Justice for Migrant Workers (J4MW) is a volunteer-run political collective made up of migrant workers, labour organizers, educators, researchers, students and racialized youth based in Toronto. They strive to promote the rights of migrant farm workers (participating in agricultural streams of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, including the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program) and farm workers without a formal immigration status. They promote worker rights and create spaces where workers can organize and voice their concerns without losing their work. J4MV is a movement of workers and allies striving to support organizing that is led and directed by workers in the fields, farms and greenhouses.
One of their current projects involves supporting migrant workers employed at Polat Construction. These workers are owed nearly $150,000 in back wages and were terminated after they attempted to form a union. These workers were then denied Employment Insurance and have since become homeless. To learn more about the struggles of these particular workers, read their story on CTV News: https://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/they-came-from-jamaica-for-work-now-they-re-homeless-and-out-thousands-of-dollars-in-lost-wages-1.7037238
PSAC NCR supports J4MV in their calls for massive reform of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, including:
- the removal of closed and sectorally-tied permits
- the immediate cancellation of unilateral employer-led repatriations
- an immediate right to family unification and status and visas to families of temporary foreign workers
- access to employment insurance (EI) for all workers, regardless of their status, residence, and present location
- collective agreements for all temporary workers with the right to organize and bargain collectively and resources for them to do so
- assured employment and guaranteed basic annual income for all agricultural migrant workers and all temporary foreign workers
- the right to negotiate bilateral agreements and standard contract terms for workers and their advocates
- compensation for all repatriated workers and families with access to return to Canada with permanent residence
- the removal of all exceptions and subsidies to the agricultural and construction industries across all provinces
To learn more about this community organization and get involved, visit their website at https://harvestingfreedom.org/.