Media advisory: Community Rally/Action Around Migrant Worker Deaths
Media advisory: Community rally to demand Coroner’s Office and
Ministry of Labour take action in wake of migrant farmworker deaths
Who: Justicia for Migrant Workers (J4MW)
What: Rally
Where: Office of the Chief Coroner-32 Grenville St (College and Bay)
When: Friday, February 17, 2012. 12:00pm
FOR IMMEDIATE RELASE
(Toronto)- As Ontarians prepare to celebrate Family Day, Justicia for
Migrant Workers (J4MW) and community allies will gather to demand
justice for the families of migrant farmworkers Ralston White and Paul
Roach at the Office of the Chief Coroner and at the Ministry of
Labour. The group will also be remembering the lives tragically lost
in the recent crash that killed ten migrant workers in Hamstead,
Ontario.
David Armando Blancas-Hernandez, Jose Mercedes Valdiviezo-Taboa, Cesar
Augusto Sanchez-Palacios, Enrique Atturo Leon, Corsino Jaramillo,
Mario Abril, Oscar Compomanes-Corzo, Juan Castillo, Elvio
Bravo-Suncion, and Fernando Correa were employed as chicken catchers
and Christopher Fulton worked as a transport truck driver. All died
when the passenger van collided with a transport truck on February 6,
2012.
Mr Roach and Mr. White were two Jamaican migrant workers who were
killed in a confined space accident at work in September of 2010. All
charges were recently dropped against three people who operated
Filsinger Farms where these deaths occurred. A plea bargain resulted
in a guilty plea for one supervisor of a minor charge of failing to
provide proper precautions against confined spaces and a miniscule
fine of $22,500 for both deaths.
On Friday February 17th, 2012 at 12:00 pm, Justicia for Migrant
Workers will be gathering at the Office of the Chief Coroner (32
Grenville St) to renew their demand for an inquest into the deaths of
Paul Roach and Ralston White and to call for an inquest into the
recent deaths of farmworkers in Hamstead. While there have been
several tragedies involving migrant workers, there has never been a
Coroner’s Inquest in Ontario examining the death of a migrant worker
employed under the temporary foreign workers program.
From there, the group will march to the Ministry of Labour to demand
that the Ministry step up to protect the rights of migrant workers.
The group is calling on the Ministry to take action to make sure that
occupational health and safety, WSIB and employment standards
protections are afforded to migrant workers.
“Migrant workers are vulnerable because labour laws don’t adequately
speak to their realities. We need stronger protections so that
tragedies like this don’t ever happen again” says Tanya Ferguson,
organizer with Justicia for Migrant Workers. ”Family Day is meant as
a time where communities come together and share time with their loved
ones. We want to highlight that this year, and every year after,
countless families of migrant workers will not have the luxury of
having their loved ones present.”
Justicia for Migrant Workers s a volunteer run non- profit
organization that organizes around rights of migrant workers.
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Chris Ramsaroop 647-834-4932; ramsaroopchris@gmail.com
Nicole Wall 613-296-8719; j4mw.on@gmail.com
