Migrant worker exploited by Edmonton employer awarded $30K — but he can't collect

A temporary foreign worker (TFW) who was underpaid and fired without notice by an Edmonton employer has been awarded $30,000 but the company at fault no longer exists.

The Alberta Human Rights Commission found that David Pryde faced discrimination at Align Fence Inc., where he was wrongfully terminated without notice in April 2015. He has been awarded $30,000 in general damages and $1,300 in lost wages. 

The commission handed down its decision on April 11, eight years after Pryde was fired. However, Align was dissolved in 2018, meaning Pryde won't be able to collect damages.   

"Had they actually done something about this in the first three years, then I might have gained something out of it," said Pryde in a video interview from South Africa.

He said it was still important to see the complaint through in the hopes of highlighting the burdensome process, especially for non-English speakers.

"I hope that it will protect foreign workers in the future and that directors will be held responsible even if they do end up dissolving their companies … and that both of these directors would be [banned] from ever employing foreign workers again," Pryde said.

In June 2014, South Africa's high unemployment rate drove Pryde to look for greener pastures in Canada.  

The engineering technologist took a lower-paying job installing and repairing fences for Align. Under a two-year federal temporary foreign work permit, Pryde could not work in another occupation or for another employer.

According to the ruling, Align paid Pryde a dollar less than the $22 hourly rate designated by his job category.

Eventually, the commission says, employers assigned Pryde to duties as a technologist, where he was supposed to earn $33.65 per hour, but Pryde's hourly rate stayed at $21.

'Had me hostage'

On many occasions, Pryde raised concerns with his employers about being underpaid and working outside the scope of the TFW program, commissioner Cynthia J. Dickins wrote in the decision.

"I was told, 'look, if you don't like it, we're going to put you on the next plane back home'," recalled Pryde.

"I've already given up everything, sunk all my finances into going over there – so you know, they basically had me hostage."

On April 13, 2015, Pryde's employment was terminated even though he had eight months left on his contract. Barred from finding another job, Pryde was forced to go home.

"Nine years down the line, it's set me back drastically in life," Pryde said.  "Will I be coming back to Canada? I don't think it's a good proposition for anybody, really, because there is no protection."

Abuse of migrant workers is a common scenario, said Marco Luciano, director of Migrante Alberta.

"The program itself puts the migrant worker in a very vulnerable position," he said.

Luciano said the complaint-based system is problematic for migrant workers who fear losing their job and status, and don't have the time or resources required to navigate its complexities.

Complaint processing times reduced

In 2019, the commission made changes to reduce lengthy processing times.

In 2021-22, complaints took an average of 538 days to either resolve, dismiss or refer the complaint to a tribunal, which represents a 39 per cent drop from the previous year, a commission spokesperson said in an email to CBC.

In that same period, adjudicated files took an average of 721 days to close, representing a 16 per cent drop.

The Alberta government says a provincial advisory office helps TFWs "understand their rights and get help when they are facing unfair, unsafe or unhealthy working conditions."

Services are free of charge and confidential, Roy Dallmann, press secretary for Jobs Minister Brian Jean, told CBC News in an email.

In the case of allegations, the office can make referrals to authorities, he added.

The federal government said it could not provide comment due to the labour disruption.