Media Roundup

La revue de presse fournit des liens aux articles récents et archivés, à la fois en anglais et en français, sur l’immigration et la diversité lesquels ont été publiés dans les média locaux et nationaux. Il y a également des articles internationaux. Cette section est mise à jour hebdomadairement.


Globe and Mail – Ottawa to Review Data on Employers Who Rely on Temporary Foreign Workers

Employment Minister Jason Kenney says his department is reviewing data compiled on employers who rely heavily on temporary foreign workers – a move that follows concern from several companies about inaccuracies that could damage their reputations. The data, produced by the Employment Department and released to The Globe and Mail through access-to-information legislation, listed more than 2,500 employers the federal government contended turned to foreign workers to fill at least one-third of their labour force last year. These employers were cited in June, but not named, to buttress the government’s case for clamping down on Canada’s temporary foreign worker (TFW) program. More than a dozen on the list, including industry giants such as Siemens AG, Accenture Canada, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Shaw Cablesystems, told The Globe that Ottawa’s figures are wrong. Some have called on the government to retract and correct the information. […] “We are going back and verifying each one of those,” Mr. Kenney told reporters on Thursday after delivering a speech on the government’s skills agenda at a conference organized by Canada 2020, a public policy think-tank.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/ottawa-to-review-data-on-employers-who-rely-on-temporary-foreign-workers/article20903173/

CBC – Jason Kenney Says No to Easing New Temporary Foreign Worker Rules

Employment Minister Jason Kenney says he has no intention of easing new, stricter rules for employers who hire temporary foreign workers. “No, we will not be making fundamental changes to the reforms that were implemented in June partly because there is already a regional dimension built into the system,” Kenney said during a conference organized byCanada2020, a policy think-tank, in Ottawa today. The new rules include barring employers from hiring low-wage temporary foreign workers in regions where the unemployment rate is above six per cent, and will require employers to cap the number of foreign workers they hire at 10 per cent by 2016. Kenney, who is the MP for Calgary Southeast, said the program has been “overused” in his home province of Alberta, where wages in the fast-food services sector have not kept up with the rate of inflation. “In my view, this is very clear evidence of a labour market distortion,” he told the conference.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/jason-kenney-says-no-to-easing-new-temporary-foreign-worker-rules-1.2785536

Vancouver Sun – Governments Relying More on Lower-Paid Private Security

Federal government security contracts, such as the one at the Canada Border Services Agency airport holding centre for immigration detainees, are typically low-bid contracts, a security expert says. […] André Gerolymatos, a professor specializing in security studies at Simon Fraser University, said governments are relying more on private companies for security because it is cheaper — the wages are lower and they don’t have to pay the pensions and other benefits that government employees get. […] Detainees at the airport holding centre are supposed to be checked every half-hour by an employee of Genesis Security, but for security reasons guards cannot do room checks unless there are at least two people on duty. […]T he RCMP would not comment on its policies for checking cells because the matter is before a coroner’s inquest.

http://www.vancouversun.com/CBSA+security+contract+represents+race+bottom+expert+says/10257524/story.html

La Presse – Soins aux réfugiés: impossible de faire marche arrière, dit Ottawa

Le gouvernement fédéral affirme que revenir en arrière pour rétablir l’ancien système qui couvrait tous les soins de santé pour les demandeurs d’asile serait trop complexe et coûteux. Cet argument fait partie de l’appel du gouvernement contre un jugement de la Cour fédérale rendu en juillet, qui a tranché que la couverture de soins actuelle contrevient à la Charte canadienne des droits et libertés. Les changements apportés en 2012 au programme fédéral intérimaire de soins de santé ont réduit substantiellement la couverture offerte à ceux qui attendent que leur demande de statut de réfugié soit accordée. Le geste inattendu a outré ceux qui défendent les droits des réfugiés. Ils ont traîné le gouvernement devant les tribunaux, soutenant que les modifications constituaient un traitement cruel et inusité. La Cour a donné au gouvernement jusqu’au 4 novembre pour créer un nouveau système ou retourner à l’ancien, mais Ottawa dit avoir besoin de plus de temps.

http://www.lapresse.ca/actualites/politique/politique-canadienne/201410/01/01-4805439-soins-aux-refugies-impossible-de-faire-marche-arriere-dit-ottawa.php

Toronto Star – 3 Afghan Soldiers Who Fled For Canada Living in Fear

Three Afghan military officers who sought refuge in Canada after taking off from a military training exercise in Massachusetts said Wednesday they were trying to escape Taliban violence at home but now face the wrath of their own government as well. “Now that we’ve decided to seek asylum, the danger has multiplied,” said Maj. Jan Mohammad Arash, who along with Capt. Noorullah Aminyar and Capt. Mohammed Nasir Askarzada travelled more than 500 miles by taxi from a Wal-Mart on Cape Cod to Niagara Falls. The three walked across the Rainbow Bridge connecting New York to Ontario, Canada, to claim refugee status on Sept. 22 and were turned over to U.S. authorities, who charged them with immigration violations and began removal proceedings.

http://www.thestar.com/news/world/2014/10/01/3_afghan_soldiers_who_fled_for_canada_living_in_fear.html

Toronto Star – New Canadians Struggle with Financial Hurdles: Report

Newcomers to Canada have trouble with everything from employment to weather conditions when they move to their new country, says a new BMO Wealth Institute report. The bank study, to be released Wednesday, examined the top challenges new immigrants face when arriving in Canada, and found many hurdles are financial. Nearly half, or 46 per cent, of new Canadians say finding adequate employment is their biggest obstacle, while 26 per cent said it was learning a new language. Adapting to the cold climate was a problem for 16 per cent of respondents, missing support from their homeland for 13 per cent and 11 per cent pointed to daily financial constraints of their new life, the report found. Compared to other G8 countries, Canada has the highest proportion of foreign-born residents. […] The report also examined the top financial priorities of two communities in particular: new Chinese-Canadians and new South Asian-Canadians. Having enough money just to cover daily expenses was cited by 88 per cent of Chinese respondents and by 87 per cent of South Asian immigrants.

http://www.thestar.com/business/2014/10/01/new_canadians_struggle_with_financial_hurdles_report.html