Employers Of Temporary Foreign Workers To Watched Like Hawks

Conservatives Announce Big Reduction To Size Of Program, To Publicize Employers’ Using It!

Among the big changes include, employers in places with high unemployment won’t be allowed to apply for temporary foreign workers in the lowest wage and skill groups in the accommodation, food service and retail sectors. The fee to apply for a so-called labour market impact assessment is being increased to $1,000 from $275.

OTTAWA — Major changes announced to the controversial Temporary Foreign Workers’ Program on Friday by the Conservatives will greatly reduce the size of the program where employers using foreign labour will be watched like hawks.

Among the big changes include, employers in places with high unemployment won’t be allowed to apply for temporary foreign workers in the lowest wage and skill groups in the accommodation, food service and retail sectors, reported CTV news.

A cap is also being placed on the number of low-wage temporary foreign workers an employer can hire at each worksite: 30 per cent of a worksite’s employees starting immediately, dropping to 10 per cent by July 2016.

Employers who are currently under the cap will not be allowed to hire more temporary foreign workers in order to reach the limit.

The cap will not apply to employers with fewer than 10 workers or to short-term, non-renewable positions.

Employers will also be required to re-apply every year for approval to hire low-wage temporary foreign workers, instead of every two years. The fee to apply for a so-called labour market impact assessment is being increased to $1,000 from $275.

“Our measures are bold, broad, ambitious and balanced,” Employment Minister Jason Kenney said in announcing the changes.

“Our government has been clear that 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.”

The government also says it will post the number of temporary foreign workers approved every quarter, along with the names of companies that get the green light to hire them, in an effort to enhance accountability.

Employers who hire temporary foreign workers must promise not to lay off any Canadian workers or cut their hours, and they must tell the government how many Canadians applied and were interviewed for jobs, along with why they were not hired, Kenney said.

The amount of time a low-wage temporary foreign worker can work in Canada is being reduced to a cumulative total of two years from four years.

The government is also lifting its freeze on hiring temporary foreign workers in the food-services sector.

Highlights of the changes to the temporary foreign workers program announced Friday:

— Employers in the accommodation, food and retail sectors in areas where unemployment is above six per cent will not be allowed to bring in temporary foreign workers for low-skill jobs.

— Employers with 10 or more employees will face a cap on the number of low-wage foreigners they can hire at each of their worksites: 30 per cent of a worksite’s employees, falling to 10 per cent by July 2016.

— Employers seeking to hire a temporary foreign worker must detail how many Canadians applied for the job, how many were interviewed and why the Canadians were not hired.

— Employers will be required to re-apply every year for approval to hire low-wage temporary foreign workers, instead of every two years.

— Employers seeking to hire high-wage temporary foreign workers must show an increased effort to hire Canadians, including through higher wages, investments in training and more active recruitment within Canada.

— The government will post the number of temporary foreign workers approved every quarter, along with the names of companies that hire them.

— Enforcement will be increased so that one in four employers using temporary foreign workers will be inspected each year.

— The fee to bring in a temporary foreign worker increases to $1,000 from $275.

— Starting this fall, employers who break the program rules will face fines of up to $100,000.

— An end to the freeze on hiring temporary foreign workers in the food-services sector.

Courtesy CTV News