When Jennifer Wasike entered Canada under the Live-in Caregivers Program, it wasn't because she really wanted a career as a nanny—she was overqualified for that.
But the program was the only way Wasike, who had worked in Canada as a high school teacher in the past, could begin the process of getting permanent residence here, as her application for a standard immigration visa was turned down.
Although joining the two-year program meant a long separation from her two children in Kenya, she saw it as a viable way to fulfill her dream of living in Canada. After the two-year period she would be eligible for permanent resident status and could sponsor her family to join her.
"If you're living in absolute poverty and you're given an opportunity to go to a place which is going to elevate you out of that poverty, you will do anything possible," explains Wasike.
But Wasike wasn't prepared for the "nightmare" of a bureaucracy that moves at a snail's pace, coupled with exploitation by various employers who expected her to work a 14- hour day even though she was only paid for eight.
"The employers don't understand that you have your own education and have come here for something that is so important to you," says Wasike. "They think that because you're a live-in caregiver you must be dumb. I have a degree in education and a degree in psychology and have been a high school teacher for years, but after I got here…I was treated like crap."
Under the program, the caregiver is given three years to fulfill the required 24 months of full-time employment. During that time, the caregiver must live in the home of the employer and may only work for the person whose name is on the work permit.
If the caregiver's services are no longer needed or she wants to change employers, there's a wait of at least three months while Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) issues a new work permit. During that time, the caregiver, who is prohibited from receiving social assistance or taking any kind of training courses, is without an income if she doesn't qualify for employment insurance.
The live-in caregivers program was started in 1992 to fulfill a shortage of nannies in Canada, which occurred mainly because Canadians are unwilling to do the job. Over 100,000 Filipinos¬—70 to 80 per cent of whom are women—have come to Canada as caregivers, making the Philippines the main supplier of nannies to Canada. Many of them are trained nurses.
According to Deanna Okun-Nochoff, a lawyer with the Vancouver-based West Coast Domestic Workers Association (WCDWA), the Live-in Caregiver Program has been rife with problems since it began.
Okun-Nakoff says it typically takes three years to complete the program, and an additional two-plus years for CIC to process a permanent residence application. This means that women who enter Canada under the program¬—many of whom have left children in their home country—are separated from their family for at least five years.
"Caregivers right now enter as temporary residents and we've been trying to lobby for them to enter as permanent residents, but that's not something that Immigration seems very amenable to," says Okun-Nochoff. "Their status as temporary residents is very insecure, and because of that they face a whole variety of immigration problems."
Because of the processing delays at CIC, in many cases the caregivers can't finish the program in the time allotted and choose to return home or are deported. They may re-apply to enter the program, but the time they have already put in isn't taken into account, so they have to begin again from scratch.
"The limitations of the program are very clear," says Glecy Duran, chair of Siklab, a national organization that advocates for Filipino migrant workers in Canada. "The program promises that families can come together in 24 months, but the processing time takes so long that the nannies and their children have become strangers to one another."
Siklab has called for the scrapping of the program completely, saying it puts caregivers in a precarious situation and fractures families. Duran says about one employer in 10 treats the caregiver well, while "the majority are taking advantage of the program."
"There are so many cases that we have been handling here at Siklab… women being treated like slaves, some have been raped, some are working overtime without pay…."
Siklab also wants a moratorium on the deportation of caregivers, calling the deportations "arbitrary and unjust" because the inability of the caregiver to complete the program in the allotted time is often due to delays on the part of CIC and beyond the caregiver's control.
CIC spokesperson Lisa Borsu says that while they are always looking for ways to improve, the program has been successful overall.
In 2005, 3,110 caregivers were granted permanent resident status.
Caregivers in the program are paid minimum wage, minus $325 for room and board as well as other deductions. With many having to support a family back home, the $400 they're left with doesn't go very far, which is why some nannies, according to Okun-Nachoff, have been turning to prostitution to make ends meet.
Wasike recalls that one employer she worked for allowed only one measured serving of food at mealtime. She was constantly hungry, she says, but was unable to go out at night to purchase more food due to a restrictive 8:30pm curfew.
In another instance, her employer—ironically a taxation lawyer¬¬—neglected to deduct enough taxes from her pay, resulting in a surprise bill from Revenue Canada for $2,758. Both CIC and her employer refused to pay it, so she had to scramble to take out a bank loan.
Duran says that because of changes to the Employment Standards Act in B.C., if caregivers in the program want to file a complaint they have to do it through a "self help kit," which requires informing their employer that they're filing a complaint—an option most shy away from.
But on the whole, mistreated nannies are reluctant to complain, fearing their already precarious position will be jeopardized further.
"The live-ins are so scared and so desperate that they don't even open their mouth," says Wasike. "They think they can't complain until they get their papers. They don't talk so nobody finds out, and it's been like that for years."
But Wasike is one of the lucky ones. After close to five years, she was able to get permanent resident status and finally bring her children to Canada. She says that after she finished the program, acquired an open work permit and could live outside the home of her employer, she "got real people" after that and was no longer belittled or exploited.
"The Live-in caregiver Program in Canada is an absolute slave trade happening right here," says Wasike. "There should be somebody from the government advocating for these people, that's what they don't have. There is nobody there for the caregivers."
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