A group of migrants in Prince Edward Island (PEI) are protesting unexpected changes to immigration rules that put their pathway to permanent residency in jeopardy. They are now at risk of losing status and having to leave the country.
In February, the PEI government announced they would be cutting nominations for permanent residency through the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) by 25 percent in 2024, and nominating fewer workers from the service and sales sector in favour of ‘in-demand’ occupations like healthcare and construction.
Jaspreet Singh, one of the protest organizers, is worried he’s running out of time to get nominated for permanent residency because his work permit expires soon. He says he knows of around 300 fellow workers in PEI who are affected by the changes.
They have been working in jobs critical to the Island’s economy – including at restaurants, grocery stores, retail stores and call centres – on postgraduate work permits, which are valid for a maximum of three years.
After connecting through a WhatsApp group that grew to 1,500 members in 48 hours, the migrant organizers set up a 24/7 protest outside the legislative assembly on May 9. They are calling for access to permanent residency based on the rules that were in place when they came to PEI – before a more restrictive points system was introduced and nominations of sales and service workers were cut. They are also calling for their work permits to be extended.
Having spent tens of thousands of dollars to come to Canada, pay international student tuition fees, and rent in the midst of a housing crisis, the protestors say it would be devastating to return home. “How would we face our families after devoting all the resources, money and time? We have been here for five or six years,” Singh says.
“This is a cycle of exploitation,” explained Singh. “Now because our work permits are expiring, they want us out of the province…then more workers come in, and they get exploited working low-wage jobs and then [the government] pushes them out.”
Blaming migrants for policy failures
The PEI government justified the change saying they need to “reduce pressure on public services and infrastructure.” The pressure points they identified include healthcare, housing and education. This is part of a broader trend across the country of migrants being blamed for the housing crisis and failing public services.
Stoking xenophobia weakens workers’ power and undermines our ability to fight for something better. The Migrant Rights Network has warned that increasing racism and xenophobia is undermining progress towards migrant rights, with the federal government now stalling on a promised regularization program for undocumented workers.
Across the country, we need to stand with workers fighting back against rising anti-immigrant sentiment. In PEI, this means challenging the idea that turning away workers who live in our communities will solve any crisis. We can’t afford this dangerous diversion from governments’ responsibility for underfunding and privatization of public services from healthcare to education to housing.
Building unity for migrant rights
In PEI, tenants have shown solidarity with the protesting migrant workers. In a recent op-ed, members of the PEI Fight for Affordable Housing wrote that “no group of tenants should be scapegoated for a situation that has not been of their making… Instead, blame for the housing crisis rests squarely on the shoulders of successive provincial and federal governments.”
On June 13, the People’s Party of Canada (PPC) organized a rally in Charlottetown to defend the government’s immigration rule changes with 10 to 15 people showing up with signs saying “Protect Canada” and “Canadians first”. They were far outnumbered by a counter protest in support of the workers’ demands, which drew about 200 people.
Joe Byrne from the Cooper Institute, an organization that works with migrant workers in PEI, said as soon as they heard about the PPC rally, Islanders rallied together. In just a couple of days, they got the word out to make sure there was a stronger showing of support for the workers.
“The support for the protesting workers is very broad, even though it might not be visible,” says Byrne. Singh echoed this sentiment, sharing that when he handed out leaflets in Victoria Park and at the Farmer’s Market, Islanders were supportive and many people have written to their Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs).
The struggle continues
On Wednesday, June 19, the protestors had high hopes for a meeting with Minister of Immigration Jeff Young and Minister of Workforce, Advanced Learning and Population Jenn Redmond. But the Ministers only reiterated options they have presented before – recommending individual workers find employers who will get a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) to hire them or find work in another sector. “These are useless options because our work permits are expiring soon,” says Singh.
The protestors have proposed that the province follow Manitoba’s lead and make a request to the federal government to extend their work permits. Liberal Member of Parliament for Charlottetown Sean Casey has said he also hopes Conservative Premier Dennis King will make this request, which could give the workers more time to access permanent residency. The federal government recently approved work permit extensions for 6,700 temporary workers in Manitoba to give the province time to process their PNP applications.
With time dragging on, the situation is getting more desperate. Many workers have already left PEI, and with their work permits expiring soon, more may be forced to do the same. On Tuesday, June 18, some of the protestors resumed a hunger strike, which they had paused in May. They are asking supporters across the country to write emails to PEI Ministers and MLAs to keep building the pressure up.
Their fight is the latest in a growing movement of migrant students speaking out for fairness and status for all. From Canada’s largest cities to smallest provinces, migrants will continue to face exploitation as long as they are denied permanent residency and the equal rights that come with it.
“Local Islanders are our last hope,” says Singh. With permanent residency he says he would be able to “invest more in PEI and live a peaceful life… the one I thought of, not the one I am living now protesting.”
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