Canada’s economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic is well underway, with 337,000 jobs added and unemployment rates at an all-time low of 5.5%.

In order to support this effort towards building a strong, resilient workforce in all sectors, the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, Carla Qualtrough, announced the Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) Program Workforce Solutions Road Map on April 4th, 2022.

This initiative is part of a plan to fine-tune the Temporary Foreign Worker Program in order to address ongoing labour shortages, enhance worker protections and help build pathways to permanent residency. It also enables Canadian employers to hire foreign workers when there are no Canadians or permanent residents available to work.

In particular, five key policy changes to the TFW Program will be executed in the upcoming weeks to address current labour and skills shortages:

Effective immediately:

  • Limits to the number of low-wage positions that employers in seasonal industries (i.e. fish and seafood processing) can fill through the TFW Program. This makes permanent the Seasonal Cap Exemption that has been in place since 2015. The maximum duration of these positions will be increased from 180 days to 270 days per year.
  • The validity period of Labour Market Impact Assessments (LMIA’s) will be increased to 18 months from 9 months. (Prior to COVID-19, LMIA’s were valid for 6 months).
  • The maximum duration of employment for High-Wage and Global Talent Streams workers will be extended to three years (from two). This will help workers access pathways to qualify for permanent residency, enabling them to contribute long-term to the Canadian workforce.

Effective April 30:

  • Employers in seven sectors with demonstrated labour shortages—such as Accommodation and Food Services—can hire up to 30% of their workforce through the TFW Program for low-wage positions for one year. Employers in all other sectors can hire up to 20% of their workforce through the TFW Program for low-wage positions until further notice, an increase from the former 10% cap for many employers.
  • The Government will end the current policy that automatically refuses LMIA applications for low-wage occupations in the Accommodation and Food Services and Retail Trade sectors in regions with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher.

Temporary foreign workers made up less than 0.4% of the Canadian workforce in 2020 and continue to comprise a small percentage of the total labour force with these recent changes. The Government continues to monitor program implementation and amend policies as necessary to ensure that employers do not abuse the Program and only hire international workers when necessary.

To make sure that employers across the country can hire TFWs in a timely manner, Service Canada has implemented a series of measures to increase capacity and expedite the processing of LMIA applications, including an increase in staffing resources in all regions (Quebec included). Employers are also encouraged to submit their application online to reduce processing time. These changes will not affect the rigorous checks made within the process in order to protect labour market conditions and safeguard workers.

“Since the beginning of COVID, we have seen the impact of the health care workforce shortage. Our government has always been there to support health care workers on the front lines. The expansion of the temporary foreign worker program will breathe new life into the health care system by allowing for the hiring of staff. We will continue to work with the provinces and territories to help them meet workforce needs and ensure the sustainability of the health system across the country,” said Minister of Health, Jean-Yves Duclos.

Minister Qualtrough also announced that a TFW Program Ministerial Consultative Roundtable will be assembled in 2022 to consider and discuss the continuing health and safety concerns related to TFW housing. Based on initial discussions with federal, provincial and territorial officials, COVID-19 pandemic response protocols have highlighted the need for safe and adequate employer-provided housing for TFWs. The 2022 roundtable will focus on this issue as part of a ‘What We Heard Report’ released in December 2021, where the Government of Canada committed to changes in this area, addressing health and safety concerns.

The TFW compliance regime is also in the process of being rebuilt by ESDC to ensure the protection of TFWs. Current changes being made to target higher-risk employers include:

  • furthering strengthening TFW inspection tools and mandatory training;
  • leveraging its tip line service, allowing workers to flag any situation of abuse or misuse of the program; and
  • expanding its work with consulates to identify concerns that need immediate attention.

The Government also announced investments of 49.5 million over a timespan of three years beginning in 2021-22. These investments, through Budget 2021, will support community-based organizations in the provision of migrant worker-centric programs and services, such as on-arrival orientation services and assistance in emergency and at-risk situations, through the new Migrant Worker Support Program.

In July 2021, the Government published proposed regulations to help prevent the mistreatment or abuse of temporary foreign workers during their stay in Canada and strengthen program integrity. The Government is now finalizing 14 regulatory amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations (Temporary Foreign Workers); once completed, the amendments will be published for comment in Canada Gazette Part II by Summer 2022.