Geoff Dawe, President of the PPWC (Public and Private Workers of Canada), has written open letters to cabinet members of the BC government, including Anne Kang, Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills, and Marc Miller, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada.
The letters address the recent reforms to the Post-Graduate Work Permit (PGWP) program, and how it will impact PPWC Local 26 members working at Selkirk College in Castlegar, British Columbia.
As Geoff writes: “These top-down changes do not consider the value that international college graduates bring to our community, nor the vital role that Selkirk College plays as a community training and innovation hub… Selkirk College is looking at an estimated reduction of up to 1/3 of their students due to this decision. With estimates of 400 to 800 less students. As such Selkirk College is looking at significant layoffs and restructuring with no option but suspending many of the post-graduate programs.”
Read the full letters below:
To Anne Kang, Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills
Marc Miller, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
