黃瀚陞 Edward Hon-Sing Wong
Ever since Mr. Bao arrived in Canada, he worked in grocery stores. While he has since retired, the backbreaking tasks are forever ingrained in his muscle memory. The exhausting work of mopping the floors, stocking the shelves, and wiping up spills are beautifully captured in the movements performed by Mr. Bao and artist En Lai Mah in the film, Money Moves. The work of being a grocery store employee caused tremendous strain on Mr. Bao, resulting in numerous injuries, including inflammation of his legs and the spraining of his arm. Despite these major sacrifices, wages were low and often below minimum wage stipulations. Hours were also long – up to 12 hours a day – with no overtime pay provided.
Unfortunately, these conditions are not exceptional. This was evident during a rough-cut screening of Money Moves to a tightly packed audience of largely Chinese blue collar workers. Audience members were moved by the film and emboldened to share their own experiences of abuse and injury. A restaurant worker in particular was in tears recounting one such injury, thanking Mr. Bao and En Lai Mah for their courage in telling this story.
Indeed, many workers face similar predicaments. By being barred from white and English-speaking labour markets, deskilled workers, undocumented workers, and migrants who don’t speak English are often forced into industries and sectors where regulations are weak and worker protections are low. Between 2009 and 2016, a Toronto Star study found that wage theft for workers amounted to $47.5 million (1). Less than 0.2 percent of bosses found responsible for these acts have been prosecuted. In a 2016 survey of 184 Chinese restaurant workers in the Greater Toronto Area, 43 percent reported being paid below minimum wage (2). Furthermore, 20 percent of these workers were owed wages.
These violations have major financial consequences for workers. A 2011 survey of precarious workers conducted by the Workers Action Centre found that as a result of workplace violations, many were unable to pay bills, had to borrow money, and accrued enormous debts (3). Compounded by these financial pressures, these violations also carried significant mental health consequences, with some reporting feelings of depression and disrupted sleep. And with few health benefits associated with these jobs, workers struggled to obtain proper support for their health issues.
Unfortunately, workers facing these problems have little recourse through conventional approaches that are non-confrontational or that rely on government oversight. While workers may choose to approach their employers to ask for remedies, these attempts are rarely successful (4). As for lodging a complaint about stolen wages or poor work conditions through the Ministry of Labour (MOL), the investigation process is extremely flawed with an onerous burden of proof shouldered by the complainant, and the time frame often long (5). This is problematic, as low-income workers can ill afford delays. Considering this, it is unsurprisingly that so few file complaints through the MOL.
But perhaps the most significant concern about the MOL process is that it entails ceding workers’ power and agency to the ministry. Workers may have no choice but to accept judgments that inadequately compensate workers for their losses. Indeed, settlements facilitated by an Employment Standards Officer (ESO) – an officer employed by the MOL to address employee complaints – yields significantly less money than those not facilitated by an ESO. When compensation is determined by the ESO through arbitration, employers often do not voluntarily comply, failing to repay employees. Companies are often undeterred as those found to be guilty of Employment Standards Act (ESA) violations tend to only face small penalties ranging from $250 to $360 (6).
But workers are often scared to mobilize. Exemplified by hushed movements showing limitation and repression in Money Moves, Mr. Bao was often told to keep quiet about workplace injuries unless he wanted to risk being laid off. A worker at the screening asked, “how can rights be enforced when employees are fired for speaking out?” These fears are not unfounded, as there were over 1,200 cases of reprisals reported to the Ontario Labour Relations Board from 2007 and 2017. Employers often face little consequences for reprisal and enforcement is lacking. At the Chinese Canadian National Council – Toronto Chapter (CCNCTO), we have also encountered workers pulling out of complaints due to fear of retaliation and harassment from employers.
But precarious workers are recognizing that there is safety in numbers and that the only way to confront these odds is to fight together. As Mr. Bao so succinctly argues, “we do not have negotiating power without collective strength.” Just as the making of Money Moves involved subversively taking up space in grocery stores without permission from the owner, workers are increasingly taking matters into their own hands by directly challenging employers, instead of relying on the benevolence of management or the MOL. In response to a case of wage theft, Mr. Bao and other workers organized a delegation to confront their employer and were able to successfully obtain redress.
These workers were emboldened by community solidarity to reject the climate of fear. In addition to the workers themselves, the delegation included organizers from CCNCTO and representatives from a number of labour unions. As the delegation entered the store, the manager’s face turned white in shock at the collective support. The appearance of organized labour also clearly left an impression; the manager responded in perplexity, “there are no unions at this workplace… union representatives have no reason to be here!” Mr. Bao concludes, “CCNCTO and allies were willing to come out, and along with the legal support of the Chinese Southeast Asian Legal Clinic, the bosses got scared. The employer quickly settled after being pressured by community members and union representatives.”
Workers are organizing to win better conditions for themselves and their colleagues. But this work can only happen if workers feel they have community support. Money Moves is one such show of support, solidarity expressed through succinct and powerful martial art movements. It was no surprise that the Chinese community at the screening was filled with questions and ideas about how to confront the material conditions faced by precarious workers. Even in its unfinished form, Money Moves reminds workers that they are not alone in the predicaments they face, and that they too can challenge these circumstances through creativity and collective action.
The Money Moves final work will premiere at the 2020 Mayworks Festival of Working People and the Arts.
Video Credits Producer: V. T. Nayani Director/DOP/Location Recordist: Yasmine Mathurin Editor/Post Sound: Reza Dahya Colourist: Tricia Hagoriles Special Thank You: Alter Ego Post
Commissioned by Toronto’s Mayworks Festival of Working People and the Arts and presented in collaboration with the Chinese Workers Network and the Chinese Canadian National Council – Toronto Chapter.