This is the second part of our strategy regarding Canada's National Plan to Combat Human Trafficking. Today, I want to tell you about the second set of recommendations that we sent to the federal government regarding labour exploitation in Canada. This set is based on the recommendations from the Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery, Mr. Tomoya Obokata, who visited Canada in September 2023 concerning the interconnections between human trafficking and labour exploitation.
Our recommendations include action to:
1. Enhance federal oversight of temporary foreign workers. Increase inspections and oversight of companies hiring temporary foreign workers to ensure compliance with labour standards.
2. Strengthen provincial monitoring with NGO and academic alliances.
Create specialized teams with NGOs and academics for independent and thorough inspections, ensuring the protection of workers' rights.
3. Issue open work permits to prevent exploitation. Provide temporary migrant workers with open work permits to reduce dependency on a single employer and lower the risk of exploitation.
4. Launch a federal inquiry into labour exploitation. Investigate labour exploitation across various sectors to ensure the impact on different types of workers and inform policy decisions.
5. Improve international coordination on worker rights.
Work with countries supplying temporary workers to ensure recruitment and employment processes meet international legal standards and protect workers' rights.
6. Educate migrant workers upon arrival. Ensure that migrant workers receive information on their rights and legal protections and know how to report abuses and threats.
Remember that human trafficking for sexual purposes or labour exploitation is a crime against human rights and dignity. These crimes are increasing. Human trafficking can be hidden in work proposals that seem legal. Legitimate employers also hire people for jobs that are legal but are under illegal working conditions.
Knowledge is the best strategy to combat human trafficking.
End human trafficking, a commitment for all.
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