PINKY PAGLINGAYEN

Perseverance and Skill

When she came to Toronto, Pinky’s experience was difficult due to the stressful employment situations she endured within the live-in caregiver program. Having been “released upon arrival”, Pinky was left to seek another live-in caregiver position to complete the requirement of the program. As a component of the program, the government required that Pinky work for 2 years before she could apply for permanent resident status.

Despite these discouraging incidents, Pinky did not let her frustrations disempower her. On the contrary, she sought to improve her circumstances and find alternate employment. As a component of the live-in caregiver program, the government required that Pinky work 2 years before she could obtain permanent resident status.

She found that many employers treated their workers poorly, which made it even harder to find suitable work: “A lot of people do not know anything about the caregiver program. And some of them are employing caregivers, but they soon realize that [the things] they are doing are abusive”. Searching for a new job, she applied to different nanny agencies and sometimes agreed to ‘trial work’ sometimes with pay and sometimes without pay.

Pinky giving a speech in 2009 at an event related to the Filipino celebration, Cordillera Day. Image courtesy of Pinky Paglingayen.