It is now high season for temporary workers in Canada. Canada’s temporary worker program allows employers to hire from outside the country if they have demonstrated that no qualified Canadian applied for the job. The workers are only allowed to stay in Canada as long as they have a valid work permit.

There is a lot of abuse of these workers according to some immigration lawyers. Many of the workers who are hired from overseas agree to certain work conditions before they arrive here. In most cases, the conditions are not met, e.g the wage agreed upon may be changed unilaterally. If the workers complain,  the employers threaten to send them home to presumably worse conditions.

In 2008, Canada admitted 192,000 temporary foreign workers in the form of live-in nannies, agricultural workers, etc.  There are seasonal ebbs and flows to the number of workers entering Canada, with nearly one-third of the total arriving between April and July.

To Immigration Canada, the idea of the temporary worker is acceptable as they fill a void in the labor market, don’t need any training , and after 2 years they are returned back to their respective homes. Although the program has its flaws, on the whole it has been accepted by the government as the numbers of these workers has increased steadily over the years.

Canada has opened up fast-track immigration for international students to enable them work three years after graduation.

Named as ‘The Canadian Post-Graduation Work Permit Program’, the move by Canada is being seen as a great offer by international students because it will unfold tremendous employment opportunities for them. Hence, the offer is attracting lots of applications.

Prior to the introduction of this program, students from foreign countries could work on campus. However, the employers did not seem to be interested in hiring students for various co-op programs.

The new program will increase recruitment competitiveness of Canada, stated an international student adviser at Wilfred Laurier University, Waterloo (Ontario), Anna Done Choudhury. “This has definitely made Canada more competitive,” she affirmed.

Choudhury, who has also taught immigration studies to international students, added, that the move “has closed the gap between international students and Canada wanting qualified immigrants.” Earlier, the students wishing to increase their eligibility for getting citizenship had to visit US and return to Canada for applying.

The criteria for becoming a citizen of Canada is based on a points system and a university degree without any post graduation work earned only few points. However, the introduction of the new post-graduation work permit program will include those students who have worked in the post-graduation period.

No wonder, a large number of international students are opting to study in Canada because of this new program, revealed the 2009 Survey of International Students, which was released in Toronto last week at the Canadian Bureau for International Education (CBIE) conference.

Jennifer Humphries, Vice-President of CBIE, said that this program is being seen by students as a route for career advancement for their education.

The program will not only enable students gain employment after completion of their graduation studies but also provide them with increased employment opportunities even during their studies, stated Lise Pederson, a colleague of Choudhury.

By introducing such program, Canada joins the list of countries including Australia and England who already have a program that allows international students to work for up to three years after finishing their graduation.

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Many Canadian employers in the food and hospitality industry are experiencing serious problems finding and keeping good workers. The low wages, physical labour as well as the long evening and weekend hours makes many hospitality jobs unattractive to most Canadians.  Furthermore, over-time hours, training costs and efficiency resulting from high turnover rates and understaffing can significantly reduce profits for employers.

Hiring foreign can greatly reduce turnover, costs and improve productivity. Foreign workers are extremely hard working and are genuinely grateful for the opportunity to work and live in Canada. Also, turnover is extremely low for the foreign workers since they are only allowed to work for the employer identified on their work permit.

Employers who wish to hire foreign workers must usually obtain a positive Labour Market Opinion (LMO) from Service Canada which indicates that the employer tried to recruit Canadians. The LMO also indicates that the employer will pay the “prevailing wage” to the foreign worker.

Most foreign workers require a valid work permit to work in Canada which is normally obtained at a Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) Visa Post responsible for the country where the worker resides.  Foreign workers must usually undergo a medical examination with a “Designated Medical Practitioner” if the work permit is longer than six months or if the occupation is one where the “protection of health is essential.”

Many foreign workers on work permits can obtain Permanent Residence (PR) in Canada if they have a job in Canada.  There are various federal and provincial immigration programs that enable foreign workers to get PR within a year or two.  This means employers who hire workers on foreign work permits may be able to keep their workers indefinitely.

Finding and interviewing qualified foreign workers can be time-consuming.

As the demand for workers in Canada increases it will become even more important for Canadian employers to develop and implement a foreign worker program today. It is important to plan ahead and get help from professionals.

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Potential Canadian employers who might want to bring in help from outside the country now have new legislation to adhere to. The legislation is a move by the government to protect temporary foreign workers, who are often reportedly taken advantage of.

Proposed by Immigration Minister, Jason Kenney, the new legislation will see Canadians punished for abusing the rights of temporary foreign workers. Kenney has proposed that people who withhold wages, make people work for too many hours, or force employees to work in unsafe environments will face restrictions. In a press release issued Friday, Kenney said

“Temporary foreign workers play an important role in the Canadian economy. We have a duty to them, employers and all Canadians, to ensure that the program is fair and equitable.”

Kenney has proposed that offending employers be banned from hiring foreign temps for two years, as well as having their names published on the Citizenship and Immigration website. Kenney also proposed that temporary foreign workers face restrictions on how long they can work in Canada, allowing them to work inside Canada for four years of work, then required to stay out of Canada for six years to be eligible to work in the country again.

Canada has already come under fire this past year for requiring some travellers to have a visa. Canada has been tightening up its immigration policies over the past few years, making it tougher for people to qualify for immigration. Temporary foreign workers are used in the country to “… help address skill and labour shortages.”

According to Citizenship and Immigration Canada,

“Canadian laws protect every worker in Canada. This includes temporary foreign workers like you. Your employer: must pay you for your work; must make sure that your workplace is safe and; cannot take your passport or work permit away from you.”

On Saturday a rally was held by temporary foreign workers in Edmonton Alberta to draw attention to the plight of the temps. They would like to have more rights in Canada, and also to have a chance to apply for citizenship. Alberta’s boom has meant that the number of temporary foreign workers has grown in that province, with over 37,000 foreign temp workers in 2007.

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The live in caregiver contract implemented by the Philippine Overseas Labor Office in Toronto was still being questioned by live-in caregiver applicant themselves who were directly affected by this new rule. They were asking the need for additional monetary obligations from employers when this same people are already helping them by giving them a chance to come to Canada and become Canadians in the future.

Even some are saying that only those caregivers whose employers are their relatives will be able to get through because the relative would be willing to shoulder the additional requirement which in reality is not supposed to be their burden but of the Philippine government.

I don’t understand the logic of Frank Luna in imposing this ruling. If he claims that he is a practicing lawyer in Canada, then he should know fully well how Canada protects its citizens and residents. Even illegals have protection from the police, the courts and from ordinary citizens as well.

Canada is not a perfect society because there are also instances of failure in court judgement and there are issues with law enforcement sometimes. But I would rather risk my rights here in Canada than in the Philippines where the rule of law belongs to the politicians, the military, judges, police, government officials and the people with money.

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When Canada decided to allow employers facing acute labour shortages to hire temporary foreign workers, seven years ago, no one foresaw where it would lead.

Few imagined that a small experimental program could shake the underpinnings of the immigration system, distort the job market and raise human rights concerns.

Initially, the “low-skill pilot project” was tightly controlled. Employers had to prove they’d made a genuine effort to recruit Canadians. Ottawa had to agree that bringing in migrant labour would benefit the national economy. And foreign workers had to leave after 12 months.

For the few first years, the program produced a trickle of temporary residents.

That trickle has now swollen into a flood. In 2008, close to 200,000 temporary foreign workers arrived in Canada to drive trucks, serve fast food, clean buildings, even do government jobs. Today, more than half of those entering the country take this backdoor route.

Employers use the program as a source of cheap labour. The government promotes it as an efficient way to fill job vacancies. Immigration consultants capitalize on it, charging applicants hefty fees and promising them high wages, good working conditions, decent housing and employer-paid trips back to their home country.

How did a small detour around Canada’s normal immigrant intake system expand into a high-speed thoroughfare for people who wouldn’t otherwise qualify for admission?

And how will young Canadians, laid-off older workers and job seekers without post-secondary education get an economic foothold with so many entry-level positions filled?

The rapid expansion of the program began in 2006, when the newly elected government of Stephen Harper, reacting to pressure from the oil patch, “streamlined” the rules.

It introduced a fast-track approval process for employers seeking to bring in migrant labour and reduced the requirement for advertising job openings in Canada from six weeks to seven days.

The following year, the Conservatives announced that temporary foreign workers would be able to stay for two years without extending their visas.

And last year, Ottawa added a new feature called the Canadian Experience Class, which allowed temporary workers to apply for permanent residence without leaving the country. (What the government failed to make clear is that most low-skilled foreigners had little hope of meeting Canada’s admission criteria. That meant they would either have to leave or attempt to stay illegally.)

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The provinces of Alberta and Ontario have each recently announced pilot projects that will allow working-age dependent children of temporary foreign workers in those provinces to obtain Open Work Permits.

The Open Work Permits will allow the holders to work in any occupation in Alberta or Ontario, without first receiving a confirmed job offer or a Labour Market Opinion from Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC).  A Labour Market Opinion is a document that HRSDC issues to employers that demonstrates that the employer’s temporary job offer meets the HRSDC standards and is usually necessary for work permit issuance. However, Open Work Permit holders can work without having to undergo this process.

It is expected that facilitating employment for dependents of temporary foreign workers will attract more international workers with in-demand training and skills.

Between July 1, 2009 and June 30, 2010, dependent children of temporary foreign workers destined to either Alberta or Ontario will be eligible to apply for Open Work Permits if certain conditions are met.

The temporary foreign worker (primary applicant) must be found eligible for a work permit, and intend to work in Alberta or Ontario. This work permit must be employer-specific, and for an occupation that falls under the “A”, “0” or “B” skill levels in HRSDC’s National Occupation Classification.

Dependent children of these primary applicants may apply for Open Work Permits if they are of legal working age in Alberta (18 years of age) and Ontario (14, 15, 16, or 18 years of age, depending on the occupation). Children are considered dependent if they are not married or in a common-law relationship, and under the age of 22.

Eligible dependent children may apply for Open Work Permits at the same time that the principal applicants apply for their Temporary Work Permits or later. A dependent child’s work permit will be valid for the same duration as the primary applicant’s work permit, and if the primary applicant’s work permit is extended, the dependent child’s work permit may be extended as well.

It is important to note that time period for these pilot projects does not refer to the duration of the open work permits, but rather the time period during which these work permits can be issued.

These pilot projects are being implemented as a part of immigration agreements both provinces signed with the Canadian government in April and May, 2008.

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Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC), in partnership with the Foreign Credentials Referral Office (FCRO) and The Alliance for Sector Council (TASC), has recently launched a new resource to guide Canadian employers through the process of hiring internationally-trained workers.

The Employer’s Roadmap (available at www.credentials.gc.ca) is an online tool designed to assist those Canadian employers who cannot find the employees they need among Canadian citizens and Permanent Residents, and need to bring in foreign workers to staff their growing businesses.

“This is a practical resource that employers in any sector will find useful in helping to meet their staffing needs and improve their competitiveness in a rapidly changing economy,” said the executive director of TASC, Andrew Cardozo. “The Employer’s Roadmap is exactly what is needed to make the process of hiring and retaining internationally trained workers a lot more efficient.”

Though hiring from abroad is more complicated than hiring locally, the process is not quite as complicated as many Canadian employers may think.  The goal of the Employer Roadmap is to educate employers and give them the tools they need to hire and retain workers from abroad.

Included in the Employer Roadmap are the following:

• the benefits of hiring internationally trained workers;
• how to hire and recruit them;
• how to assess qualifications (credentials and competencies);
• how to integrate and retain employees with different professional and cultural backgrounds into the work force.

“The Government of Canada is committed to improving the labour market integration of internationally trained workers – this is essential to building a strong Canada: socially, culturally and economically,” said Canada’s Immigration Minister Jason Kenney. “Employers are key partners in helping internationally trained workers find jobs in their areas of training, and this resource makes it easier for employers to assess their qualifications.”

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As the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games approach, Citizenship and Immigration Canada is seeking to facilitate the admission of approximately 7000 foreign national through Regulatory amendments. VANOC, or the Vancouver Organizing Committee for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, has been given the authority to register and accredit foreign nationals who are performing a specific role or function within the organization, which will allow for the admission of such nationals through deemed multiple-entry temporary resident visas, which are not subject to the normal cost-recovery fees.

These Regulatory amendments to Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations allow such admission between the dates of December 12th 2009 through March 28th 2010. They are automatically repealed on April 22nd 2010. These amendments were developed though consultations with VANOC and various Canadian government bodies, including Human Resources and Skills Development Canada; The Royal Canadian Mounted Police; Canada Border Services Agency; and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service.

Given the international significance of Olympic and Paralympic Games, these amendments by Citizenship and Immigration Canada are intended to streamline and facilitate the immigration process of VANOC registered members. The consultation of the various organizations ensures that such chagnes do not have a negative impact on Canada’s immigration programs or the health safety of Canadians.

The number of Filipino caregivers being allowed to enter Canada to work has been slashed almost in half, a report said on Tuesday.

The Toronto Sun report cited data from Immigration Canada showing that the rejection rate at the Canadian visa office in Manila for Filipino caregivers rose from 35 percent in 2006 to 66 percent in 2008.

“This is very frustrating for the community. These people are well-trained and well-qualified to help Canadians,” said Yolanda Ladines, president of the non-governmental organization Markham Federation of Filipino Canadians, in the report.

Moreover, Ladines said that it now takes 18 months to get a response from the Canadian visa office in Manila.

“There is a huge demand for these people in Canada. It is disappointing that only one of three is accepted to come here,” she said.

In addition, the Liberal Party of Canada said in the same report that their Scarborough-Agincourt office has been getting calls from Filipinos in Toronto, saying that their relatives couldn’t obtain visas in Manila to work as live-in caregivers in Canada even though they are reportedly qualified and in demand.

“The acceptance rate before was two out of three, and now it’s one out of three,” said Liberal MP Jim Karygiannis.

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