Migrant workers employed by the Balamore Farm in Great Village, Nova Scotia, say that they are owed wages and that they were forced to lie when government inspectors followed up with a pre-announced visit after a complaint was lodged.
Things are looking up big time for two friends, Daryl and Darlene, who both try to make ends meet on income assistance, Kendall Worth reports. Nice to be able to report on some good news for a change.
Stacey Gomez, Asaf Rashid, Jessica Tellez and Wanda Thomas explain how racist immigration policies keep migrant workers temporary. “In Nova Scotia, approximately 2000 migrant workers arrive each year through Temporary Foreign Worker Programs, to plant and harvest crops, and to process our agriculture, as well as seafood products. Abuse of migrant workers is rampant in Nova Scotia and across Canada. The recently released report Unheeded Warnings includes accounts from migrant workers in Nova Scotia about being coerced into speaking positively of their employers during a government inspection under threat of deportation. Other workers report having racist slurs used against them when they spoke out about poor conditions. We’ve also received reports of migrant workers being unlawfully prevented from leaving Nova Scotia farms.”
Kendall Worth continues his reporting on how people on income assistance are dealing with COVID-19. “She told me that before she got her free bus pass, she used to create imaginary friends to keep herself company. She said it was not healthy for her to be doing that. “
PSA: “Doctors Nova Scotia (DNS) stands in solidarity in the fight against anti-Black racism, violence and injustice toward people of African descent in the U.S. and across the world.” Includes links to stories about former Nova Scotia Lieutenant Governor Mayann Francis and Dr. Lynn Jones about their separate harrowing and humiliating experiences in Nova Scotia hospitals when they were ill and at their most vulnerable.
The government’s proposed review of 53 Northwood deaths is designed to prevent workers, patients and their families, and Nova Scotians at large from speaking out and being heard publicly
A second letter in as many days from the NS POlicing Policy Working Group, about a motion introduced a last minute definition of defunding that is incorrect and misleading.
With COVID-19 measures getting a bit more relaxed Kendall Worth checks up on some of his friends to see how they survived the lockdown.
Wonderful news, we are so pleased that Nova Scotia Advocate journalist Kendall Worth won this year’s James McGregor Stewart Award, recognizing high achievement by a Nova Scotian with a disability!
With the eviction moratorium widely expected to end on July 1st, thousands of Nova Scotia households may face eviction for rent arrears or other reasons. Both Dalhousie Legal Aid and ACORN Nova Scotia are raising the alarm and proposing solutions.