Canada to Recognize Filipinos' Role
Happy New Year 2018 www.filipinosmakingwaves.com January 2018 VOL. 7, NO. 01 TORONTO, CANADA FILIPINO HERITAGE MONTH Canada to Recognize Filipinos’ Role By Teresa Torralba The Filipino diaspora in Canada is getting close to official federal recognition as Members of Parliament (MPs) push for legislation that would set aside June of every year as Filipino Heritage Month. A similar measure has been introduced in the Ontario leg- islature, the provincial parliament, in December, which, if passed, would be implemented province-wide. On the local level, the Toronto City Council voted in No- vember to have June as Filipino Heritage Month in Toron- to, Ontario's capital, coinciding with the celebration of Philippine independence day on June 12. Salma Zahid, MP for Scarborough Centre, said on Thurs- day, Jan. 18, that she filed a motion in Parliament which "recognizes the contributions of the Filipino community have made to the socio-economic fabric" of Canada. "So I put forward that we should recognize June as Filipi- The Honourable Mélanie Joly, Minister of Canadian Heritage, with MP Salma Zahid, MP Marco Mendi- (Continued on page 4) cino, MP Arif Virani, met with members of the local Filipino community on Jan 18. (Photo R. Marquez) New Minimum Wage in Ontario in Effect Higher Wages Will Help Increase Business Productivity, Decrease Employee Turnover Many workers across the province have now seen Ontario's increased minimum wage reflected in their weekly pay. The general minimum wage rose from $11.60 to $14 on January 1, 2018, and will increase again to $15 on January 1, 2019.
[Show full text]