Caregivers Association Disappointed by Bureaucracy
The Canadian Caregivers Association (CCA) is calling on the federal government to review the implementation of new paperwork requirements.
TORONTO, ON – The Canadian Caregivers Association (CCA) is calling on the federal government to review the implementation of new paperwork requirements for families who wish to hire live-in caregivers. These new papers, the CCA argues, will bear little fruit in the way of protecting caregivers, while drawing out a process that already harms both families and those in their employ. The new paperwork may add between two and six additional weeks to a process that can already extend as long as fifteen to twenty-six months.
New document requirements from Service Canada obligate families hiring live-in caregivers to sign a new Attestation of Identity Authentication and a Live-in Caregiver Program Recruitment Efforts and Results report. These documents are designed to improve standards within the program and to ensure that local caregivers are given the chance to apply to jobs before those living abroad.
The CCA questions the need for these new measures. In the wake of recent media coverage, Canada has seen the reinstatement of advertizing requirements for families and the creation of additional paperwork. The question regarding whether these changes are needed, or appropriate, remains largely unanswered in the eyes of the CCA. Families that are already spending weeks to get their papers cleared in order to hire a live-in caregiver are now being faced with new advertizing requirements and additional papers. The long-established understanding of many groups has been that local demand for live-in caregiver positions is nearly non-existent. If this has changed, the government should disclose any new statistics relevant to their decision-making. A local supply of available live-in caregivers is rare if not non-existent in rural areas, for instance, and families in need are rarely able to assume the burden of extra time.
Furthermore, the CCA is concerned that unscrupulous agencies and individuals that exploit the program have demonstrated their willingness to falsify or manipulate information in the past – these same individuals may just as willfully doctor or misrepresent families on the new documents.
The CCA is calling for the creation of an oversight and licensing body that would maintain a ‘White List’ of reputable placement agencies to eliminate the limitations and failings of bureaucratic action to date. Additionally, the CCA believes that continually longer waiting times foster an environment of abuse for both families and caregivers, alike.
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Contact:
Tristan A. Downe-Dewdney
Spokesperson
Canadian Caregivers Association
(416) 628-8388
