Temporary foreign workers say they were fired unjustly from their jobs

Two temporary foreign workers are speaking out, saying they were fired from their non-union company for speaking with union representatives.

Patrick Carroll and David Bowler were let go by Lower Mainland Steel Group Feb. 2, despite having a contract that extended into August.

The Irish nationals were brought to Canada under a federal government program called the Labour Market Opinion, under the agreement the company has to prove there are no qualified Canadian workers, and in return the workers can only work for the company that hired them.

The United Steelworkers are now going to bat for the pair, saying there was no reason given for the terminations.

“These guys have travelled 8,000 miles, uprooted their families, disrupted their home life, come over here for a better life and then to be dismissed or thrown away, just as a Canadian I find that hard to take,” said Doug Parton with the Local 97 Ironworkers Union.