Finance committee  The conditions that you just listed are completely unenforceable. We can't rely on the federal sector employers to ensure that those conditions are being met for every intern. If interns feel as though those conditions are not met for them, then how are they to proceed? They can'

Finance committee  I frequently speak to interns who have been sexually harassed. It's something that occurs often in Canada and is very infrequently reported. Interns who have been sexually harassed do not want to speak out about their internships. This bill would provide no protections for them.

Finance committee  Mr. Gleason made an excellent point, which is that only the wealthiest young Canadians can afford to do unpaid internships. The result is that everyone else experiences barriers to accessing all sorts of professions and jobs in journalism, the arts, politics, and increasingly in

Finance committee  Absolutely. We frequently receive emails from immigrants in Canada who take unpaid work out of desperation and for no other reason. In fact, all Canadians are taking unpaid work out of desperation. Federally regulated employers would use these exceptions to take advantage of that

Finance committee  The first thing I'll say is that these amendments would put interns, students, and entry-level workers in a worse position than they're currently in under the Canada Labour Code. Entry-level interns and workers who are receiving training are currently entitled to a number of diff

Finance committee  I do not believe we've achieved that balance in any sense.

Finance committee  What we recommend is unpaid work only be allowed when there's oversight from accredited educational institutions. The current bill would provide for four to twelve months of unpaid internships outside of school. That means there's no oversight. There's no ability for an intern to

Finance committee  I absolutely agree that internships are very valuable for the interns themselves and for students. At the same time, many of the internships that we're discussing today are, in fact, work. Entry-level employees have value, and young people's work also has value, and the employers

Finance committee  I'm not concerned that providing basic workplace protection would decrease the number of experiences for young Canadians in the workplace. I think it's employers' responsibility to be training young workers, and the interns themselves will find ways to make those positions availa

Finance committee  Finally, I'll reiterate two points that I've made before this committee in the past. First, there's a huge lack of data on the prevalence of internships and the characteristics of interns in Canada, which is a barrier to effective policy-making. The Canada labour program, Statist

Finance committee  Good morning. My name is Claire Seaborn and I'm the president of the Canadian Intern Association and a recent graduate of University of Ottawa law school. We're here to discuss the amendments to the Canada Labour Code proposed in division 7 of the budget bill. First of all, I

Finance committee  Next week will be the beginning of Jainna's hearing before our Canada labour program adjudicator, who will determine whether Jainna was an employee and entitled to wages or whether, under the Canada Labour Code, she doesn't have to be paid. Hopefully we'll receive some clarity on

Finance committee  If the Canada Labour Code were amended to provide some clarity and explain that interns are employees unless some sort of exemption applies, for example they're in a student program, then that would really provide a lot of clarity. In that case, Jainna probably wouldn't be consid

Finance committee  If the Conservative government were adding to its blacklist of employers, absolutely, they should include those breaking provincial workplace laws with unpaid interns.

Finance committee  Absolutely. Andy Ferguson died in November of 2011. As you said, he fell asleep at the wheel. He was working two positions at the same time. He was working, paid, for a radio station for some hours, and then for other hours he was working, unpaid, as part of a school program. Th