Greenhouse visits land Singh in the hothouse
Migrant activists slam NDP leader’s promo of an industry ‘based on exploitation’
NDP leader Jagmeet Singh fielded harsh criticism this week from a group of activists advocating for migrant workers’ rights — a cause the leader has promised to address in an upcoming party platform.
Justice for Migrant Workers, a Toronto non-profit that promotes the rights of farm workers participating in the Canadian Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program, slammed Singh Tuesday for social media promotion of his visit to Windsor-area greenhouses, which they say are part of an industry that systematically exploits racialized migrants for profit.
“This industry has basically been built on the blood sweat and sacrifices of low-wage, racialized, precarious workers,” said Chris Ramsaroop, a Justice for Migrant Workers advocate.
“It’s concerning that Jagmeet was there to . . . support an industry that’s based on exploitation.”
Singh, who does not have a seat in the House of Commons, has said he is using his time outside it to travel the country and visit communities to build momentum for the party’s brand and ideas.
“I’ve lived in cities across (Canada), but Windsor is where I’ve lived the longest, so going home over the weekend was special,” Singh posted on Twitter Tuesday, alongside pho- tos of him smiling in a Mucci Farms greenhouse.
“From touring organic greenhouses in Kingsville to connecting with people in (downtown) Windsor the (people) we meet, and stories we hear inspire us to build a better future.”
Ramsaroop said that when migrant workers come to Canada under the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program, they’re uniquely susceptible to exploitation because of the conditions placed on them.
“By tying someone to a particular employer, what happens is that it silences workers and ensures that there’s a captive labour force,” Ramsaroop said. On top of that, migrant workers here, under that program, don’t have the option to apply for permanent residency.
Singh has been outspoken on these issues, and included access to legal aid for migrant workers in his leadership platform.
In an email statement to the Star, Singh said he spoke with migrant workers during his weekend greenhouse visit, and “highlighted the need to increase pathways to citizenship.”
“I have never shied away from advocating for the rights of migrant workers regardless of where I am and this was no exception,” he wrote. “Mistreatment and abuse of migrant workers is clearly unacceptable and occurs far too often under our current system.”
Singh’s press secretary James Smith said the leader will put out a comprehensive policy plan that deals with migrant workers’ rights ahead of the 2019 election. Lawyer Shane Martinez, who works pro-bono for Justice for Migrant Workers, said he’s “cautiously optimistic” Singh’s NDP will bring the plight of migrant workers to the federal level.
“That said, when any federal leader goes to a farming community in Canada, they absolutely need to acknowledge the contributions of those workers,” Martinez said.
The southwestern Ontario region Singh visited is one of the few spots in Ontario where the NDP performed well in the 2015 general election; the party held onto both Windsor ridings and picked up nearby Essex.
The Windsor Star reported in 2015 that Essex County generated $1.2 billion in agricultural activity each year, surpassing all other regions in the province. About 12 per cent of the workers in that industry are migrants, who have come to Canada with temporary status, to perform low-wage work.
The scope of the industry itself is also concerning to Ramsaroop.
“I think the way that agriculture is going, it’s focusing on these large operations. They’re not diversified. It’s about export production,” Ramsaroop said.
“How do we base our agricultural system? Is it about profits, or feeding communities?”