The Canadian government recently took steps to make the hiring of temporary foreign workers easier for employers by relaxing the TFWP rules.
Canada is facing a decrease in the unemployment rate and increased job vacancies simultaneously.
On April 4, Canada took new measures to overcome the countrywide labor shortage.
The first way suggested by the government to satisfy the labor needs is to bring in temporary overseas employees to work in the areas lacking Canadians to work.
As per the new report, the Temporary Foreign Worker Program changes are to build up the workforce in Canada. Majorly five changes are made to the TFWP by the government, of which three will be effective immediately and the rest two later this month.
The Changes Effective Instantly
- LMIAs- The validity of Labour Market Impact Assessments is increased up to 9 to 18 months. Prior to covid, its validity was of only six months. LMIAs demonstrate to the government that an overseas employee working in the country will not affect the labor market adversely.
- The government has extended the employment duration of High-Wage and Global Talent Stream employees for three years. Previously it was for two years. With this increased time duration, foreign employees can prepare themselves for more Canadian PR pathways, enabling them to contribute to the country’s workforce for a long time.
- The Seasonal Cap Exemption is made permanent, which was enforced in 2015.
- As per the new rules, the limit to filling the low-wage positions is removed. Employers in seasonal industries will not be limited to the low-wage jobs they can fill via the temporary foreign worker program. These positions will have a maximum duration of 270 days per year instead of 180 days.
The Changes Effective After April 30
- Through TFWP, employers in some specific sectors facing a labor shortage can hire up to 30% of their workforce for low-wage positions for up to a year. Seven specified sectors are the manufacturers of food, wooden product, furniture, housing and food services, and construction services. Hospitals, nursing, and residential care facilities are also included. All other employers can hire up to 20% of their workforce for low-wage appointments via the TFW Program till the government’s new notice. Previously, this was about 10% for employers.
- Lastly, there will be no more automatic denial of LMIA applications for low-wage jobs with 6% or high unemployment rates. These include the housing, food services, and retail business sectors.
As per the new reports, the labor market in Canada is more stressed than it was before covid. The pace of job vacancies has achieved a peak after the mid-year of 2021. In Canada, the most unfilled labor demand is in low-wage professions.
As per the data, the understated sectors encountered the most increased vacancies in November 2021:
- Housing and Food Services faced 130,070 vacancies
- Medical and Social Services faced 119,590 vacancies
- Retail Business faced 103,990 vacancies and
- Manufacturing sectors faced 81,775 vacancies
In the previous year, around 28000 positions were supported by TFWP, from which 5,000 appointments were in the Global Talent Stream and the remaining 23,000 were in the High-Wage stream.
These programs jointly show 21% of the total approved LMIA appointments in 2021.
More than 60% of all overseas workers visiting Canada under the TFWP come from the agricultural sector, which brings in about 50,000 to 60,000 overseas farming workers annually.
