COVID-19: Canadian Temporary Foreign Workers Need to Know their Rights

While Canada has executed temporary limitations banning non-essential travel, while international citizens with work and student permits are permitted to enter the nation. If you are traveling to Canada, you are bound by law to quarantine yourself for 14 days, during which time you are to observe for symptoms and signs of COVID-19. If you do existing symptoms of the disease, you are then expected to seek medical care and follow the directions given to you by public health executives.

To assure those temporary immigrant workers (TFWs) can respect the compulsory 14 day isolation period, and any additional quarantine orders demanded by federal, provincial, or territorial governments, Canada has passed new regulations to assure that companies of TFWs maintain these public health conditions.

New Criteria: Wages

• The organization must give wages to the TFW for the first 14 day quarantine period and any additional necessary quarantine conditions if the person develops symptoms associated with COVID-19.

New Criteria: Accommodations (if given by the company)

• Give the TFW with accommodations that are different from those given to individuals who are not in quarantine and that permit the international worker to remain at least two meters away from any different person.
• Give the TFW with cleansing products for cleaning and sanitizing the accommodations usually.
• Give a TFW who exhibits any symptoms or indications of COVID-19, with accommodations that have a bedroom and also a bathroom that is only for the use of the international national while they quarantine themselves.

It’s critically essential that both companies and temporary immigrant workers understand their rights and responsibilities. These new conditions will help to retain workers and the public safety during the COVID-19 pandemic, while also protecting the productivity of Canadian companies who solely depend on temporary immigrant workers.