Most Foreign Workers Hired Without Proof No Canadian Could Be Found: Studyhttp://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2016/0...rence-board_n_11935124.html?utm_hp_ref=canada
As the federal Liberals prepare for what’s expected to be an expansion of Canada’s foreign worker programs,
a new study says businesses have been increasingly hiring foreign nationals without proving no Canadians could be found to do the job.
The report also says
the new free trade deals negotiated by Canada will further increase the number of foreign nationals hired without seeking a Canadian, if the agreements are ratified.
The Conference Board of Canada study released this week found that, between 2010 and 2014, there was a small decline in the number of people coming into Canada under parts of the foreign worker program that require proving the employer couldn’t find a Canadian.
But from 2004 to 2014, there was a tripling in the number of workers who get permits that don’t require seeking a Canadian for the job. More than 194,000 such permits were signed in 2014, roughly double the number of permits that require seeking a Canadian.
Overall, 360,000 temporary work permits were signed in 2014, an increase of 64 per cent from a decade earlier, the Conference Board report said.
A recent Nanos poll found three-quarters of Canadians oppose or "somewhat oppose" allowing foreign workers to be employed while Canadians qualified for the same jobs are looking for work...
Dearth of data on foreign workers in Canada
The study criticized what it saw as a dearth of data on foreign workers in Canada, which "hinders policy-makers' ability to make informed decisions that are critical to the country’s economic performance."
They called the IMPs "especially problematic" because those work permits are not subject to the same reporting requirements as those under the TFW program.
"Consequently, it is difficult to know the types of jobs open work permit holders are taking in Canada and what effect they may be having on the domestic labour market."
The federal Liberals have recently signalled that they plan to expand Canada’s foreign-worker programs, pending a review scheduled to be released later this month.
During a trip to China last month, Immigration Minister John McCallum indicated his government wants to see a larger flow of migrants from China into Canada — not just temporary foreign workers, but students, tourists and others as well.
In terms of the flow of Chinese nationals into Canada, “we want to get it even bigger,” McCallum said.
The Conference Board noted that two free trade deals the Liberals aim to sign would further expand the number of foreign workers allowed to work in Canada without proof a Canadian couldn’t be found...
The Conference Board of Canada’s vice-president for industry and business strategy, Michael Bloom, said "balance" is the key to building a proper foreign worker program.
"The government has a legitimate role to monitor the TFWP to ensure domestic workers are given priority in the labour market," he said in a statement. "Employers across Canada would like enough flexibility to fill their temporary employment needs when domestic workers are unavailable to do the job."
But, he added, "The Canadian public wants assurance that foreign workers are supplementing, rather than supplanting domestic workers. And protections must be in place to ensure temporary foreign workers are treated fairly by employers."
