Advocates call on Ottawa to reform rules for thousands of migrant care workers

Advocates called on the federal government on International Women's Day to overhaul what they say are unfair rules for migrant care workers in Canada.

The Migrant Workers Alliance for Change, an advocacy group, organized a panel of speakers on Friday to draw attention to two five-year caregiver pilot programs, the Home Child Care Provider Pilot and Home Support Worker Pilot, that are set to expire on June 17.

The alliance says the programs, which are specifically for applicants with work experience in care giving, are a pathway to permanent residency in Canada.

«These programs are scheduled to terminate on June 17, 2024, but thousands of care workers are already unable to apply for permanent residency and are at risk of deportation due to unreasonably high language and education requirements,» the group says.

Among the language requirements is a required English test score of level 5, exceeding even the requirement for Canadian citizenship, the group says.

The federal government's website indicates applicants must demonstrate that they have attained that proficiency in either English or French in reading, writing, speaking and listening. They must prove that they have completed one year post-secondary educational credential or a foreign educational credential equivalent.

Jhoey Dulaca, an organizer of the alliance, said migrant care workers are mostly racialized women, many from the Philippines and Indonesia, who come to Canada to look after children, the sick, and elderly people.

She said getting permanent residency is already a punishing task for thousands of migrant care workers. And the imminent closure of the two pilot programs, both of which started in 2019, will leave many more workers in limbo.

«Together we are here to