Migrant Workers Alliance for Change invites you to
Vigil: Celebrate Migrant Workers
http://www.facebook.com/events/302043009829811
5pm, December 18, 2011
Chinese Railway Workers’ Memorial (Map: http://bit.ly/vfFAmk)
Flowers, food, fruits and wine are the markers of the holiday season – grown, packaged, shipped, cooked by migrant workers across this country. As people begin to plan festivities, the Migrant Workers Alliance for Change, is calling on migrant workers, undocumented people and their allies to join us at the Chinese Railway Workers` Memorial at 5pm in a vigil of somber reflection and to reiterate the need for immediate, urgent action to ensure justice, dignity and status for all migrants.
* A right to landing status be granted upon arrival for migrant workers. They must not be tied to one employer, be required to live in their employer’s home, or be subject to further medical examination;
* A right to equal access for all social programs, including Employment Insurance, health care, settlement services and social services;
* A right to a fair appeal process for migrant workers prior to a pre-removal order, and a stop to deportations until this process is in place;
* A right to full protection for all migrants under all provincial laws, including the Employment Standards Act, Health and Safety laws and WSIB, and including no fees for any work placement.
* Immediately implement a national regularization programs granting permanent immigration status for all non-residents living in Canada.
On December 18, 2011, migrant and their allies around the world will come together on factory floors, in farm fields, in hotels and construction sites, and on the streets to commemorate and celebrate the struggles of migrant workers on the Global Day of Action Against Racism, And for the Rights of Migrants, Refugees and Displaced People (http://globalmigrantsaction.org/) – Join us in Toronto!
More people are entering the Canadian labour force as temporary workers today then people entering Canada as permanent residents. Temporariness is also being instituted in the family sponsorship class, for parents and grandparents and within the refugee system. This means that migrants, often people of color, are being forced to work in sub-standard conditions, being used and abused by employers and corporations and sometimes having to make the difficult decision between living in the country without immigration status or being pushed out from communities and employment in the country. In spite of this, migrant workers continue to organize, to resist, and fight back. Join us on December 18, to continue this struggle.
Note: Migrant Workers Alliance for Change will also be doing leafletting and flyering at 3pm at Yonge & Dundas Square.