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.
CBC News – Quebec seeing rise in injured temporary foreign workers hired to fill labour gaps
The number of temporary foreign workers injured on the job in Quebec has more than doubled in the past two years, as the province relies on more migrant workers to fill labour shortages. Quebec Labour Minister Jean Boulet said Wednesday the Quebec workplace health and safety board (CNESST) will do more to try to protect migrant workers by hiring more inspectors and increasing its oversight over employers.
Radio-Canada – Mieux encadrer les travailleurs étrangers temporaires, « un pas dans la bonne direction »
Devant les cas d’abus qui ont fait la manchette ces derniers mois, Québec souhaite mieux protéger et informer les travailleurs étrangers temporaires, qui sont de plus en plus nombreux dans la province. Ce souhait est très bien accueilli par plusieurs acteurs de la région. En ce sens, le ministre du Travail, Jean Boulet, a annoncé mercredi que les actions de la Commission des normes, de l’équité, de la santé et de la sécurité du travail (CNESST) auprès de cette main-d’œuvre, de ses représentants et de ses employeurs seront renforcées.
Radio-Canada – Abus, harcèlement, logements surpeuplés : des travailleurs étrangers exploités au N.-B.
Des chercheurs lèvent le voile sur des conditions de travail déplorables des travailleurs étrangers temporaires employés par l’industrie de la transformation des produits de la mer au Nouveau-Brunswick. Il y a beaucoup d’abus, indique Raluca Bejean, professeure agrégée en travail social à l’Université Dalhousie. Elle est coauteure du rapport d’un groupe de chercheurs des universités Dalhousie et Saint-Thomas et de l’Institut Cooper.
CBC News – Asylum Seekers Face Hurdles, Discrimination as They Compete for Housing in Montreal
Pedro Fonseca, a 43-year-old asylum seeker from Colombia, says if he doesn’t start receiving social assistance from the Quebec government soon, he’ll likely become homeless. Fonseca is among the 39,171 asylum seekers who crossed into Quebec in 2022 through Roxham Road — an annual record. He and other would-be refugees are putting pressure on Quebec’s social services and competing with residents for limited housing options.
Global News – Thousands Have Arrived in Canada from Turkey, Syria Since Deadly Earthquakes
Canada is prioritizing visas for victims of the devastating earthquakes that hit Turkey and Syria last month, as hundreds of thousands have been made homeless. More than 3,000 people from Turkey and Syria have entered the country since the Feb. 6 earthquakes, according to data shared by the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) with Global News this week. It’s not clear if all those who came between Feb. 6 and 26 were directly impacted by the earthquakes.
CityNews – Latest Death at Canada-US Border Is Symptom of ‘Failing’ System, Says Immigration Lawyer
Two months after 44-year-old Fritznel Richard died while attempting to cross the U.S. border, another man – 45-year-old Jose Leos Cervantes – collapsed and died shortly after crossing into the United States from Quebec.It’s left community groups sounding the alarm once more. “It is a symptom of a system that is failing. It is a system of an immigration policy that is not working,” said Viviane Albuquerque, a Canadian and U.S. immigration lawyer.
