Ottawa will invest $58.6 million toward increased farm inspections and creating mandatory housing requirements for migrant workers, the prime minister announced Friday. In a letter delivered to Mendicino this week, Flores asked the federal government to give permanent status to migrant workers to prevent future abuse. “While we are proud of the worker protections we have in this country, we recognize that there are important issues that need to be addressed within the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and we are taking action.”Additional funding will also go to migrant worker outreach, including through an existing pilot project called the Migrant Worker Support Network (MWSN). That organization was designed to “enhance protections” — but has attracted criticism from grassroots groups who say migrant workers themselves have been excluded from the network. Cruz said to date, the network organized virtual training sessions and community kitchens for migrant workers — but weren’t accessible to migrant workers given their demanding working schedules and lack of computer access.

Source: thestar July 31, 2020 18:56 UTC