Perpetuating the Problem of Poverty

How Saturating a City with Employment Agencies Facilitates Social Degradation & Financial Hardship.

In 2013 I began working on an in-depth article about Temp Agencies in my city, and how this form of employment service is predatory, economically unsound, and an infringement on human rights under the Human Trafficking Protocols described by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC); which subsequently results in contributing to the problem of poverty and hardship within a community.

Table of Contents

Pg 1 Table of Contents

Pg 2 Introduction: Opening Statement

Pg 3 The Cause: How Agencies Work

Pg 4 The Problem: Social Degradation & Financial Hardship

Pg 5 The Morality: Human Rights & The Employment Sector

Pg 6 Glossary: Human Trafficking Terminology

Pg 7 Resources: Reference Links to Data & Statistics

Pg 8 List of All Registered Temp Agencies in Barrie

Pg 9 Full List of Registered Employment Agencies in Barrie

Pg 10 Barrie Employment Agency Revenues - 2013

Perpetuating the Problem of Poverty

How Saturating a City with Employment Agencies Facilitates Social Degradation & Financial Hardship.

Introduction

That's a very bold statement, isn't it! And, in the words of Dr. Carl Sagan, a renowned astrophysicist and humanitarian of our time: “Extraordinary claims require extraordinary evidence.” I know that the 48 employment agencies located right here in the city of Barrie will agree; and, I plan to do that. This article is not about assumptions, speculations, or probabilities though; it's about first-hand facts, gained through lived experience, of an important local and global issue. Poverty being that issue, and the direct correlation Employment Agencies have to it, being my focus.

Identifying a cause, or in the case of poverty- its plurals; isn't always as apparent to someone who doesn't work or participate in the field of social services. But it is essential in the planning and implementation of strategies to prevent, alleviate, or resolve such issues. If just one single cause can be identified within a community, then we are all one step closer to addressing that issue. And when a cause can be identified that is a significant contributor to an issue, then we can make leaps & bounds! And, since I have participated and interacted in almost every social service within the city of Barrie, I have come to see the direct correlation between low income employment, and the ripple effect on our community and social services.

But I am not a caseworker. Nor am I a paid consultant, or even a special interest group. I am a resident of Barrie. More to the point, I have lived at street level on a daily basis for the last 2 years in the downtown core. And because of my proximity and participation, I have become an unwitting observer of what life 'downtown’ is actually like. And no, the city of Barrie is not on the brink of collapse or calamity- far from it. Barrie is a beautiful quaint city with so much to offer its residents and visitors. It really is a great city to live, work, and play. It is also a city that we entrust to be active, and proactive, in addressing the inherent issues that come with being a city- and that’s the citizens that get left out, down-trodden, or pushed aside as it grows.

This is where the 48 employment agencies in Barrie come into light. And yes, I said FORTY-EIGHT agencies- right here in this small, but growing city of about 160,000 residents. A city with a labour force of about 113,000 people, and of which a StatsCan 2012 census report lists 9,000 residents as ‘unemployed’. But just how many job openings are there in Barrie/Simcoe County?

Given the saturation of employment agencies in this city, there must be an over-flow of jobs pouring out the doors of local businesses to warrant such excessive private intervention to help corral all of these jobs for our benefit!? But there isn't. There isn't an over-flow of jobs; and there certainly isn't a benefit to having private enterprises scooping up a very large majority of limited good-to-high paying jobs in our region, only to sell them back to us at minimum wage. It's absurd. And, as the title of this article claims, it's 'Perpetuating the Problem of Poverty'.

The Cause

Agencies are not here by necessity; they are only here by opportunity. And, if there is one thing that an employment agency does NOT do, nor will it ever do, is create jobs. Aside from the skeleton crew that occupies these often bare-boned offices around our city, agencies are only here to ‘take jobs’ off the free market and profit from our labour force. Their practice is to gather as many of the available jobs in the employment sector as possible, and bring them in-house. This puts the ‘power of possession’ under their own roof and control, secured by separate contracts between the employers (Clients) and the employees (Human Capital).

This private contract forbids the two from negotiating, discussing, or entering into any mutually accepted employment arrangements between themselves for 3 months of consecutive days/hrs worked- which, by its very own description and nature of being ‘temporary’ employment rarely, if ever, happens. So, these agencies trap the workers in a vortex of under-paid and under-employed conditions, brought on by their in-house scheme to profit from a specific demographic.

And these agencies do prey on a specific demographic. The workers that are denied access to fair wages, employment benefits, short & long term job security, as well as their ability to be self-sustaining, are some of the most vulnerable members of our society. And although the reasons for someone to seek temporary employment is as unique as the individuals themselves, the universal goal is almost always attributed to needing quick, short term work, and a fast payout. This targets the young and old, marginalized and impoverished, students, single parents, people with disabilities, and people suffering from addictions and afflictions, that make it difficult or impossible to hold down a long-term job.

So it is no coincidence that, for example, one of these agencies has a cheque cashing machine inside their lobby, is located right beside a hock shop, sits across the road from the Canadian Mental Health Association, and is positioned in plain sight of one of our local high schools; it’s called ‘Strategic Product Placement’. It’s how companies lure the public into using their product or service.

Even though most of us are aware that these agencies sell the jobs back to the ‘Human Capital’ at a discounted rate; most don’t realize that it’s quite a substantial portion. The typical ‘fee’ is around 30-40% of a workers hourly wages that go directly into the pockets of these billion dollar corporations. And, unlike other businesses, agencies contribute nothing in return to the communities in which they setup shop. To the contrary, their involvement within the employment sector is a disservice to our residents, our social services, and our economy. Yet this has sadly become a socially, politically, and legally accepted assault on the vitality of our communities and its residents.

The Problem

Business is about making money, we all know that; and there is an incredible amount of money to be made from ‘Human Capital’. The 2nd largest reported earnings across Canadian by an agency that operates here in Barrie (the one beside the hockshop) had earnings in 2013 of over 1.4 billion dollars- BILLION!! That’s more than the combined revenues of all McDonalds Restaurants in Canada. It also boasts a labour force of over 350,000 workers across Canada, which equates to hundreds of thousands of Canadian workers being forced to work at, or near, minimum wage by just ONE of these 48 local agencies.

The most lucrative agency in Barrie (with two other subsidiaries in Barrie) can boast annual Canadian revenues of over 21 billion dollars. So these employment agencies are making a staggering fortune from the sweat off someone else's back; amounting to millions of dollars being siphoned out of the pockets of hard working Barrie residents, and billions of dollars being picked out of the pockets of workers across Canada each year. This has a severe negative impact on our citizens, and our economy.

The ripple effects of controlling and devaluing jobs, as well as the people who fill these positions, is causing a forced pseudo-poverty upon our citizens. This spills over into our communities as ‘problems’, and the results are not comparable to a mere pebble in a pond; but more so, to a boulder in a puddle. It is destructive to the lives and livelihood of workers caught in this profit scheme, and it invariably puts undue strain on the social services within our community that are consequently needed to help offset the very situations in which these agencies perpetuate through their own existence.

This monopoly over the employment sector by employment agencies has been running rampant for many decades, and it must stop. It is an under-regulated, unenforced, and overlooked enterprise that puts considerable weight upon the health and vitality of our communities. It’s common knowledge within the field of social services that low-income and poverty causes significant social problems. They are far reaching, and all encompassing; from theft, fraud, drug & alcohol abuse, assaults & violence, to prostitution- in the very least; and we are all paying the price for our ignorance towards this issue.

There are many problems in society; problems that strain and test our ability to deal with them, and with each other. But problems don’t just appear out of thin air, they are the bi-product of a cause- a consequence of circumstance. There is always an actuator, an instigator, and/or a perpetrator. But when our primary course of action is to attack a ‘problem’ (the people), instead of addressing the ‘cause’ (the source), we only serve to further victimize the victims of social indifference.

The Morality

I must also address the term- ‘Human Capital’, because it relates to the Social Degradation in this article. I saw this terminology used quite a few years ago, and it has never sat right with me since. The term 'Human Capital' is often used in marketing material by employment agencies, and, it’s becoming a popular term in the corporate sector these days too.

But to reclassify, or more treacherously, to declassify a human being into a sub-human category such as ‘Human Capital’, is a very dangerous label to give anyone in society. It allows for dubious individuals & enterprises to tread far too firmly on the fringes of human rights violations.

To not regard a person as an Individual, or even a Human Being, makes it more palatable to treat them as a commodity, as an item to be bartered or traded, and as unfit or unworthy of basic respect and dignity- which ultimately puts every citizen at risk of abuse & neglect.

For once we remove the human element from humanity, it makes it very easy to be inhumane. And, by declassifying a human being into a commodity (human) for the purpose of profit (capital), we open up the doors to making ‘Human Trafficking’ acceptable in our society.

What is Human Trafficking?

*As described by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC):

Article 3, paragraph (a) of the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons defines Trafficking in Persons as: the recruitment, transportation, transfer, harbouring or receipt of persons, by means of the threat or use of force or other forms of coercion, of abduction, of fraud, of deception, of the abuse of power or of a position of vulnerability or of the giving or receiving of payments or benefits to achieve the consent of a person having control over another person, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, the exploitation of the prostitution of others or other forms of sexual exploitation, forced labour or services, slavery or practices similar to slavery, servitude or the removal of organs.

To simplify, in regards to employment agencies;

Trafficking in Persons is defined by the UNODC as: “the recruitment or receipt of persons, by means of use of force, or other forms of coercion, of deception, of the abuse of power, or of a position of vulnerability, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, forced labour, or services, or practices similar to slavery, or servitude.”

Although, in this case, our Canadian workers aren't being shipped into this country on an overcrowded boat, or hidden inside a shipping container, or snuck across the border under a tarp in the back of a pickup truck; it does not mean that they're not still being victimized within the employment sector. This stereotyping and dogma only serves the interests of agencies that use our ignorance to operate autonomously in plain view of our communities, and the law.

Terminology

Thesaurus: Human Trafficking Terminology

Article 3, paragraph (a) of theProtocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons defines Trafficking in Persons as:

“The recruitment or receipt of persons, by means of use of force, or other forms of coercion, of deception, of the abuse of power, or of a position of vulnerability, for the purpose of exploitation. Exploitation shall include, at a minimum, forced labour, or services, or practices similar to slavery, or servitude."

Recruitment: to enroll somebody as a worker or member, or to take on people as workers or members.

Force: somebody or something that has great power or influence, especially in a particular field.

Coercion: the use of force or threats to make somebody do something against his or her will;

Deception: the practice of deliberately making somebody believe things that are not true; an act, trick, or device intended to deceive or mislead somebody.

Abuse of Power;

Abuse:

the physical, psychological, or sexual maltreatment of a person or animal; the illegal, improper, or harmful use of something; an illegal, improper, or harmful practice.

Power:

the ability, strength, and capacity to do something; control and influence over other people and their actions; a politically, financially, or socially powerful person (or entity).

Vulnerability: open to physical or emotional harm; easily persuadable or liable to give in to temptation; unable to resist illness, debility, or failure.

Exploitation: the practice of taking selfish or unfair advantage of a person or situation, usually for personal gain; the use or development of something in order to gain a benefit.

Forced Labour: not natural or spontaneous, but produced by an act of will; not done voluntarily but out of necessity; done because somebody who has power requires it.

Services: work done by somebody for somebody else as a job, duty, punishment, or favor; an action done to help somebody or as a favor to somebody; the work that somebody can do or does by virtue of their job, profession, or training; relating to jobs or businesses that provide services but do not manufacture goods.

Slave: somebody who is dominated by somebody or by something; somebody who meekly accepts being ruled by somebody else; somebody who works hard, in bad conditions, and for low pay.

Slavery: the practice of, or a system based on, using the enforced labor of other people; the state or condition of being held in involuntary servitude as the property of somebody else; very hard work, especially for low pay and under bad conditions; a state of being completely dominated by another.

Servitude: the state of being a slave; the state of being ruled or dominated by somebody or something;

Barrie Temp Agency List

Temporary Employment & Recruiting Agencies in Barrie/Simcoe County

Adecco 566 Bryne Dr. Unit A 705-728-5757 www.adecco.ca

Specialization: Labour (Honda), Office, Tourism, Hospitality

“Adecco employs several thousand candidates in temporary positions daily (in Canada)

Appleone 21 Commerce Park Dr 705-735-1707 www.appleone.ca

Specialization: Manufacturing, Logistics, Office, Customer Service

“Just-in-Time staffing enables you to produce maximum results without the overhead of a full-time employee, through our ‘human capital’”

ESS Staffing 411 Huronia Rd. 705-730-1899 www.essdirect.ca

Specialization: Skilled trades, sales/business prof’s, general labour & clerical jobs.

“ESS Direct is a full service Employment Agency and Recruiting Firm. Acts as an intermediary between companies recruiting professionals, and candidates.”

IS2 Staffing Services 55 Cedar Pointe Dr. 705-735-1515 www.is2.ca

Specialization: Manufacturing, Distribution, Industrial Service Sectors

“IS2 is Canada’s best-in-class provider of Temporary Industrial Staffing.”

Labor Ready 29 Bradford St. 705-721-9334 www.laborready.com Specialization: Construction, Drilling/ Mining, Transportation, Retail, Farming,

“Each year, Labor Ready dispatches approximately 400,000 Temporary Associates to jobs in construction, manufacturing, hospitality, events, restoration, auto services, logistics and warehousing, retail support, waste and recycling and more.”

New Start Personnel 8-740 Huronia Rd. 705-739-2207 www.newstartpersonnel.com

Specialization: Trades, Welder, General Labour, AZ/ DZ Driver

“Employer Cost Saving: Significant labour cost savings are realized through the efficient use of New Start Personnel & Training qualified personnel.”

NT Temps 39 Victoria St. 705-435-1540 www.nottawasaga.com/nt_temps

Specialization: Manufacturing, agricultural, clerical, admin, accounting

“As a subsidiary of the Nottawasaga Community Economic Development Corporation, our goal is to contribute to the development of our business community as well as to the development of our human resources.”

People Source Staffing 15 Cedar Pointe Dr. 705-728-6167 www.Peoplesource.ca

Specialization: Manufacturing & Industrial

“People source stands apart from other employment agencies by giving equal attention to the needs of all varieties of clients.”

Randstad (Spherion) 4 Cedar Pointe Dr. 705-735-1106 www.randstad.ca

Specialization: Clerical/ Admin/ Customer Service, Warehouse/ Forklift/ Skilled Trades

“Our temporary staffing solutions deliver qualified candidates to ensure your organization has the flexibility it needs.”

The Staffing Connection 141 Dunlop St. E. 705-719-9082 www.thestaffingconnection.ca

Specialization: Light Industrial, General and Skilled Labour

“We are a recruitment solutions company with a roster of qualified employees who are ready to work.”

Turn Key Staffing Solutions 49 Collier St. 705-733-8336 www.turnkeystaffing.ca

Specialization: Industrial, Skilled Labour & Office

“We offer a full range of staffing services, including temporary, temp-to-hire, and full-time-hire.”

Ultimate Staffing Solutions 142 Commerce 705-721-1273 www.ultimatestaffing.ca

Specialization: Skilled Trades, Manufacturing: Light Industrial; Warehouse; Logistics and Transportation, Administrative and Clerical, Call Centre and Customer Service, Human Resources, Information Technology, Accounting and Finance, Creative and Marketing.

“Whether you're looking for a temporary position, or an executive engagement to step up your career, we've got the talk AND the action!”

Express Employment Professionals 15 Cedar Pointe Dr. 705-881-7775 www.barrieon.expresspros.com/

Specialization: Offers solutions in administrative, professional and commercial areas.

“As a staffing agency we help to provide local jobs, human resource services and professional training.”

Barrie Employment Agencies - Full List

Ultimate Staffing Solutions Inc, 142 Commerce Park Dr Unit V
Certified Outsourcing Services, 35 Anne St S
Truenorth Executive Search- Inc, 1 Berczy St
(1570371 Ontario Inc) Phoenix Search Group- Barrie, 660 Bayview Dr Unit 16
Hire Quality Inc, 443 Sunnidale Rd
Academy Placement Services Inc, 303 Dunlop St W Unit 7
Protocol Education (Canada) Limited, *Gd Po Box 22010 Rpo Big Bay Point
Workforce Personnel Inc, 49 High St Suite 205 Po Box 162
Ess Direct Inc, 411 Huronia Rd Unit 1b
(2069305 Ontario Ltd) New Start Personnel & Training, 80 Bradford St Suite 533
*Search Expedition Group, 38 Mcconkey Pl
Westcott Thomas & Associates Limited, 92 Caplan Ave Suite 308
Lightspeed Human Capital Management Inc, 25 Morrow Rd Suite 111
Choices Career Consulting Inc, 140 Dunlop St E Suite 204
Select Personnel, 80 Bradford St
Barrie Employment Resource, 231 Bayview Drive- Suite 201
Dorvict Resource & Consulting Centre Inc, 44 Cedar Pointe Dr Unit 1103b
Express Employment Professionals, 15 Cedar Pointe Drive
Is2 Staffing Services Inc, 55 Cedar Pointe Dr
Adecco, 566 Bryne Dr. Unit A (Prev: 64 Cedar Pointe Dr)
Randstad (Spherion) Canada, 4 Cedar Pointe Dr
1529150 Ontario Inc, 140 Dunlop St E Suite 206
Turn Key Staffing Solutions Inc, 49 Collier St
Jade Equipment, 179 Hanmer St W
Vital Recruitment Specialists Ltd, 92 Caplan Ave Suite 260
Sterling Consulting Group Inc, 80 Bradford St Unit 141
A Great Mix Bartending Services, 15 Wessenger Dr
General Labour Staffing, 29 Anne St S Unit 6
Peoplesource Staffing Solutions Inc, 11 Victoria St Unit A2
K. A. S. Personnel Services Inc, 511 Welham Rd Unit 2
Lighthouse Consulting, 443 Sunnidale Rd
Interim Homestyle Services, 80 Bradford St Suite 525
Staffing Connection, 140 Dunlop St E
Career Connection Inc, 80 Bradford St
Human Resource Capital Group Inc (Spherion Staffing Solutions), 4 Cedar Pointe Dr Unit D
Appleone Services Ltd, 21 Commerce Park Dr Unit B
Truenorth Executive Search, 74 Toronto St
Spherion Workhforce Architect, 11 Victoria St Suite 218
Toronto Personnel Inc (Winters Technical Staffing Service), 149 Welham Rd Unit 23
Wal-Mart Hiring Dept, 364 St Vincent St
Ava Placement Svc, 8 Berry Crt
Spherion Workforce Architects, 64 Cedar Pointe Dr Suite 1413
Labour Ready Temporary Services Ltd, 29 Bradford St
Results Temporary And Placements, 94 Dunlop St W

Barrie Employment Agency Revenues - 2013

Barrie Employment Agency Revenues - 2013 Sales (All Sites)

Dorvict Resource & Consulting Centre Inc

(Dorvict Home & Health Care Serv)

$ 20,024,640.00

Is2 Staffing Services Inc

$ 4,417,200.00

1529150 Ontario Inc (140 Dunlop St E Suite 206)

$ 981,600.00

Turn Key Staffing Solutions Inc

$ 9,816,000.00

Peoplesource Staffing Solutions Inc

$ 4,319,040.00

K. A. S. Personnel Services Inc

$ 1,963,200.00

Human Resource Capital Group Inc (Spherion Staffing Solutions)

$ 21,719,031,480.00

Appleone Services Ltd

$ 15,018,480.00

Toronto Personnel Inc (Winters Technical Staffing Service)

$ 981,600.00

Labour Ready Temporary Services Ltd

$ 1,389,530,000.00

Total Reported Sales 2013 $ 23,166,083,240.00

(10 Of 48 Agencies Earned Over $23 Billion in Canada)

Sales (Individual Site) Barrie Revenues

Ultimate Staffing Solutions Inc

$ 7,263,840.00

Certified Outsourcing Services

$ 1,177,920.00

Truenorth Executive Search- Inc

$ 1,079,760.00

(1570371 Ontario Inc) Phoenix Search Group- Barrie

$ 500,616.00

Hire Quality Inc

$ 500,616.00

Academy Placement Services Inc

$ 500,616.00

Protocol Education (Canada) Limited

$ 495,312.00

Workforce Personnel Inc

$ 402,456.00

Ess Direct Inc

$ 402,456.00

(2069305 Ontario Ltd) New Start Personnel & Training

$ 311,488.00

Search Expedition Group

$ 311,488.00

Westcott Thomas & Associates Limited

$ 200,960.00

Lightspeed Human Capital Management Inc

$ 196,320.00

Choices Career Consulting Inc

$ 100,480.00

Select Personnel

$ 98,160.00

Barrie Employment Resource

$ 98,160.00

2013 Reported Sales (Barrie) $ 13,640,648.00

(16 of 48 agencies earned over $13 Million in Barrie)

*The financial information provided on this page shows the reported revenues of 26 Barrie agencies whose sales figures were made public. 22 agencies did not post their 2013 revenues, and are therefore not included in this list.

Article Sources

Sources:

Temporary Employment & Recruiting Agencies in South Simcoe (Barrie)

www.focuscdc.on.ca

Protocol to Prevent, Suppress, and Punish Trafficking in Persons

http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/human-trafficking/what-is-human-trafficking.html#What_is_Human_Trafficking

Agency Classifications, Addresses, and Revenues: Million Dollar Database (Barrie Public Library)