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Operating Engineers go to bat for Oakville family By David Lea OAKVILLE BEAVER STAFF 13 · Friday, June 4, 2010 OAKVILLE BEAVER · www.oakvillebeaver.com An Oakville family, that was facing imminent deportation to England earlier this year, is getting some help in their fight to stay thanks to the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 793. The union recently announced it would be holding a fundraiser on Saturday, June 12, to support Lee and Josie Mallozzi and their two young children Nico and Serea. Funds raised during the event, which will begin at 8 p.m. at the union's banquet hall at 2245 Speers Rd., will go towards paying the legal fees the family is incurring to get Lee's work permit back on track. The Mallozzis (originally from Bath, England) came to Canada on a work permit three years ago when Lee accepting a job offer for a supervisory position at an Ontario steel company. Josie said the family was initially told if they wanted to stay all they had to do was renew the visa when the time came. As a result, the family did not apply for permanent residency, but everything seemed fine until last year when the family attempted to renew the work permit. "We went to extend our visa and they had it for months and months and months and then immigration rang us up two days before it was to expire and told us that the rules have changed and the employer must apply for a new work permit," said Josie. "So we were applying again as though we were in another country. It didn't matter that we were already here." Lee's employer did fill out a new application, but it was ultimately rejected. Citizenship and Immigration Canada has refused to comment directly on the Mallozzis's case. With no status, Lee found himself in a position where he was not allowed to work and the family's oldest child Serea was not permitted to go to school. Josie said the situation got to the point where the government was telling them to leave Canada immediately, but Citizenship and Immigration Canada departed from this stance after significant media attention was DAVID LEA / OAKVILLE BEAVER WANT TO STAY: The Mallozzi family Josie, Lee, Serea, 8, and Nico, 5, want to remain in Canada instead of being deported to England. drawn to the Mallozzis' case. This decision saved the family from complete devastation because they were locked into a five-year clause that prevents them from selling their $300,000 Oakville home. If they were forced to return to England, they would not have the money from the sale to rebuild their lives. The Mallozzis are now going through the process of reapplying for a work permit, after which they intend to apply for permanent residency. However, with their only source of revenue coming from family members in the area little money is available for the costs involved. This is where the fundraiser comes in with Local 793 President Mike Gallagher stating the union is organizing the event because the Mallozzis have been caught up in bureaucratic red tape. "This is an injustice against a good, hardworking family and it has been devastating for the Mallozzis both financially and emotionally," said Gallagher. "The Mallozzis believed this would be a good place to raise their two young children. They worked hard, they bought a home, they obeyed the law and they paid their taxes. This is no way to treat a good family that has merely tried to do the right thing." Gallagher said Lee is now a Local 793 member with the proper training and credentials to be an excavator operator and the union would like to put him to work. A Construction Sector Council study indicates there will be a need for at least 8,000 new heavy equipment operators between 2010 and 2018 due to increased employment and loss of workers as a result of retirements and mortality. "To meet the workforce requirements of the future, our industry must welcome internationally trained workers like Lee who have the skills and training to meet our needs," said Gallagher. Over at the Mallozzi household, the pendulum is finally beginning to swing the other way as so much bad news is finally replaced with some good. "We've just been overwhelmed. We just can't thank the people enough," said Josie. "We're really humbled this event is being held in our honour and we're just really grateful." Josie said this is not the only kindness the family has experienced in recent months -- officials from the Halton District School Board have made arrangements for her children to attend school. Both children have been in school since mid-April, she said. Tickets for the fundraiser cost $20 each and can be obtained by calling the banquet hall manager Michele Dawson at 905-465-4358. The evening will feature live entertainment, a cash bar and a late-night buffet. 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