Regularization Campaign

Denounce New Immigration Restrictions and Amplify Migrant Workers’ Voices

Montreal, November 8, 2024 - The Centre for Immigrant Workers invites you to a press conference to address the latest changes in immigration policy and the government’s false promise to implement a regularization program. In recent months, the Canadian and Quebec governments have implemented a restructuring of the Program for Temporary Foreign Workers, International Students and Asylum Seekers. The announced measures directly affect several precarious worker groups and will lead... Read more →

Mobilization Against Immigration Policy Changes: Québec Workers Demand Justice

On Saturday, November 2nd at 1:00 pm, a mobilization and march took place in rejection of the recent immigration policy changes. It was an event organized by the Québec Coalition for Regularization and Migrant Justice, a coalition of almost 50 organizations in Québec. CTTI is an active part of this coalition, organizing migrant workers and immigrants of all status to respond to the aforementioned policies and the abuses experienced for... Read more →

A limited program, widespread anger

By Carole Yerochewski In an interview with CBC and Reuters, Marc Miller announced some distressing news in the middle of summer, when it's hard to mobilize large numbers to protest: the Liberal government is backing down in the face of rising anti-immigrant rhetoric, and is expected to examine a minimal regularization program, which will only concern workers in the health and construction sectors. We'll have to wait for Marc Miller's... Read more →

Urgent Rally: Holding Trudeau Accountable for Immigration Promises

This Saturday the Iwc-Cti and Solidarité sans frontière/Solidarity across border/Solidaridad sin frontera are organizing an emergency rally to ensure that the Liberal party commits to their promise to make a reality to finally implement a regularization program to give permanent status to all those without status or with precarious immigration status. It has been over 3 years since Trudeau has made this promise. Also last week, he again announced a... Read more →

Action Alert: Demand Permanent Residency for Undocumented Workers

The time is now to hold Prime Minister Trudeau accountable to his promise of regularization – granting permanent resident status for undocumented individuals. Despite assurances from the federal government earlier this Spring, Parliament is set to go on holiday as early as June 6, leaving us with unanswered questions and unfulfilled commitments. Undocumented workers across Canada continue to live in uncertainty and fear, facing daily challenges without the basic rights... Read more →

Mayworks Festival: Celebrating Worker Victories and Cultural Solidarity

Our annual Mayworks Festival celebrates our yearly victories for our various campaigns lead by our workers councils and committees across Quebec. This year we shared the cultural stage with the International Migrants Alliance and the International Coalition for Human Rights in the Philippines. We started the evening with presentations from our various workers' committees,  such as the women's committee, the Tresor and Newrest former workers committee, the warehouse workers committee,... Read more →

Canada is scaling back temporary foreign workers. Critics say the program needs an overhaul

  In a recent interview, Jill Hanley, Vice President of the Montreal-based Immigrant Workers Centre, shed light on the challenges faced by migrant workers in Canada, particularly in light of the country's evolving policies regarding temporary foreign workers. As Canada prepares to implement new rules aimed at scaling back temporary foreign workers, Hanley underscores the importance of understanding the human impact of such decisions. Hanley's work brings her face-to-face with... Read more →

Why our members deserve and need permanent status now

The campaign for status 4 all continues. Today we are closer than ever, but the members of the Migrants Rights Network is calling on supporters to continue to put pressure on the federal government to demand status 4 all now. #StatusforAll would be "life changing for so many people." It's time for Justin Trudeau to #RegularizeEveryone. SEND AN EMAIL NOW https://migrantrights.ca/take-action/email/ This video explains why our members deserve and need... Read more →

Montrealers protest decade-long waits for migrant status

Various immigrant rights organizations request the implementation of a promised inclusive regularization program Hannah Scott-Talib — Published February 24, 2024 On Feb. 21, the Speak out: Status for All immigrant rights protest was held outside Minister of Immigration Marc Miller’s Montreal office, as part of an ongoing week of action led by various organizations. A crowd of roughly 50 people showed up, holding signs that read “regularization for all” and chanting... Read more →

An open letter from 29 organizations: Stop deportations, regularize undocumented migrants!

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Minister Marc Miller, Two years ago, while the pandemic and lockdown were still with us, you, Mr. Prime Minister, asked the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship to explore "ways to regularize the status of undocumented workers who contribute to Canadian communities" and who played an essential role during the pandemic, sometimes at the cost of their lives. Two years later, on the occasion of commemorating... Read more →

Migrants Rally on International Migrant Day, Demanding Immediate Regularization

Today on International Migrant Day, and it has been two years since Prime Minister Trudeau promised a comprehensive regularization program for undocumented migrants. Today, migrants demanded regularization! Over 150 migrants, including those who are non-status, those with precarious status, and migrant workers, delivered over 400 letters by those directly effected to demand status for everyone to the riding office of Justin Trudeau. We will continue to organize and mobilize for... Read more →

Undocumented immigrants don’t just live in Montreal, say Lower St. Lawrence organizations

Several organizations held a rally this Monday morning in front of the post office on rue Saint-Germain Ouest in Rimouski, to call for the abolition of temporary work permits and for a comprehensive regularization program, led by the Immigrant Workers Centre chapter of Bas Saint Laurent. "As part of International Migrants Day, we're flooding federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller's office with postcards signed by the people of the Lower St.... Read more →

Ottawa plans to create Canadian citizenship path for undocumented immigrants

  Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) Minister Marc Miller confirmed his intention to “present a proposal to cabinet in the spring on allowing undocumented immigrants to regularize their status’”. It's been two years since the Prime Minister asked the IRCC minister in his mandate letter to explore ways of regularizing the status of undocumented migrants, according to  The Globe and Mail. The Immigrant Workers Centre welcomes the intention to... Read more →

Migrants made scapegoats by Quebec and Canadian immigration policies

PRESS RELEASE Migrants made scapegoats by Quebec and Canadian immigration policies Montreal, November 2, 2023. - The Quebec and Canadian governments have announced their immigration plans, specifying immigration thresholds for the coming years. Putting the thresholds on hold, while ignoring the hundreds of thousands of temporary foreign workers, asylum seekers and undocumented immigrants already in the country, is tantamount to pointing the finger of blame at them for our social,... Read more →

“Trudeau must keep his promise”: organizations call for regularization of undocumented migrants

Some thirty Quebec community and labor organizations mobilized in Montreal, Quebec City and Rimouski on Saturday to call for a program to regularize undocumented migrants. The 38 organizations are calling for the "immediate" implementation of an "inclusive" program to regularize undocumented migrants, as well as an end to the deportation and detention of migrants who have no immigration status. Read event reports (in French): Trudeau doit tenir sa promesse»: des... Read more →

Migrant workers, victims of human trafficking, demand adequate protection

Montreal, July 20, 2023. With the ever-increasing use of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, which fails to guarantee the rights of these workers, abuses and violence against them are multiplying. Five migrant workers, victims of human trafficking, contacted the Immigrant Workers Center (IWC) and decided to testify to their experiences and to denounce the shortcomings of protection measures for migrant workers in vulnerable situations. Fraud, forced labour and threats: the... Read more →

Striving for Equality: Ensuring Basic Labor Protections for Immigrant Workers in Québec

By: Isaac Patroulis Lessig In January, the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) introduced new guidelines to shield migrant workers “who experience or witness workplace labor or civil rights violations” from deportation or a loss of work status. The protective measure marks a positive step towards the empowerment of migrant workers in the country and should be seen as a win for workers everywhere. Similar protections for immigrant workers... Read more →

Akwesasne “not an isolated case”: non-status immigrants cry out

At the Immigrant Workers Centre (IWC), our mission is to advocate for the rights and well-being of migrant workers, regardless of their status. A recent report by TVA Nouvelles high lights the urgent need for regularization and fair treatment of undocumented immigrants in Canada, emphasizing the importance of our work at IWC. The report shares the stories of undocumented immigrants living in precarious conditions and facing numerous challenges in their... Read more →

How would a regularization program for undocumented immigrants benefit Quebec?

What is regularization? Simply put, regularization is giving papers to people who don't have them. It is obviously not a magical process. Regularization programs come with criteria for including or excluding applicants. The files are therefore processed one by one by the immigration officers as for other types of applications. The goal of these programs is to give an extra chance to... Read more →

Training Guide: Non-Status Regularization Program & media relations

This argument for the regularization of people without immigration status was constructed by the Immigrant Workers Centre (IWC) of Montreal in September 2022. The Immigrant Workers' Centre is a popular education and collective advocacy organization for labour and immigration rights for precarious workers. Since 2000, the ILC has supported workers in their struggles for dignity, respect and justice, including campaigns to... Read more →

Women Without Status and Workplace Sexual Harassment We demand greater protection

  We are the Temporary Agency Workers Association’s (ATTAP) women’s committee, a group of immigrant women working in precarious conditions. We have come together to confront a shared problem: psychological harassment and sexual abuse in the workplace. Our committee was founded by the Immigrant Workers Center (IWC) in late 2018 with the mandate collectively addressing shared problems in the workplace that... Read more →

Guide for Temporary Migrant Workers and Case Workers in Quebec

Download: Guide for Temporary Migrant Workers and Case Workers in Quebec The production of this material was financially supported by the Ministère de l’Enseignement supérieur (MES) through the Fonds des services aux collectivités program. The production also received support from the Canada Research Chairs Program and funding from Université du Québec à Chicoutimi.