According to the minister, “As we work to implement a permanent caregivers program, these two pilots will help not only improve support for caregivers, but also provide families with the quality care they deserve.”
The government says that eligible caregivers will be able to work for organizations that provide temporary or part-time care for individuals, such as those receiving care while recovering from injury or illness.
We all saw that “in Toronto on Monday afternoon, [the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship] said the pilots could launch as soon as this fall. These updated programs replace two other pilot programs that the minister said brought thousands of caregivers to Canada, but which are slated to wrap up” on June 17, 2024.
The minister said, “While these pilots have attracted many qualified individuals and their families in Canada and helped provide in-home care, the need for caregivers continues”.
This indicates that “the government has been talking to caregivers and stakeholders to look at ways of improving the support these programs provide for newcomers.”
Minister Miller “said that with Canada's aging demographics, there is an increasing need for caregivers to support people.”
In my riding, I have seven long-term care units and the majority of the people who are PSWs or caregivers taking care of those elderly people in long-term care are Filipinos. Their contributions are really great. We saw during the pandemic all the issues we faced in long-term care. Canadians were really worried about their parents and grandparents who were living in long-term care. Who was taking care of them when we had issues? It was the caregivers, with many of them coming from the Filipino community. We really owe them a lot.
As Minister Miller also recognized while announcing these pilot projects, we have an aging population in Canada. He said, “This is something that is an increasing reality, not a decreasing one.”
“He noted many of the caregivers who come to Canada to take this work on are women, some of whom are being separated from their own families when moving abroad to take care of others.”
I have heard stories that make all of us cry. We hear from the caregivers that they have not been able to see their young kids for four or five years. These stories are there and it is really important that we give priority to that.
I know this motion, which my colleague and good friend, MP Ali, moved and was adopted by this committee on December 12, 2023, has been delayed for all of this session because other things have been coming up. I know we have done important work in the committee, but it is really very important that we do not delay this study for a very long time.
The five-year pilot projects that were first launched in 2019 and were aimed at bringing foreign caregivers into the country to care for children, seniors and people with disabilities are being replaced, are expiring on June 17. “The new pilots, which the government says are a move toward establishing a permanent caregiver program in Canada, address some long-held concerns that critics of the country's approach to foreign caregivers have spent years highlighting.”
Amanda Aziz, an immigration and refugee lawyer with the Migrant Workers Centre in Vancouver, said, “People have been working for decades on the demand to ensure that migrant workers arrive with permanent resident status to Canada”.
This is, for the most part, because caregivers and care workers are faced with such abuse and exploitation in the context of their employment.
In Canada, we have tried different caregiver programs. At times we have seen that it should be associated with a particular employer, not open. We saw how much abuse the caregivers had to face when their work permits were tied to their employers.
We have been trying different programs for years and have not been able to land on a permanent program in the last many years for our caregiver community. I think that's not fair for the caregivers who are putting so much into that profession. They give their lives to that profession, which is either keeping them away from their loved ones or is the cause of the abuse they face. I think it's really very important that we give them some sort of certainty so that their anxiety level goes down. That's why I really want us to do this study.
When I go back in the summer to my constituents and start hearing those stories again, what am I going to tell them? Will I tell them that, for this whole session, we were not able to schedule meetings on an important issue, especially in this month of June, which has been recognized unanimously to highlight the contributions of Canadians of Filipino origin here in Canada?
I know that Marc Miller, Minister of Immigration, has also announced other highly anticipated changes to language and education requirements to qualify for the new pilots that are set to launch sometime between this fall and early 2025.
Where applicants previously needed to demonstrate a language proficiency of level 5 in either English or French, that requirement has now been dropped to level 4.
Education requirements have also been lowered: caregivers previously needed to have the equivalent of at least one year of post-secondary education or a foreign educational credential equivalent.
Under the incoming pilots, the equivalent of a Canadian high school diploma will suffice, along with “recent and relevant” work experience.
An offer for a full-time home care job is also required in these two programs.
Through the streams, caregivers will also be able to work for organizations that offer part-time care for people who are recovering from injury or illness and those who are not fully independent.
My colleague MP Kwan—we have been on this committee since 2015—“told the Star the changes—which she said she has pushed Ottawa to adopt—will also stop caregivers from being separated from their families by opening up more ways for them to bring relatives to Canada.”
She also said, “I've been advocating for this for over 30 years now, and so today's announcement that they will finally respect and honour caregivers and value their work...is extremely welcome.”
I think it is really very important, based on all I have said and on all the Filipino community has contributed to the economy of this country, especially in the caregiver sector and especially recognizing that June is Filipino Heritage Month, that my motion be taken into consideration and that we start this important study.
Thank you, Chair.