By Ted Alcuitas
Special to The Post

In the wake of a Parliamentary Committee reviewing the foreign temporary foreign worker program, a coalition of migrant workers in Vancouver this week called for the scrapping of the temporary status and to allow workers to enter as permanent residents.

The Coalition for Migrant Workers Rights Canada also calls for the abolition of “Project Guardian”, a program of the Canada Border Services Agency that targets foreign caregivers.

The press conference at the BC Teacher’s Federation offices heard a Filipina caregiver from Hong Kong who is working in Vancouver.

The caregiver who only give her name as ‘Jhinky’ broke down as she related how she was “abused” by her employer.

“I shouldered all my expenses in coming here but my employer held back my salary,” she told the audience in between sobs.

Otello Hernandez-Morales, speaking through an interpreter, said he was “assaulted” by a co-worker in the farm where he works.

“I reported the assault to the police and the Mexican consulate but nothing was done about it,” the Mexican worker said, speaking through an interpreter.

“Work permits that tie TFWs to one employer at one address highly restrict their labour mobility and it makes them vulnerable to a range of abuses,” said Jane Ordinario, a representative from Migrante B.C.

Ordinario likened the TFWs as “modern-day slaves”.

 For more information go to  www.migrantebc.com.