Changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) will leave some small businesses completely out of options when it comes to hiring and retaining workers, according to the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB).
“For a government that has made significant strides to reduce the red tape burden on small business, this is a complete 180-degree turn,” says CFIB president Dan Kelly. “This change represents a ‘gutting’ of the TFW program for many in the restaurant, hotel and retail sectors and is the most small business unfriendly move ever made by this government.”
The federal government unveiled changes to the program on Friday, which include the following:
- Applications for the lowest-wage, lowest-skill, entry-level occupations in the food services, accommodation and retail trade sectors will be barred from the TFWP in areas of high unemployment (6% or higher).
- Increasing the labour market impact assessment (LMIA) fee to $1,000 from $275 for every temporary foreign worker position requested by an employer.
- Employers with 10 or more employees applying for a new LMIA are subject to a cap of 10% on the proportion of their workforce that can consist of low-wage temporary foreign workers. This cap will be applied per worksite of an employer and is based on total hours worked at that worksite. To provide employers that are above the 10% cap time to transition and adjust to this new cap, it will be phased in over the next couple of years.
“Unless the federal government is prepared to force unemployed Canadians to move to take jobs they don’t want, these changes leave a huge gap for employers,” he says. “Let’s face it, an unemployed computer programmer in Toronto isn’t applying for a job to make pizzas in rural Saskatchewan.”
Minister of Employment and Social Development Jason Kenney says Canadians must be first in line for available jobs.
“These comprehensive and balanced reforms restore the Temporary Foreign Worker Program to its original purpose—as a last and limited resource for employers when there are no qualified Canadians to fill available jobs,” he explains. “Employers will be compelled to redouble their efforts to recruit and train Canadians.”
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