Canadian companies that want to bring in highly skilled foreign workers temporarily will be able to do so faster and pay them less.
VANCOUVER – Opening the floodgates to Temporary Foreign Workers spells disaster for apprenticeship training, safe work sites and fairness for tender bidding according to the spokesperson for BC construction unions in response to the announcement this week by Human Resources Ministers Diane Finley.
“This is a complete sell out to employers who want access to cheap labour” continued Tom Sigurdson, Executive Director of the BC Building Trades Council. “These are vulnerable workers, many unable to speak English and unwilling to complain about unsafe workplaces and abuses to workplace rights” Sigurdson said.
“We’ve seen this before. Employers complain that the skills shortage is hurting their ability to proceed with construction projects. In fact there is an oversupply of trades qualified workers in most trades in BC. Sigurdson pointed to the Council’s last dispatch survey that showed unemployment of 25% for Building Trades unions. “In BC today we can supply workers for every single trade. There is no skills shortage, instead we have a wage shortage” Sigurdson said.
Apprenticeship training will be particularly impacted by Finley’s recent announcement according to Sigurdson. “Where is the incentive to hire apprentices and invest in training when employers can get access to cheap foreign labour?” Sigurdson asked. “The government says it wants to support apprentices but instead is willing to provide the training opportunities to TFWs” Sigurdson added.
The Building Trades are also offended by the Minister Finley’s flagrant disregard for maintaining wage rates. “Allowing employers to pay 15% less than the average is opening the door to abuses” Sigurdson said. “The government refuses to agree on what the average wage rate is” Sigurdson said pointing to a consultation several years ago that rejected federal prevailing wage rates as the standard from which to access average wage rates in the industry.
“Construction unions will continue to work alongside migrant workers, as we have done in the past, to ensure that their basic rights are respected” Sigurdson added. During the construction of the Canada Line workers from Costa Rica, Colombia and Ecuador were being paid less than $5 per hour to excavate the tunnels under false creek. “Canadians have every right to be disgusted when the government allows this type of abuse. We will not stand idly by” Sigurdson said.
“Our government’s top priority is creating jobs, growth and long-term prosperity. That’s why we are taking action to ensure that the Temporary Foreign Worker Program supports our economic recovery and effectively responds to local labour market demands,” Finley said while making the announcement in Alberta. “Our government is looking at ways to make sure businesses recruit from the domestic workforce before hiring temporary foreign workers, while also reducing the paper burden and speeding up the processing time for employers that have short-term skilled labour needs.”
Employers with a strong track record will receive an Accelerated-Labour Market Opinion (A-LMO) within 10 business days to hire temporary foreign workers in high-skill occupations, including the skilled trades. The Temporary Foreign Worker Program will become more responsive to skills and labour shortages, employers will have less red tape and temporary foreign workers will benefit from enhanced protections. In addition, the Government of Canada will propose legislative amendments to further strengthen protections for temporary foreign workers and ensure that employers comply with program requirements.
Canadian companies that want to bring in highly skilled foreign workers temporarily will be able to do so faster and pay them less.
Under the new rules, Ottawa promises to respond to employer requests for highly skilled workers within 10 days, instead of the 12 to 14 weeks it currently takes to get a Labour Market Opinion – a government approval that’s one major step in bringing a worker into Canada.
Also, previous rules required foreign workers to receive the “average wage” paid to Canadian workers in the same region, but the new rules will allow employers to pay up to 15 per cent less than that average wage. In an interview, Human Resources Minster Diane Finley said Canada’s skills shortages mean there will be more temporary foreign workers coming to Canada regardless of the latest changes.
