The Media Roundup provides links to recent and archived articles, in both English and French, on immigration and diversity appearing in the national and local news. Some international content is also included. Articles are updated weekly.
Winnipeg Free Press – English and Experience Were Job Requirements for Coal Mine: Affidavit
A lawyer for the federal government says Ottawa will not voluntarily share the labour market information sought by two unions that want a judicial review of the decision to grant hundreds of temporary work permits for a northern B.C. coal mine. […] Temporary work permits have been granted for between 200 and 300 Chinese workers to conduct preliminary work at the Murray River mine near Tumbler Ridge, B.C. HD Mining International Ltd. has said it was not able to find workers in Canada with the necessary specialized skills for an underground coal mine. The International Union of Operating Engineers Local 115 and the Construction and Specialized Workers Union Local 1611 have filed a lawsuit in Federal Court for a judicial review of the decision to grant the permits.
Vancouver Sun – Farm Labourers Discouraged From Raising Concerns: Advocate
Temporary workers from Mexico who come to work in B.C.’s agriculture industry put their future employment at risk by raising concerns about living or working conditions, according to a Fraser Valley labour advocate. Those who do complain about problems such as overcrowded, unsanitary housing, verbal abuse or not being paid according to their contract are usually not invited back by their employers the following year, said Lucy Luna, Abbotsford coordinator for the Agriculture Workers’ Alliance. This is a problem, she said, because enforcement of the law is entirely complaint-driven and workers effectively forfeit their jobs by complaining.
Calgary Herald – Australia’s Asylum-Seekers Find Nothing but Misery on Christmas Island
Australia has nine immigration detention centres for holding asylum seekers while their refugee claims are being processed, but none so controversial as the one on Christmas Island, called Northwest Point. Since it opened in 2008, it’s been the site of hunger strikes, protests and angry riots. […] Canada is following Australia in adopting a mandatory-detention policy for asylum seekers who arrive by boat, a reaction to the arrival of two migrant ships: the Ocean Lady in 2009, carrying 76 Tamil men, and the MV Sun Sea in 2010, with 492 men, women and children on board. Instead of detention centres, which have proven to be expensive and psychologically harmful, Canada will hold them in provincial jails, which human rights advocates say will be even worse.
Toronto Star – Ottawa to Create Skilled Immigrant Pool, Provinces Would Select Applicants Based on Labour Needs
Ottawa has reached a consensus with the provinces to establish a pool of skilled-worker candidates by the end of 2014 that will allow employers to cherry-pick potential immigrants to fill regional labour shortages. Immigration Minister Jason Kenney announced Friday he is committed to working with his provincial counterparts to implement the Expression of Interest system, whereby employers could screen and assess a pool of applicants for immigration consideration. […] However, Kenney was lukewarm to Ontario’s own immigration plan, unveiled earlier this month, that called for vastly increasing the number of skilled immigrants the province can hand-pick under the provincial nominee program — to 2,000 next year, and to 5,000 in 2014.
Ottawa Citizen – An Army of (Permanent) Temporary Foreign Workers
News that a consortium of mostly Chinese companies will seek permission to use exclusively Chinese labour for underground work in four proposed B.C. coal mines has blown the lid off a simmering debate over the dramatic increase in the use of Canada’s temporary foreign worker program. […] The Harper government, which only last spring announced measures to boost the already record-high use of TFWs, has announced a program review in light of the public backlash and court challenges over the Chinese mine plan. The controversy has put a spotlight on a program which employs workers in occupations ranging from the skilled trades and domestic and farm workers to nursing, the fast-food industry and the ski business.
Times Colonist – Special Series: Three Years After Tamil Asylum Seekers Land on Our Shores, Times Colonist Investigates Canada’s Refugee Policy Move to the Right
Asylum seekers who come to Canada by boat will be detained in provincial jails, as was the case with the Tamils who arrived on the MV Sun Sea, and the Ocean Lady the year before. That’s despite already overcrowded conditions, which human rights advocates warn are inappropriate for people fleeing persecution and war. For a model, the Conservatives looked to Canada’s Commonwealth sister down under — Australia, which has had a mandatory detention policy for the last 20 years and is constantly dealing with a crush of migrant ships from Southeast Asia. The problem is that the system in that country has been an utter failure, according to experts.
