Jenny Kwan, NDP MP for Vancouver East, said the non-liability clause allows the government to have “discriminated without impunity and underscores the sense of colonial entitlement.”
Idlout also raised concerns about the “sexist and…problematic” section 6(2) in the Indian Act, which she said is not addressed in the Bill C-38 amendment.
Under section 6(2), someone who has only one status parent will get status for their lifetime. However, the next generation will not. This is referred to as the “second generation cut-off.” This provides issues especially for women, who can easily be identified as a child’s parent.
Canadian Press: NDP calls on federal government to allow open work permits for temporary workers
The committee’s report found that system creates conditions that can lead to exploitation and abuse.
NDP MPs Jenny Kwan and Matthew Green say the government needs to take this a step further by allowing all temporary workers access to open work permits in an effort to prevent abuse.
“The reality is, if you’re tied to one specific employer, you are really at their behest to do what they demand of you,” Kwan said.
“No matter what the abuse is, no matter if you’re faced with wage theft, with harassment, with violence, for women, with sexual harassment — you just have to live with it.”
She said the least the federal government can do to curb abuse in the temporary worker system is end the closed work permit system.