South Africa: Court Action to Stop Immigrants Being Denied Life-Saving Healthcare

AllAfrica 25 July 2022

Two-year-old Zimbabwean boy died after state hospital denied him treatment because his mother had no birth certificate

SECTION27, a public interest law organisation, has launched an application in the Gauteng High Court to scrap discriminatory practices that deny immigrant women and their children state health care.

An affidavit in the case describes specific cases where children have been denied treatment.

SECTION27 says there is no coherent approach between facilities and even within hospitals treatment depends on having luck with the official on duty.

The rights of immigrant and undocumented women and children to access free healthcare in South Africa will be put to the test in a court challenge launched by SECTION27 in the Gauteng High Court in Johannesburg.

In December 2019, two-year-old Sibusiso Ncube died of poisoning after he was refused treatment at Charlotte Maxeke Hospital because his Zimbabwean mother could not instantly produce his birth certificate or pay R5,000, says an affidavit in the court case.

This was not an isolated incident according to Umunyana Rugege, executive director of SECTION27.

"Since 2013, SECTION27 has been repeatedly approached by pregnant migrant women and children under six, who have been denied access to free health services. This is perpetuated through discriminatory subordinate laws and practices," Rugege says in her affidavit.

"They have routinely been denied access to the health care services, or they are pressured into signing acknowledgements of debt and undertakings to pay for services."

SECTION27 wants all the relevant ordinances and regulations scrapped. It also seeks an an order that the Minister of Health issue a circular to all provincial health departments recording that all pregnant or lactating women, and children under six, who are not members of medical aid schemes and who have not come to South Africa to obtain health care, be entitled to free health services at any public health establishment, irrespective of their nationality and documentation status.

Rugege says that while the National Health Act does not place any limitation on the right to free health services, there are a range of subordinate laws and practices implemented at hospitals that impose conditions requiring proof of nationality and financial means.

"These laws and practices are unlawful," she says.

Rugege cited other examples, such as a pregnant asylum seeker who was denied treatment after she was injured in a robbery. She was told she had to pay R2,000 before a "file could be opened" at Steve Biko Academic Hospital.

Two months later, when she was eight-months pregnant and went to Charlotte Maxeke, she was told she had to pay R20,000 if she wanted treatment and give birth at the hospital. Only after SECTION27 intervened, was she given an appointment, but the night before it she lost her baby.

Another Zimbabwean woman whose child needed emergency surgery was forced to sign an admission of debt for more than R34,000 at the same hospital. Then when he needed further surgery, it was denied because of the outstanding debt. The woman was further told that she would have to pay R5,000 for admission and R50,000 for the second surgery.

Again SECTION27 intervened. But in March, when the mother took him back for a check-up, a nurse addressed everyone in the queue and told them that foreign nationals would not be attended to if they did not have money to pay. The mother, and others, left without being seen.

The application is supported by the Jesuit Refugee Service, The Southern African HIV Clinicians Society, and Doctors Without Borders; all are expected to file affidavits soon. Rugege says these will highlight discriminatory institutional policies and systematic xenophobic practices and attitudes that have "detrimental and sometimes fatal consequences".

"There is simply no coherent approach at different public health establishments ... even within a single establishment, different officials treat patients differently," she said. Access to health care depends on who is on duty that day. On "lucky days" people will gain access without any trouble.

The respondents -- the MEC and Gauteng health department head, the Minister and Director-General of Health -- have 15 days to file notices of opposition.

www.samigration.com

Canada needs more immigrants to tackle labour shortage as vacancies hit 1m

The cable – 25 July 2022

Canada is currently reportedly experiencing labour shortage and needs over a million vacancies to be filled.

According to a report by Statistics Canada published on Jul 20, immigrants have been the driving force behind the country’s labour supply for many years, and in the 2010s, over four-fifths of the growth in labour force came from immigration.

“Immigration has always been the driving force behind Canada’s labour supply. But with job vacancies in late 2021 80% higher than before the COVID-19 pandemic and the working age population aging, high levels of immigration will be even more critical to the labour market,” the report reads.

The report, however, noted that “a modest, sustained increase in immigration levels will not fully offset the longer-term impacts of an aging population”, but will be critical for reducing the aging effects on the labour market over time.

“After the interruption caused by the pandemic in 2020, 405,800 immigrants were admitted in 2021, the highest level in the history,” the report reads.

Meanwhile, the development comes shortly after Canada reportedly hit a record high on number of available job vacancies.

As of March 2022, more than one million vacant job positions were available to be filled as businesses begin to recover from the COVID pandemic.

“Across all sectors, Canadian employers were actively seeking to fill more than one million (1,012,900) vacant positions at the beginning of March 2022, a record high,” the reloet reads.

“Vacancies increased by 22.6% (+186,400) in the month and were up 60.5% (+382,000) from March 2021 (not seasonally adjusted).”

IMPROVEMENT IN LABOUR MARKET PARTLY OWING TO IMMIGRANTS

As contained in the June 22 report, the increase in economic principal applicants who arrived the country was a result of the expansion of provincial programmes that relied more on temporary foreign workers (TFW) and the introduction of the Canadian experience class.

It said temporary foreign workers accounted for “a rising share of the employed labour force”.

“The increased reliance on TFWs tended to improve the economic outcomes of immigrants,” the report reads.

“The labour market outcomes of recent immigrants improved substantially in the years leading up to the pandemic.

“TFWs and international students, both of whom are transitioning to permanent residency in greater numbers, have become increasingly important sources of labour supply.

“While economic outcomes of recent immigrants have improved, substantial challenges related to their skill utilization continue to persist. Addressing these challenges will be key to improving social and economic mobility among newcomers while enhancing the skills and competitiveness of our workforce.”

In February, Canada, under its Immigration Levels Plan 2022-2024, announced that it aimed to welcome 431,645 new permanent residents in 2022.

www.samigration.com

Hiring foreign workers in South Africa – the new case you should know about

Daily Mirror – 25 July 2022

The Western Cape High Court recently dealt with a case of hiring foreign workers in South Africa, and whether an employer’s intention to employ foreign nationals rather than South African citizens or permanent residents could constitute unfair discrimination.

The case centred around Mukuru, a financial services provider that uses mobile technology to transfer money across Africa and Asian countries, says Jacqui Reed, a senior associate at law firm Herbert Smith Freehills.

“The group applied for a corporate visa that would permit them to employ foreign nationals. To obtain such a certificate, it was necessary for Mukuru to obtain a certificate from the Department of Employment and Labour (DEL).

“To obtain the certificate, Mukuru needed to have shown that despite conducting a diligent search to find suitable employees that were either South African citizens or permanent residency holders, it was not able to do so.”

The department subsequently refused to issue the certificate because it was not satisfied with Mukuru’s attempts to employ South Africans which prompted Mukuru to take this decision on review.

However, the High Court was not persuaded by Mukuru’s explanation for why it could not employ South Africans and found that South Africans were unfairly excluded from employment opportunities which constituted unfair discrimination on various constitutional grounds.

Reed noted that the ruling is important – especially when considering whether passing over South Africans for employment is discriminatory.

“Whilst this decision did not emanate from a South African alleging that there was unfair discrimination by an employer who employed a foreign national as opposed to the South African citizen, it does highlight that there may be circumstances under which the employment of a foreign national rather than a South African may constitute unfair discrimination,” she said.

“It is evident from this decision that South African employers will need to justify the employment of foreign nationals in favour of South Africans. Whether an employer can do so, will depend on the facts of each case.”

www.samigration.com

Remote Working: The Future for Global Immigration Systems

22 July 2022 – migration  policy

By: Charlotte Wills, Kate Hooper, Policy Analyst at Migration Policy Institute and Meghan Benton, Director, International Program at Migration Policy Institute

Remote work is not a new phenomenon, but the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the pace at which employers have remote and hybrid working schemes. Increasingly, workers expect more flexible remote work policies, supported by the many months spent successfully carrying out their jobs in periods of lockdown and adoption of technology that make remote collaboration more seamless. But the widespread adoption of remote work has brought many headaches, especially as relates to working in a different country, since immigration policies were not designed for an era of remote work.

Adapting to remote work

Some companies have embraced this shift, especially in industries such as tech where remote work was already commonplace before the pandemic, and other industries such as financial services where many duties can be performed remotely (unlike, for example, healthcare, logistics, or hospitality). Remote working arrangements can range widely, from occasionally allowing employees to work from home within the same country, to permitting them to work from a different country for a certain number of days per year, to working with contractors and freelancers in other countries. Some employers have also made use of “parking,” whereby employees are sent to a third country where they have the right to work (or where visas are easy to attain) while they await backlogged visa processing in the country where a company is headquartered.

This period of innovation also revealed the shortcomings of immigration policies and related tax, social security, and employment systems to accommodate remote work arrangements. For example, the rules around remote work on a visitor visa are often unclear, while foreign workers admitted to a destination country may run into issues renewing or applying for a new visa if their employer adopts full-time remote work policies. In turn, the resources required to navigate local rules and obligations for digital nomads may deter employers from offering more flexible remote work policies.

These themes are recognized and analyzed in a new report by the Migration Policy Institute, which addresses how failing to adapt to the concept of remote work in immigration policies is a missed opportunity.

The past three years have already seen policy innovations in this area. More than 25 countries and territories have launched digital nomad visas that admit foreign nationals who work for an employer outside the country, or in some cases are self-employed – especially in areas where economies have historically been reliant on tourism. The opportunity to spend time working on the beach in the Bahamas or Barbados has certainly been tempting for some.

But to truly reap the benefits of remote work, governments must understand the opportunities that lay beyond generating revenue from digital nomad visa programs, in making a country an attractive environment for temporary visitors, business activity and job creation. More flexible remote work policies can align with broader priorities including promoting economic development across regions, widening talent pools and even allowing people displaced by conflict or environmental disaster to earn incomes.

Looking ahead

There is no one answer for what this looks like. Creating flexible immigration policies that permit a greater degree of remote work in line with national economic priorities is a good starting point. Immigration is of course only one piece of this complex puzzle, with implications from tax and social security through to employee benefits, labour laws and cyber security. The report calls for governments to coordinate across portfolios to develop a remote work strategy that integrates immigration priorities with economic development and inclusive growth objectives.

One option is to introduce a standalone route for digital nomads – but alternatively, governments could also consider clarifying the rules around remote work on a visitor visa and allowing some amount of remote work under certain conditions. Not only would this regularize a practice that may in reality happen anyway, but it could help boost tourism expenditures by encouraging people to extend their vacations to include a few days of remote work, for example. Alternatively, companies could take a more permissive and clear approach allowing occasional remote work by foreign nationals admitted to a country on an employment-based visa, in line with fast-changing norms around remote work.

Longer term, it is clear is that a more engaged approach to these issues with relevant adaptations to immigration systems globally can help foster a more attractive and complaint environment for employers, workers, and visitors as remote work continues to become more mainstream.

Until a time of more positive engagement and recognition by policymakers comes, employers can seek advice on any policies they have in place or may be considering implementing, ensuring the flexibility they want to offer does not expose them to increased compliance risks in immigration and beyond. Understanding which jurisdictions do permit remote work and under what arrangements can help support your strategy

www.samigration.com

Russia: Law for Information Technology Specialists in Force

Fragoman – 22 July 2022

The Russian government has implemented the law allowing foreign information technology specialists employed in Russia by accredited information technology companies (except for residents in certain economic zones) to work without work permits and to obtain permanent residence permits without having a temporary residence permit for one year. 

www.samigration.com