Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I thank the committee for welcoming me once again.
My question is for Mr. Elharrar and Mr. Gillespie.
Following the closure of the Olymel plant, a number of temporary foreign workers will be out of work. They will therefore have a closed work permit.
The situation is not unique to Olymel. It has been the same for other companies that we have all heard about.
Before the end of a closed work permit, a new agreement is usually negotiated with the impacted workers at the end of the contract. If they do not sign the agreement for a fixed term while they are waiting for an open work permit, they are shown the door by the employer at the end of the contract. Because their permit is closed, they find themselves in a situation where they are not allowed to work for several months. They often end up working illegally to support themselves and their families.
In concrete terms, what recourse is available to these workers?
As members of Parliament, we receive calls about these types of cases. When our teams contact the companies to inquire, they are told that there is nothing they can do.
What can we say to these workers today? What can they do?