“Caught in the Same Webs”—Service Providers’ Insights on Gender-Based and Structural Violence Among Female Temporary Foreign Workers in Canada

Multifaceted precarity: pandemic experiences of recent immigrant women in the accommodation and food services sector

The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately affected those who face historical and ongoing marginalization. In centering pandemic experience of recent immigrant women in the accommodation and food services sector in Canada, we examine how their precarious work translated to experiences of work precarity and wellbeing. This paper illuminates how pre-existing and ongoing marginalization are reproduced during a health crisis for those at the intersection of gender, race, migration, and labour inequities. Using semi-structured interviews and systematic analysis using the Work Precarity Framework, we found that the pandemic exacerbated pre-existing socio-economic marginalization and resulted in unique experiences of work precarity. The latter was experienced as precarity of work (unpredictable work hours and job or employment insecurity), precarity from work (inadequate incomes), and precarity at work (physical, psychological, and relational unsafety). Work precarity stood out as a social determinant of health in relation to its outcome of degraded mental health and wellbeing. Recognizing the role of policies in producing, reproducing, and distributing precarity, we recommend policy directions to reduce social inequities in pandemic recovery.

Understanding the Nature of Family Violence Against Women With Insecure Migration Status in Australia

Feminist researchers have diversified understandings of family violence by examining how women's experiences are influenced by gender and its intersections with other social inequalities. This article seeks to contribute to intersectional and transnational feminist scholarship on violence that examines the influence of structural factors such as insecure migration status on the nature of women's lived experiences in Western industrialized countries. It reports on findings from a study with migrant women who experienced family violence in Victoria, Australia when their migration status was "insecure," and examines similarities and differences in the forms and patterns of violence and abuse women described.

Formal and informal support networks as sources of resilience and sources of oppression for temporary foreign workers in Canada

In this article, we explore temporary foreign workers’ (TFWs) access to and experiences with formal and informal supports in Canada. Our study utilized a participatory action research design and four overlapping phases of data collection: individual interviews with current and former TFWs, focus groups, individual interviews with settlement service agencies, and a cross-sectional survey with current and former TFWs. We used an intersectional theoretical framework to analyze these data and explore ways that TFWs interact with formal and informal sources of support for navigating their precarious immigration status and integration in Canada. Our findings show these supports have the potential to both benefit and harm TFWs, depending on their social positioning and availability of institutional resources. The benefits include information that aids settlement and integration processes in Canada, while the harms include misinformation that contributes to status loss. Future research and policy should recognize the complexity of informal and formal support networks available to TFWs. An absence of government support is apparent, as is the need for increased funding for settlement service agencies that serve these workers. In addition, Canada should better monitor employers, immigration consultants, and immigration lawyers to ensure these agents support rather than oppress TFWs.

Migrant agricultural workers' deaths in Ontario from January 2020 to June 2021: a qualitative descriptive study

Background

Nine migrant agricultural workers died in Ontario, Canada, between January 2020 and June 2021.

Methods

To better understand the factors that contributed to the deaths of these migrant agricultural workers, we used a modified qualitative descriptive approach. A research team of clinical and academic experts reviewed coroner files of the nine deceased workers and undertook an accompanying media scan. A minimum of two reviewers read each file using a standardized data extraction tool.

Results

We identified four domains of risk, each of which encompassed various factors that likely exacerbated the risk of poor health outcomes: (1) recruitment and travel risks; (2) missed steps and substandard conditions of healthcare monitoring, quarantine, and isolation; (3) barriers to accessing healthcare; and (4) missing information and broader issues of concern.

Conclusion

Migrant agricultural workers have been disproportionately harmed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Greater attention to the unique needs of this population is required to avoid further preventable deaths.

Migrant experiences of sexual and gender based violence: a critical interpretative synthesis

BACKGROUND

Gender based violence (GBV) is a critical issue and migrants are at higher risk of experiencing and being victimized by GBV. This critical interpretative synthesis (CIS) examines migrants experiences of GBV with a focus on different migrant groups and experiences at different stages of the migrant journey.

METHOD

The guiding question of this review is: "how do migrants experience gender-based violence?" A total of 84 studies were included in the CIS, of which 67 peer-reviewed academic articles were selected from 2356 studies found on WebofScience, MedLINE, and ProQuest, and 17 relevant studies from the grey literature were selected from the time period 2011 to 2020. All final studies were reviewed and synthesized using a critical inductive approach to formulate the key results.

RESULTS

The results demonstrate a high prevalence of GBV amongst migrants, and in particular among vulnerable migrant groups such as forced migrants and irregular migrants, with an emerging focus on male victims. Findings of the CIS revealed three key themes: 1) Most GBV occurrences are rooted in unequal power dynamics; 2) Victims often live with long-lasting consequences that are worsened by their fear of disclosure and stigmatization; 3) There are differential understandings of victimhood across organizations, communities, and victims themselves. In order to support access, sampling, and methodological challenges in this field of research, this article also reports its findings on common risk-factors identified, consequences and coping mechanisms reported, protection policies targeting GBV, and finally, available databases and data collection methods.

CONCLUSION

Further directions for research should be encouraged to move beyond prevalence reporting into identifying risk-factors and possible prevention in both sexes. In addition, more research on GBV experiences throughout migrants' journeys, and coping mechanisms should be encouraged.

A Qualitative Study of Female Migrant Domestic Workers’ Experiences of and Responses to Work-Based Sexual Violence in Cyprus

Domestic workers face increased risk for sexual harassment and assault in the workplace but are often reluctant to disclose abuse or seek retribution. We report on a study looking at migrant domestic workers’ responses to sexual violence, reasons behind their responses, and factors enhancing or diminishing vulnerability to abuse. We carried out qualitative, in-depth, individual and group interviews with 15 female domestic workers from the Philippines and Sri Lanka working in the Republic of Cyprus. Descriptive thematic analysis was used to analyse data using QSR NVivo 10.0. Sexual violence against migrant domestic workers was reported to be rampant, particularly among women living with their employer. Perpetrators took advantage of women’s precarious legal, social, and economic circumstances to coerce women into a sexual relationship. All participants reported taking action to stop attacks despite the significant barriers they faced: racism and discrimination, social isolation, and hostile legal, labour, and immigration systems. Fear of losing their job, being deported, and facing racism and discrimination from the police were the biggest barriers to seeking retribution. Access to informational, e.g., legal, practical, and emotional support, facilitated positive outcomes following abuse, such as finding a new employer. Systemic racism, hostile labour and immigration systems, and lack of support increase risk of sexual violence and place barriers against accessing safe working spaces, protection, and justice. Women need to be informed of the risks involved in domestic work and empowered to identify abuse and access help and support when needed.

Migrant Agricultural Workers' Health, Safety and Access to Protections: A Descriptive Survey Identifying Structural Gaps and Vulnerabilities in the Interior of British Columbia, Canada

In this paper, we provide descriptive data that characterize the health, safety, and social care environment of migrant agricultural workers in British Columbia, Canada. Through the administration of surveys (n = 179), we gathered information in three domains: (1) living and working conditions; (2) barriers to rights, health, safety and advocacy/reporting; (3) accessibility of services. Our study confirms what predominantly qualitative studies and Ontario-based survey data indicate in terms of health, legal, and social barriers to care and protection for this population. Our findings also highlight the prevalence of communication barriers and the limited degree of confidence in government authorities and contact with support organizations this population faces. Notably, survey respondents expressed a strong intention to report concerns/issues to authorities while simultaneously reporting that they lacked the knowledge to initiate such complaints. These findings call into question government responses that task the agricultural industry with addressing access and service gaps that may be more effectively addressed by government agencies and service providers. In order to improve supports and protections for migrant agricultural workers, policies and practices should be implemented that: (1) empower workers to independently access health, social, and legal protections and limit workers’ dependence on their employers when help-seeking; (2) provide avenues for increased proactive inspections, anonymous reporting, alternative housing/employment and meaningful 2-way communication with regulators so that the burden of reporting is lessened for this workforce; (3) systematically address breaches in privacy, translation, and adequate workplace injury assessments in the healthcare system. Ultimately, the COVID-19 context has put into sharper focus the complex gaps in health, social and legal services and protections for migrant agricultural workers. The close chronology of our data collection with this event can help us understand the factors that have resulted in so much tragedy among this workforce.

Emerging best practices for supporting temporary migrant farmworkers in Western Canada

The aim of this study was to examine the role of support people in determining migrant agricultural workers' access to, or ability to navigate, public spaces and services. While the role of support networks for this population is still in its infancy, much can be gained from understanding the emerging best practices for helping this group. Using a situational analysis research approach, we carried out 4 focus groups and 25 one-on-one interviews, recruiting a total of 30 informal and formal support people as study participants between 2018 and 2019. Data analysis occurred over a 2-year period largely simultaneously with data collection. Developing analytic maps as outlined by Clarke's approach to situational analysis, we reviewed texts and preliminary codes by organising them in terms of situations, social worlds, and discursive positions. Ultimately, we identified four best practices: (a) Anticipating and addressing barriers; (b) building trust and community; (c) acknowledging rights and system accountability and (d) bearing witness and looking to the future. Underlying these best practices was the need for support people to display 'support readiness', or specialised skills, motivation and a personal connection to migrant farmworkers. While these practices have the potential to improve migrant workers' ability to fully participate in public spaces and access public services, until systemic constraints are addressed, support people will be unable to fill the gaps in support for this population.

Supports for migrant farmworkers: tensions in (in)access and (in)action

Purpose

This study aims to examine the role of support actors in promoting or hindering access to public services/spaces for migrant agricultural workers (MAWs) and to determine the factors that influence adequate support for this population.

Design/methodology/approach

Using a situational analysis methodology, the authors carried out focus groups and interviews with 40 support actors complimented by a community scan (n = 28) with public-facing support persons and a community consultation with migrant farmworkers (MFWs) (n = 235).

Findings

Two major themes were revealed: (In)access and (In)action and Blurred Lines in Service Provision. The first illustrated how support actors could both reinforce or challenge barriers for this population through tensions of “Coping or Pushing Back on Constraints” and “Need to find them first!” Justification or Preparation? Blurred lines in Service Provision encompassed organizational/staff’s behaviors and contradictions that could hinder meaningful support for MFWs revealing two key tensions: “Protection or performance?” and “Contradicting or reconciling priorities? Our findings revealed a support system for MAWs still in its infancy, contending with difficult political and economic conditions.

Social implications

Service providers can use research findings to improve supports for MAWs. For example, addressing conflicts of interests in clinical encounters and identification of farms to inform adequate outreach strategies can contribute to more effective support for MAWs.

Originality/value

This research is novel in its examination of multiple sectors as well as its inclusion of both formal and informal actors involved in supporting MAWs. Our findings have the potential to inform more comprehensive readings of the health and social care resources available to MAWs.

"I Will Not Leave My Body Here": Migrant Farmworkers' Health and Safety Amidst a Climate of Coercion

Every year more temporary migrant workers come to Canada to fill labour shortages in the agricultural sector. While research has examined the ways that these workers are made vulnerable and exploitable due to their temporary statuses, less has focused on the subjective experiences of migrant agricultural workers in regards their workplace health and safety. We conducted interviews and focus groups with migrant workers in the interior of British Columbia, Canada and used a narrative line of inquiry to highlight two main themes that illustrate the implicit and complex mechanisms that can structure migrant agricultural workers’ workplace climate, and ultimately, endanger their health and safety. The two themes we elaborate are (1) authorities that silence; and (2) “I will not leave my body here.” We discuss the implications of each theme, ultimately arguing that a number of complex political and economic forces create a climate of coercion in which workers feel compelled to choose between their health and safety and tenuous economic security.