Support Keeno: Defend Worker Rights
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Keeno’s Story
Meet Keeno. Keeno is a 27-year-old father of two who came to Canada from Jamaica last year under the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program. Although Keeno would have much preferred to stay home and witness the birth of his baby boy, Keeno accepted a position in the program and left a day prior to his baby’s delivery--a choice no parent should have to make.
When he arrived in Canada, Keeno began working and residing on a fruit farm in the Okanagan. Soon after he started work, he faced the reality that not only he but many other fellow workers on the farm were being severely mistreated and overworked. Out of fear for himself and fellow co-workers, and with the strength of his conviction, Keeno decided to take a stand. He reported mistreatments to RAMA and pursued legal action to seek justice in the face of these workplace abuses.
Since he spoke up, Keeno has been barred from the SAWP (Seasonal Agricultural Work Program). He is back with his family but the reunification is bittersweet. Good work is sparse in his community, and he has struggled to find opportunities to support his family. He worries about their future.
His rights were violated, and when he stuck up for them, he was punished. Keeno only sought to provide financial support for his family, but instead he was forced into an impossible choice: his dignity or his livelihood.
Please consider supporting Keeno today.
By pledging your support, you will help Keeno get the materials he needs to build a greenhouse so he can regain his livelihood, his dignity and support his family during his ongoing legal case. You are also taking a stand for justice by signalling that no worker should be punished for asserting their basic rights.
The Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program: Temporary Status
Every year, tens of thousands of workers from Mexico and Caribbean come to Canada under the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP) to fill labour shortages in the Canadian agricultural industry. Workers come for a period of two to eight months each year, and then must return to their country of origin. Although many have been in the program for decades, the Canadian Government does not offer pathways to permanent residency to these workers.
Many migrants in the SAWP labourers find themselves working and living in conditions that are unsafe or unjust while in Canada. Although these workers have the same rights as Canadian workers, many do not assert their rights because they fear retribution and that they could be removed from the program. Sometimes, when workers are hurt on the job, they do not report it, or are instructed by their employers to not report it. This can result in serious long-term issues. Their “permanently temporary” immigration status makes workers much more vulnerable to having their labour or human rights violated.
In addition to a precarious immigrant status, workers face barriers like social isolation (most are housed on-farm, without or with minimal access to transportation), language barriers, and lack of information about what services are available to them and how to navigate Canadian health and social services.
For more information about the Seasonal Agricultural Worker and issues that workers face, please see RAMA’s website: www.ramaokanagan.org.
Meet Keeno. Keeno is a 27-year-old father of two who came to Canada from Jamaica last year under the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program. Although Keeno would have much preferred to stay home and witness the birth of his baby boy, Keeno accepted a position in the program and left a day prior to his baby’s delivery--a choice no parent should have to make.
When he arrived in Canada, Keeno began working and residing on a fruit farm in the Okanagan. Soon after he started work, he faced the reality that not only he but many other fellow workers on the farm were being severely mistreated and overworked. Out of fear for himself and fellow co-workers, and with the strength of his conviction, Keeno decided to take a stand. He reported mistreatments to RAMA and pursued legal action to seek justice in the face of these workplace abuses.
Since he spoke up, Keeno has been barred from the SAWP (Seasonal Agricultural Work Program). He is back with his family but the reunification is bittersweet. Good work is sparse in his community, and he has struggled to find opportunities to support his family. He worries about their future.
His rights were violated, and when he stuck up for them, he was punished. Keeno only sought to provide financial support for his family, but instead he was forced into an impossible choice: his dignity or his livelihood.
Please consider supporting Keeno today.
By pledging your support, you will help Keeno get the materials he needs to build a greenhouse so he can regain his livelihood, his dignity and support his family during his ongoing legal case. You are also taking a stand for justice by signalling that no worker should be punished for asserting their basic rights.
The Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program: Temporary Status
Every year, tens of thousands of workers from Mexico and Caribbean come to Canada under the Seasonal Agricultural Workers Program (SAWP) to fill labour shortages in the Canadian agricultural industry. Workers come for a period of two to eight months each year, and then must return to their country of origin. Although many have been in the program for decades, the Canadian Government does not offer pathways to permanent residency to these workers.
Many migrants in the SAWP labourers find themselves working and living in conditions that are unsafe or unjust while in Canada. Although these workers have the same rights as Canadian workers, many do not assert their rights because they fear retribution and that they could be removed from the program. Sometimes, when workers are hurt on the job, they do not report it, or are instructed by their employers to not report it. This can result in serious long-term issues. Their “permanently temporary” immigration status makes workers much more vulnerable to having their labour or human rights violated.
In addition to a precarious immigrant status, workers face barriers like social isolation (most are housed on-farm, without or with minimal access to transportation), language barriers, and lack of information about what services are available to them and how to navigate Canadian health and social services.
For more information about the Seasonal Agricultural Worker and issues that workers face, please see RAMA’s website: www.ramaokanagan.org.
Organizer and beneficiary
Dominica Patterson
Organizer
West Kelowna, BC
Luis Diaz
Beneficiary
