Barrister Rizuan Rahman

Thank you to National Ethnic Press & Media Council of Canada for bestowing this great honor on me in recognition of my service to the Canadian and Bangladeshi communities.

My Toronto based law firm is known for providing immigration related services with honesty, integrity and agility. Feel free to contact my office for advice and representation on matters related to Canadian immigration. My team of experienced and certified immigration professionals and I put our entire focus on providing the best service to our clients, no matter how complex the issues are. Also, LIKE and FOLLOW my page for updates along with unbiased and fact-based opinion on various issues.

Standing with the education workers is not a political issue, rather it’s a moral issue. Remember, we are talking about people who play some of the most important and most essential roles at schools. We are not talking about teachers, we are talking about custodians, educational assistants, Librarians, lunch room staff, special needs assistants, early childhood educators, cleaning staff etc. They are the people who keep our schools clean and safe, these are the people who serve lunch to our children in a safe and clean manner, these are the people who help our special need child go to washroom or feel safe and calm at a time of need. Please note that these people did not get any raise for decades. And even when they got some raises on random years, they remained around 1%, which is much lower than inflation and more importantly, much lesser rate compared to the prices of essential commodities going up.

Another “must remember” point is the fact that most of these people get an average of $39,000 per year for full time work. Imagine running a family with $39,000 or less a year and not getting a reasonable increment for decades (for example, most of the custodians get around $32,000). Now let’s talk about the demand. Initially, based on the fact that they did not get any reasonable raise for decades, CUPE asked for a rate that reflects somewhat closer to the missed raises, but then they lowered it down significantly for the sake of moving forward with the negotiation. But the government said 1.5% to 2.5%, depending on the earnings of the individual. And to make matters worse, the government passed a law making the strike illegal and imposing thousands of dollars fine on people who will still go on strike. So my question to the people who are opposing the demands or actions of the education workers is this: in one hand we want our children to go to school and have nice care in a nice environment and on the other hand we say these people who take care of the children do not have the right to get a decent pay for their hard work or even try to negotiate for it. How is that fair!? Shouldn’t people who work so hard get at least a living wage?

That is why I stand with the education workers… and hope to join the picket line tomorrow morning (12 noon) at Queen’s Park (in front of the Provincial Parliament).

প্রায় ২৫০০ মানুষকে সম্পুর্ণ বিনামূল্যে তৃপ্তি নিয়ে খাওয়ানো সহজ কাজ না। চট্টগ্রাম সমিতির বেশ বড় একটা টিম পর্দার পেছনে থেকে কঠোর পরিশ্রম করেছেন। সভাপতি ইলিয়াস আঙ্কেল, সাধারন সস্পাদক মন্জুর চৌধুরী ভাই, ট্রেজারার সাইফুল আঙ্কেল এঁদের স্বপ্ন ছিল এই মেজবান। আর এই স্বপ্নের বাস্তবায়নে কঠোর পরিশ্রম করে গেছেন কার্যকরি কমিটির সদস্য সহ একঝাঁক ভলান্টিয়ার। শত ব্যস্ততার মাঝেও কমিউনিটির বিভিন্ন সামাজিক, সাংস্কৃতিক, রাজনৈতিক ও প্রফেশনাল সংগঠনের নেতৃবন্দ উপস্থিত হয়ে শুভেচ্ছা জানিয়েছেন। আগামীতে ৫,০০০ মানুষের আয়োজন করা হবে এমন উৎসাহব্যন্জক কথা শুনে আর সফল একটি মেজবান দেখার তৃপ্তি নিয়ে ঘরে ফিরলাম। রান্নার দায়িত্বে থাকা টিম আর আয়োজনটিকে সফল করার কারিগর প্রতিটি ভলান্টিয়ারকে জানাই আন্তরিক ধন্যবাদ।

ছবিগুলো অনুষ্ঠানে আসা ভাই-বোন-বন্ধুদের কাছথেকে সংগৃহীত।

Contact my office for advice and representation on matters related to Canadian immigration. My team of experienced and certified immigration professionals and I are ready to help you, no matter how complex the issue is.