undefined | Better HN

0 pointsmitthrowaway22y ago0 comments

Canada doesn't have a border with Mexico, but it does have its share of undocumented and under-protected workers.

> While there are no accurate figures representing the number or composition of undocumented migrant population in Canada, estimates range between 20,000 and 500,000 persons

> Research suggests most undocumented individuals live in large urban centres and typically work in seasonal and informal sectors, such as construction, agriculture, caregiving and housekeeping.

> Undocumented migrants are a vulnerable group due to their lack of immigration status, as was seen during the COVID-19 pandemic. They have limited access to health care, social services or employment protections.

Source: https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/co...

Until this year, asylum-seekers could transit through the United States into Canada under the Safe Third Country Agreement, by crossing the border at an irregular crossing like Roxham Road.

Sources: https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/deal-roxham-road-migrants-b...

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/canada-asylum-seeker-increase...

https://web.archive.org/web/20230601135133/https://www.nytim...

0 comments

LegitShady2y ago

Canadas temporary foreign worker program means you don't need to illegally hire day workers, you just keep the wages low enough that nobody will take the job and then tell the government you need to bring in foreign workers - not for professional or technical work, not for picking in the fields, but for working at McDonald's and tim Hortons.

They also allow international students at diploma mills to work 40 hrs a week, above the table.

It's a sham.

DoreenMichele2y ago

A quick search suggests there are 10.5 million in the US.

https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2021/04/13/key-facts...

mitthrowaway2OP2y ago

On a per-capita basis that's not hugely different, but one of the reasons may be that Canada provides a somewhat easier path, relative to the United States, to becoming a legal immigrant rather than remaining undocumented.

lazide2y ago

Really? I’ve had relatives try to immigrate to Canada (from the US), and it was quite a horror story. Any specifics?

1 more reply

spanktheuser2y ago

A quick search suggests there are 335 million Americans but only 37 million Canadians.

https://www.indexmundi.com/factbook/compare/canada.united-st...

prepend2y ago

So Canada has 1/10 the population of the US and 1/20 the population of undocumented immigrants.

So seems like Canada has many fewer immigrants of this type than the US.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse