International Trade committee  I hope so.

International Trade committee  Yes, that's what we're trying to do, because we lose a lot of work. Everything is going offshore, and that's limited our work of eight hours. We have families to look after and half a paycheque doesn't cut it. So that's what we're trying to do.

International Trade committee  Yes, and we don't even know what will happen next year, because that's how we work. We might go six months or five months working eight hours, and all of a sudden it just drops. Then it might pick up again. That's why I said some of us can't even afford to purchase a car. We take public transportation because we can't afford to pay for insurance or a car payment.

International Trade committee  Everything. About 90% of the Coppley staff in Hamilton are women and immigrants. Over 75% of the women there can't even read or speak English. We have jobs that allow us to support our families. We are skilled workers who take pride in our high-end, quality products. The problem is that our industry is under serious pressure.

International Trade committee  I hope so.

International Trade committee  Yes.

International Trade committee  My name is Radika Quansoon, and I live in Hamilton, Ontario. I've worked for Coppley Apparel Group for about 22 years. We manufacture men's clothing. There are about 400 people who work for Coppley, and we make high-end suits, some of which some of you guys may be wearing here. As the best-known brand in North America, we are the people who make the suits for Don Cherry.