Domestics' Cross-Cultural News monthly newsletter of the International Coalition to End Domestics' Exploitation

AUGUST 1985

WAGE RIP-OFF IN ! DE to document our complaint in a letter to the Minister. In July we Thousands of foreign domestic workers made a formal submission to Flora have been shortchanged to the tune of MacDonald and called on her to rec- $118.75 per month, compliments of the tify the situation immediately. Canada Immigration Commission. In the past, the Minister has taken The Ontario minimum wage for domes- a personal interest in the Foreign tics rose to the standard $4.00 per Domestics Program and in INTERCEDE's hour on March l, 1985. According to advocacy of domestic workers' rights. federal immigration policy, employers We are confident that Flora MacDonald of foreign domestic workers are requi- will not allow this irresponsible rip- red to pay 11 25% above the local mini- off to continue, and we urge her to mum rate". In Oni;ario the monthly mi- act without delay so that Ontario's nimum wage now stands at $757.00 which foreign domestics are paid the money means that the rate for foreign work- they are legally entitled to. ers should be $946.25 per month.

However, immi~~ation officials have BUSINESS IS BOOMING! been approving work permits for fore- ign domestics at the old rate of During the first quarter of 1985-1986 $827.50 per month, or at a loss of a record number of cases were handled $118.75 per month to each domestic! by the INTERCEDE Service Unit. From Over the last five months that comes March 1 to May 31, counsellors Desiree to a total of $593.75 in lost wages. Hihplewith and Beth Udasco dealt with 34 inquiries. This represents a 34% In a recent article in 's increase in cases as compared to the Black community newspaper CONTRAST, same period last year! an Ontario immigration official was quoted as saying that an everage of These figures represent service to a 800 work permits are approved every total of 182 domestic workers - up from month, which means that 3,200 domestic 16 2 d u r i n·g the f fr st q u a rl er of 19 8 4 - workers have lost a total of $380,000 1985. In addition, our monthly legal in the last four months! clinic assisted a total of 16 domes- tics, bringing the grand total to The Canada Immigration Commission is 198 domestic workers counselled. violating its owh policy and blatantly refusing to implement the required Of the total number of people who ap- wage rate under the Foreign Domestics proached the Service Unit, a full 77% Program. INTERCEDE initially inquired were domestics from Third World coun- about the lower rate last spring and tires. The overwhelming majority of we were assured that "it was just a inquiries concerned immigration prob- normal delay". When weeks passed into lems - 81% - and a full 86% of clients months, we raised the matter with Mr. were in Canada on temporary work per- Dennison Moore, special advisor to mits. What this .means is that our Ser- Immigration Minister Flora MacDonald. vice Unit remains fully on target in He assured us that he would investi- meetin~ its stated objectives; gate the situation and urged INTERC~- - 2 -

LILIBETH'S CALENDAR KNOW YOUR RIGHTS

Recent happenings ... Under Ontario labour law domestic workers are entitled to written no- * on July 17 INTERCEDE attended a tice from their employers prior to meeting at Queen's Park with NOP termination of services. leader Bob Rae and representati- ves of the Black community in To- If you have worked for over three ronto months but less than two years, you are entitled to one week's notice. * on August 14 INTERCEDE attended If you have been working for two to a meeting of the Task Force on five years, you are entitled to two Contract Compliance which voted week's notice. unanimously to recommend that the City of Toronto adopt a policy of Your term of employment ends when contract compliance your notice of termination expires. If your employer terminates your ser- Coming soon ... vices without a written notice, you have the right to request notice or * on August 29 INTERCEDE will be be paid for the equivalent amount of meeting with Ontario's new Minis- time. ter of Labour Bill Wrye to discuss changes in the labour laws affect- You are also entitled to any wages ing domestic workers . and vacation pay for any time worked until notice of termination. * INTERCEDE's next monthly members meeting is set, for SUNDAY, SEPTEM- For more information contact the Onta- BER 8, 3 - 5 PM, at the Cecil Com- rio Ministry of Labour's Employment munity Centre. For more information Standard Branch at: call us at (416)977-3467 Toronto 416-965-5251 *on September 21 Cecil Community Scarborough 416-750-3557 Centre is hosting a day-long open- house with the theme "Mid-Autumn Mississauga 416-273-7800 Festival" ... ever.yone is welcome! - Desiree Hipplewith ... AND CONGRATULATIONS! * to Immigration Officer Donna Head- ecker who just gave birth to a healthy baby boy! JOIN INTERCEDE $5 Year * to long-time member Debra Boyce for her promotion to 'senior accoun- SUPPORT THE GROUP THAT SUPPORTS YOU! tant' *to our new landed immigrants: REBE- Newsletter Committee: CCA SMILE, BRENDA CLARKE, and MARRI- Desiree Hipplewith, Lynette Munian, ETTA ALENXANDER from the West Indies; Judith Ramirez, Pamela Skeete, Sonia CONCHITA FONTEJON, ROSE MADAYAG,TERRY Thomas, Daphne Tucker, Beth Udasto ATMOSFERA and TESSIE VISAYA from the Philippines ... good luck to you all! HAPPY BIRTHDAY * and a very warm welcome to Marion Thomson who is back in Canada from to our distinguished friend Harry R. the UK for a visit! Gairey who is celebrating his ninetieth birthday this month!! - Beth Udasco - 3 -

~EW STEERING COMMITTEE ELECTED and The Rev. Dan Heap, Member of Par- 1 iament (Spad1na), addressed the ga- The INTERCEDE Steering Committee is thering with feeling and commitment made up of· fourteen people, eight of on the struggle of immigrant and visi- whom must be domestic or ex-domestic ble minority women workers in Canada. workers, and six of whom are communi- ty representatives or associate mem- Akua spoke forcefully about the need bers. The Steering Committee is elec- to combat both racism and sexism be- ted yearly at the Annual General Mem- cause they are jointly responsible for bers Meeting. drastically limiting the opportunities of visible-minority women in this coun- On Sunday, July 7, 1985, INTERCEDE try. She called for more informal net- held its Annual Meeting and three new working among sisters, as well as for domestic workers were elected to the strengthening groups like the Congress Steering Committee: Barbara Donaldson, and INTERCEDE which publicly call at- Elvira Boncato, and Apolonia Williams. tention to the injustices in Canadian society. The full Steering Committee for 1985- 1986 is made up of the following duly Dan spoke out against the current wage elected members: r i p - off i n 0 nt a r i o wh i c h i s deny i ng · foreign domestics the wage rate they Domestic Workers are entitled to by law. He called it a "blatant injustice" and pledged that Eulene Boyce* Barbados he would "work together with INTERCEDE Lynette Munian Guyana to see that this abuse comes to an end Avril Higginson* England immediately". Linda Li.sing Philippines Columbia Diaz* Philippines The members applauded the speakers Daphne Tucker ' Jamaica enthusiatically and engaged them in a Beverley Wilson Barbados spirited exchange. In her official Elvira Boncato Philippines "thank you", Euler:ie Boyce, senior mem- ber of the Steering Committee, expres- Alternates sed gratitude to Dan Heap for his long- Barbara Donaldson Jamaica standing support of domestic workers' Apolonia Williams Philippines rights. She also echoed Akua Benjamin when she challenged all the women pre- Community Representatives sent to "stand up and be counted ·as INTERCEDE enters another year of life". Joyce Fraser, Black Women's Sisterhood Barbara Jackman, Law Union of Ontario After the meeting was adjourned, every- Jane Horsley, CLASP one joined in for a "social hour" of Judith Ramirez, CASH refreshment and informal conversation. Associate Members CALLING WEST INDIAN DOMESTICS! Cathy Gilbert, lawyer Alison Kerr, feminist organizer A research team affiliated with the Department of Sociology, at the Univer- * former domestic worker sity of Toronto, is interviewing West Indian women working as domestics in Canada. The team hopes this study will ANNUAL MEETING INSPIRED BY SPEAKERS help raise awarness of the working and INTERCEDE members and friends had living conditions of immigrant women the pleasure of welcoming two spe- in Toronto. The project is funded by cial speakers .to the Annual General the Social Science and Humanities Re- Members Meeting held on July 7 at the search Council of Canada. Cecil Community Centre. Akua Benjamin, The names of all participants will re- President of the Toronto Chapter of main strictly confidential. If you are the Congress of Black Women of Canada, interested in being interviewed, please - 4 - contact research assistant Kathy Gar- MOVIE 11 MARIA 11 A HIT rat at (416)978-7195 or 537-9357. Or you can write to: At INTERCEDE 1 s last monthly meeting on August 3, we had a special treat Dr. Abigail B. Bakan for those who turned up in the middle 563 Spadina Avenue of the long Caribana week-end! It was Department of Sociology the National Film Board's acclaimed film MARIA, about immigrant women · Toronto, Ontario MSS lAl who are fighting for their rights in LETTER FROM EFFIE HENRY Canada. MARIA is a fictionalized version of As many of you will remembe~ Effie an actual union organizing campaign Henry was a member of INTERCEDE for in a Toronto garment factory in the a long time before moving with her early 1970's. Focusing on Maria, a employer to Vancouver, British Colum- first-generation Italian-Canadian, the bia, last year. Last month we recei- film illustrates the many difficulties ved the following letter from her: ethnic workers in Canada face: the Dear Judith, st-aff and members. language barrier, exploitation and in- Good day. I am very happy to timidation by employers, and the un- tell you that I have just get responsiveness of labour legislators. my landed today. I have just The movie touched off a lively, and return from the immigration. sometimes angry, discussion among the I have waited one year and domestics who saw it. They spoke about five months! Judith, thank you what their rights are, how they can and INTERCEO~ very much, beca- use if it had not been for you best express their needs, and how they I would not have got accepted. can win recognition for their impor- If I do not get the chance to tant contribution not only to their return back to Toronto I will individual employers but also to Cana- always remember you all. But dian society as a whole. I know that one day I will re- - Beth Udasco turn. If you are seeing Francis* please give her the good news for me. I wilr always be a part of INTERCEDE. IMPORTANT NOTICE! Thanks again, you are the 11 The time for INTERCEDE's monthly mem- greatest. bers meeting is changing to 3 - 5 pm, * Frances Gregory was INTERCEDE 1 s co- starting on Sunday, September 8! ordinator from 1979 - 1982.

DOMESTICS CROSS-CULTURAL NEWS Place c/o INTERCEDE Stamp 58 Cecil Street Here Toronto, Ontario MST 1N6

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