Détails du document

2009-06-17

Canadian Press

The Toronto Star

OTTAWA – The government is reintroducing legislation it says will help protect foreign workers from exploitation and abuse.

The amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act will allow officials to deny temporary work permits to foreign workers, such as strippers or nannies, who might be victimized in Canada.

A similar bill was introduced in the last Parliament, but died when the October election was called.

The Conservative government says the amendments will give immigration officers the ability to prevent abuse before it even begins.

The last time the bill was introduced, some immigration activists called it a slap in the face for temporary workers.

The Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants said denying work permits only punishes foreign workers and does nothing to punish Canadian employers who may be exploiting foreign help.

But Labour Minister Rona Ambrose said the bill will protect the vulnerable.

"The amendments will help further our agenda of increasing protections for temporary foreign workers, by preventing situations of abuse from happening in the first place," she said in a news release.

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Canada, Ontario, Alberta, Manitoba, Quebec, Colombie-Britannique, Autres provinces, Fédéral, Nouvelle-Écosse et National relevance

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