BC court finds retail chain liable for exploiting hundreds of migrant workers

The British Columbia Supreme Court ruled that Mac’s Convenience Stores and three immigration consulting firms unlawfully exploited close to 880 migrant workers. Justice Sharon Matthews found that the defendants used false pretences to charge migrants up to $8,000 each for Canadian jobs that rarely existed. The retail chain brought workers to Canada to create a flexible staffing pool without any specific intention to employ them full-time. Many arrived to find no employment, which left several victims stranded in homeless shelters or forced into illegal cash jobs. The court determined that the recruiters were unjustly enriched by these illegal fees. Financial damages for the affected class members will be decided through individual assessments.

#british_columbia, #migrant_workers, #class_action_lawsuit, #temporary_foreign_workers, #recruitment_fraud, #employment