wednesday, when Human Resources Minister Diane Finley quietly changed them. Employers will now be allowed to pay foreign temp workers 15 per cent less than the average wage.

“We are taking action to ensure that the temporary foreign worker program support our economic recovery and effectively responds to local labour market demands,” she said at a manufacturing plant in Nisku, Alta.
Kenney chimed in from Ottawa. “Going forward our government will consider additional measures to strengthen and improve the program,” he promised.

Business leaders, eager to recruit low-cost workers abroad, were delighted. Immigrant support groups, already fighting to protect temporary foreign workers from exploitation, were heartsick. And labour leaders warned that the wage cut would bring down the pay scale for all workers and make it harder for Canadians to compete for jobs in their own country.
And as reprehensible as that is, Lorne brings up the other part of this and it isn't pretty.

Either you start working for less or we'll go outside the country and find someone who will. Once you're laid-off, you won't receive EI benefits unless you take a low wage job, which will end your EI eligibility.

Welcome to Harper's Canada.

3 comments:

Beijing York said...

Once this plan is implemented, racism will be running rampant. The Harper regime wants to transform us into a US Red State.

karen said...

I read the article you linked to. When did this happen? Can they do this with no discussion in Parliament? Was there discussion in Parliament?
I know there have been some instances of this in the recent past. I know that many of the workers on the Canada Line in Vancouver were from other countries. My union tried to get near them, and they were pretty well "protected."

Steve said...

The horror the horror that Canadians are not out in the streets. With the neo cons it begins and ends with cheap labour.