Nanny flak for labour minister
March 24, 2009
Ontario Labour Minister Peter Fonseca is taking heat from opposition politicians, his counterpart in Manitoba and the federal immigration minister over his reluctance to better protect foreign caregivers.
Under questioning at Queen's Park, Fonseca continued to insist yesterday Ottawa is responsible for dealing with recruiting agencies that exploit foreign nannies.
The Star found some unregulated Ontario agencies charge foreign nannies up to $10,000 for jobs in Canada that often don't exist. Some nannies are then housed up to 12 to a room and sent to do illegal work for well below minimum wage.
Critics say Ontario should license and regulate nanny recruiters, prosecute fraudulent operators and ban placement fees.
"It is the responsibility of the federal government," Fonseca said in response to questions from NDP employment standards critic Cheri DiNovo. "I've imparted to (federal Immigration) Minister (Jason) Kenney that they should look at making amendments to this program to safeguard those workers."
Last week, Kenney told the Star he is planning reforms at the federal level but urged Ontario to follow the lead of provinces like Manitoba.
New legislation taking effect there April 1 will ban agencies from charging placement fees to foreign caregivers, beef up enforcement and require agencies to be licensed.
"I ... wish that (Fonseca) would look at Manitoba's legislation," said Nancy Allan, Manitoba's minister of labour and immigration. "We can't be finger-pointing here and off-loading responsibility for this. ... It's modern-day slavery and we're going to put an end to it."
Fonseca said Ontario's Employment Standards Act covers the nannies and those in a "precarious" position should "call our inspectors."
That's not a reasonable option for vulnerable workers, many of whom are here illegally, Allan said.
More:
Federal agencies fail to protect migrant nannies