2009
Justicia for Migrant Workers
Justice for Migrant Workers & IAVGO off to Ottawa December 10, 2009
Justicia for Migrant Workers
Toronto
Justicia for Migrant Workers and the Industrial Accidents Victims Group of Ontario Receive Intervener Status at Supreme Court of Canada Community Group and Legal Aid Clinic Prepare Historic Arguments Relating to Plight of Migrant Workers in Canada. TORONTO - For the first time in Canadian legal history, arguments relating to the plight of Canada’s migrant workers will be heard at the Supreme Court of Canada on December 17th, 2009. The Intervention brought jointly by Justicia for Migrant Workers (J4MW) and the Industrial Accidents Victims Group of Ontario (IAVGO) will be heard as part of Fraser v Attorney General of Ontario, which relates to the right to organize and bargain collectively for Ontario’s 100,000 agricultural workers. J4MW and IAVGO will highlight the particular experiences of migrant workers and how their rights are being violated under the following sections of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms: Section 1 (The Right to Guaranteed Freedoms) Section 2.d (The Right to Freedom of Association) Section 15 (The Right to Equality under the Charter) In particular Justicia for Migrant workers and IAVGO are arguing that the combination of both precarious employment and immigration status denies migrant workers the ability to exert their rights, something that puts migrant workers at a disadvantage compared to permanent residents or Canadian citizens. “Agricultural workers are often employed under arduous, exploitative working and living conditions,” says Tzazna Miranda Leal, J4MW organizer. “However when you are tied to one employer and denied permanent residency status, it adds another layer to the complexities faced by workers employed under Canada’s Temporary Foreign Worker Programs.” The J4MW/IAVGO factum detailing arguments both groups will bring forth can be retrieved from the J4MW website (www.justicia4migrantworkers.org/pdf/supremecourtfactum.pdf). For more Information please contact Chris Ramsaroop 647 834 4932, chrisramsaroop@gmail.com