Ottawa urged to scrap live-in caregiver program

(According to Kelowna.com or follow the link: http://www.kelowna.com/2009/12/24/ottawa-urged-to-scrap-live-in-caregiver-program/)

“Advocates for immigrant nannies are calling on Ottawa to scrap a program that has allowed tens of thousands of women to immigrate to Canada.

In a bid to address problems of overwork and underpayment in the field, Ottawa is proposing changes to the live-in caregiver program, which allows the mostly Filipina workers to apply for permanent residence after working as domestic help for two years. Changes include a mandatory contract with duties, benefits, hours and holidays, having employers pay for travel to Canada and increasing the time to complete the two-year requirement to four years.

The program traps Filipina women in low-pay jobs where they’re vulnerable to abuse and exploitation and keeps women separated from their families, advocates from the Philippine Women Centre of B.C. said Wednesday.

Gloria Remirata, who became a live-in caregiver in 2000, was separated from her three children for six years after leaving them in the Philippines with her sister, which she called “the most difficult decision I made in my life.”

At a conference Wednesday, she wept recalling how she had missed their birthdays and graduations.

Ayex Bathan, separated from her mother for six years, said the program isn’t worth the toll it has on families, calling it exploitative, anti-woman and racist.

Advocate Leah Diana said Ottawa should remove the requirements that caregivers live at their employers’ home, work for two years before applying for residence and be contracted to a specific employer. Caregivers should be allowed to immigrate as permanent residents with their families to fill shortages in domestic work in the same way other immigrant workers can to work in other fields, they said.

But Paragon Personnel owner Ed Carmona said killing the program would put an end to a fast-track immigration process for unskilled workers who couldn’t otherwise qualify to immigrate to Canada and deprive Canadians of nannies.

“You tell me how many Canadians would be willing to be a live-in nanny for minimum wage of $8 an hour?” he said.

He said if they didn’t live in, they couldn’t afford the rent on minimum wage, and a $15 hourly wage would make nannies prohibitively expensive for average families.

Email reporter Susan Lazaruk at slazaruk@theprovince.com”

                          

The federal government announced steps Saturday to better safeguard foreign caregivers from abuse and exploitation, but opposition critics said the changes Immigration Minister Jason Kenney is proposing won’t provide full protection.

The revised regulations stem from months of consultations with caregiver groups, and Kenney expressed hope they will allow a better life for people who come to Canada to become nannies.

“To ensure they’re not subject to abusive situations, to ensure they’re not exploited by unscrupulous consultants and to ensure they have a fair, clear pathway to permanent residency,” Kenney told a news conference.

Among the changes Kenney is planning to the Live-in Caregiver Program is elimination of the requirement for caregivers to undergo a second medical exam.

The measure was proposed by Juana Tejada, a Toronto nanny who developed cancer while working as a caregiver and was initially denied permanent resident status when she failed her second medical examination.

The changes would also give nannies up to four years to complete a total of two years’ work needed to apply for landed-immigrant status. Currently the limit is three years.

The government hopes the change will prevent events like pregnancies or loss of employment from stopping live-in caregivers from meeting government requirements.

Those wanting to hire a nanny from overseas would have to pick up the cost of bringing them to Canada and provide medical coverage until the nannies are eligible for provincial health plans. They would also have to pay any fees to recruiters, Kenney said.

“No longer will caregivers be paying people to get the jobs to work in Canada,” Kenney said.

The government is also going to require caregivers’ employers to clearly outline job duties, hours of work, overtime and holidays, sick leave, and termination and resignation terms.

Employers who provide significantly different wages, working conditions or occupations than they promised may be blacklisted.

The public will have 30 days to comment on the changes before the final version takes effect sometime next year. (According to CTV News)

                          

Mother’s day is a wonderful time for each of us to take a moment and celebrate Mom.

On this special day tell your mom (again and again) how much you love her, make a poem, write a letter, take mom out to her favorite restaurant, buy flowers, give her a day off (let her relax while the rest of the family does the work), etc.

Touch your mothers heart by writing these sentimental quotes in Mother’s Day cards, letters or gift wraps.

• “A mother’s arms are more comforting than anyone else’s.” — Diana, Princess of Wales

• “By and large, mothers and housewives are the only workers who do not have regular time off. They are the great vacationless class.” — Anne Morrow Lindbergh

• “A mother is not a person to lean on, but a person to make leaning unnecessary.” — Dorothy Canfield Fisher

• “Never marry a man who hates his mother, because he’ll end up hating you.” — Jill Bennett

• “It is not until you become a mother than your judgment slowly turns to compassion and understanding.” — Erma Bombeck

• “Becoming a mother makes you the mother of all children. From now on each wounded, abandoned, frightened child is yours. You live in the suffering mothers of every race and creed and weep with them. You long to comfort all who are desolate.” – Charlotte Gray

• “At work, you think of the children you have left at home.At home, you think of the work you’ve left unfinished. Such a struggle is unleashed within yourself. Your heart is rent.” — Golda Meir

• “All women become like their mothers. That is their tragedy. No man does. That’s his.” — Oscar Wilde

• “There is only one pretty child in the world, and every mother has it.” – Chinese Proverb

Mothers Day Poem
M – O – T – H – E – R
“M” is for the million things she gave me,
“O” means only that she’s growing old,
“T” is for the tears she shed to save me,
“H” is for her heart of purest gold;
“E” is for her eyes, with love-light shining,
“R” means right, and right she’ll always be,
Put them all together, they spell
“MOTHER,”
A word that means the world to me.

Howard Johnson (c. 1915)

HAVE A HAPPY MOTHER’S DAY!

                          

This is an example of a self-introductory letter received from a German applicant for a nanny position. The main idea is to provide information about yourself, your environment and your family.
Do you have more questions? Visit our Forum: CAREGIVERS in CANADA.

Dear family,

My name is Andrea Schwarz and I was born in Frankfurt, Germany on February 2nd 1982. My mother is a housewife and my father is a carpenter. My parents have three children: me, the youngest child in the family, my sister Anna is 28 years old and my brother Nick is 30 years old.

I think I had a great childhood and one of the most important things for me working with children is that I haven’t forgotten how I felt like when I was a child.
My home town is small and quiet but for me is the best and favorite. I miss it when I’m far away and it’s a great pleasure for me to come back after trips to other places. On the other hand, I am a real fidget and I like traveling very much. In my childhood I dreamt of a world tour.

Later other priorities happened. My brother got married early. Now he has two sons already. My older nephew, Alexander, was born when I was 16. As soon as I took him in my arms I realized: the biggest happiness in the world are children. That’s why after school I entered the Pedagogical Institute and graduated from it successfully in 2005 having the profession of a teacher of English, German and German Literature.

All that time working at school as a teacher of English, and also at families as a nanny and a tutor, assured me that I hadn’t made a mistake in choosing my mission and upbringing of children was that very thing I’d like to engage in. I like to give my knowledge to children, to teach them to make difference between good and bad, not only to teach them new things but also to bring up a child as a person.

I don’t have my own children yet . My family consists of parents, brother, sister and two wonderful beloved nephews. I love them very much and I am not shy in expressing my love to them. I enjoy and appreciate every moment of my life, I am an optimist, I like being outdoors, walking and camping. At home I also can’t sit without doing something. I can knit and sew. My nephews admire the sweaters I knit for them-new ones every winter. As for my parents, they like very much the evenings when I arrange “mini concerts” ( I completed the music school and I play piano). They have favourite melodies and I play them with great pleasure. By the way, there is a cat named Mars in our family. It is a music lover and it has its own favourite melodies too!

I like very much to spend my time with friends. Often we all together go to the country, picnic, play voley-ball, play guitar. Such enjoyable week-ends stick in our memory for a long time! My friends consider me a cheerful, frank and kind person. Sometimes they call me a fidget because I like to be challenged and to explore new things. For example, I learned the Greek language, now I take Spanish courses and also I am going to get a driver’s license.

Therefore, my participation in this program gives me a possibility to achieve two goals. The first one – I’d be able to enrich the store of knowledge and experience. The second one – the main one – I’d like very much to be useful, to give my love to children and to make new friends. I hope my dreams will come true!

Sincerely yours,

Andrea Schwartz

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The salary range for nannies / caregivers has grown considerably in the last year due to higher demand for childcare / senior care.

As the economy grows, the demand for workers grows in all sectors and caregivers are no different than any.
The minimum wage set by the provincial government in B.C. has not changed in the last few years ($8 per hour), so it is quite rare to find good experienced nannies/caregivers accepting this rate.
Only a few recent arrivals to Canada, with no previous experience, are willing to work (as live-in) at this rate and their numbers are dwindling daily.
Do you have more questions? Visit our Forum: CAREGIVERS in CANADA.

Since the market place is the main factor deciding salaries, you have to consider a more attractive compensation package for your nanny, if you want to engage a good care provider.
Beyond the hourly rate paid, you may have to consider some additional benefits like medical/dental insurance, covering transportation costs, extra holidays and others.

Be prepared to negotiate if you want the best care available for you loved ones.

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