Latest news with #TFWP
Toronto Sun
3 days ago
- Business
- Toronto Sun
Forget 'buy Canadian,' group wants firms to 'hire Canadian'
"Buy Canadian" is little more than anti-Americanism if Canadian businesses continue to rely on inexpensive foreign labour, says the NCC's Alex Brown OTTAWA — While Canadians rally around 'buy Canadian,' a citizen's group is calling on businesses to 'hire Canadian.' With youth unemployment skyrocketing while students battle for the few summer jobs available to them, the National Citizens Coalition (NCC) wants Canadian employers to focus on hiring locally instead of those subsidized under the temporary foreign worker program (TFWP.) 'It became apparent quite quickly that the 'buy Canadian' crowd weren't actually hiring Canadian,' NCC spokesperson Alex Brown told The Toronto Sun, saying that 'buy Canadian' amounts to little more anti-American platitudes if Canadian retailers and businesses continue to rely on inexpensive foreign labour. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account 'It is the Liberals that gave an inch here, and many of these companies have taken a mile.' So far in 2025, summer job postings are down 22% compared to last year — the worst summer job market in nearly two decades. Many of those entry-level jobs are staffed by migrant and/or temporary workers, preferred by business owners who receive wage subsidies, accept lower-than-market wages and are vulnerable to exploitation by bad actors. Last summer, a little over 14% of Canadians 24-and-under were unable to find work — more than double Canada's current unemployment rate of 6.9%. Brown spoke of stories of young people who've had no luck finding any summer work, despite months of trying. 'There is nothing available,' he said, speaking of a 20-year-old niece of a coalition supporter. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Despite hustling on foot and handing out over 90 resumes, she's had exactly one interview — and the employer likely went with a subsidized temporary foreign workers instead.' In response to this crisis, the Trudeau Liberals reduced 2025's temporary resident arrivals to 673,650 — roughly the population of the City of Vancouver. The same policy also saw the Trudeau Liberals cap study permit issuance at 437,000, a modest decrease from the 486,000 issued in 2024. Last week, Conservative MP Jamil Jivani launched a call for Canada to end the TFWP, blaming the contentious policy as a major driver for unemployment and wage suppression, and to divest vital seasonal agricultural workers into separate programs. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Between January and October of last year, 162,100 new work permits were issued under the program. The NCC is calling on businesses to prioritize hiring Canadian youth and recent graduates over subsidized, foreign labour, and advocate for reform. Aside from abolishing the TFWP, the NCC wants the federal government to close down diploma mills and close asylum loopholes — as well as lowering annual immigration targets and increase deportations of those no longer entitled to be in Canada. 'We cannot allow another generation of Canadians to face economic scarring due to deliberate policy sabotage,' Brown said., 'It's time for businesses to urgently invest in our youth and for Carney's minority government to fix an immigration system that is failing everyday Canadians.' bpassifiume@ X: @bryanpassifiume Toronto Maple Leafs Olympics Toronto Raptors World Toronto Maple Leafs
Time of India
23-05-2025
- Business
- Time of India
What's the Temporary Foreign Worker Program that is deepening jobs and housing squeeze in Canada
In a greenhouse in Ontario, Jorge Ramirez checks the irrigation lines, his fifth season as a temporary foreign worker in Canada. "I send money back to my family in Mexico. It helps a lot," he says. But back in Ottawa, political tensions are heating up over the very program that brought Jorge here. Conservative MP Jamil Jivani recently called for the termination of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, claiming it is failing Canadians. His remarks sparked a debate on what the TFWP is, how it functions, and whether its benefits still outweigh its social costs. Also Read: Conservative MP Jamil Jivani calls for an end to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Semua yang Perlu Anda Ketahui Tentang Limfoma Limfoma Pelajari Undo What is the Temporary Foreign Worker Program? The TFWP is a federal program that allows Canadian employers to hire foreign nationals temporarily to fill labor shortages. It is managed jointly by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) and Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC). Live Events Employers must typically apply for a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA), demonstrating that no Canadian worker is available for the role. Once approved, a foreign national can apply for a work permit and begin employment in Canada. The TFWP includes provisions to ensure fair treatment. Employers must provide safe working conditions, pay for transportation and housing for some worker categories, and comply with Canadian labor laws. Major working streams and sectors of the program The program is segmented into various streams: High-Wage Workers, Low-Wage Workers, the Global Talent Stream, In-Home Caregivers, Foreign Agricultural Workers, and Foreign Academics. Agriculture and In-home caregiving make up a significant portion of this program, but each stream addresses different labor needs in the market. The Global Talent Stream, for instance, facilitates fast-track hiring of highly skilled workers in tech and research sectors. Meanwhile, the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program brings laborers from Mexico and the Caribbean for up to eight months a year. Rise in Canada's unemployment rate Jivani's criticism is rooted in economic concerns, including the 14% youth unemployment rate as of April 2025. Critics argue that the TFWP suppresses wages and discourages investment in training Canadian workers. "Young Canadians are being left out," Jivani said. "Instead of investing in our people, we are relying on cheap labor from abroad." Government response Employment Minister Patty Hajdu responded by defending the TFWP, highlighting its role in supporting agriculture, hospitality, and healthcare sectors. "We are scaling the program to reflect actual labor shortages, not to replace Canadian workers," Hajdu stated. Prime Minister Mark Carney's government has pledged to reduce the number of temporary foreign workers and cap total temporary residents to 5% of the population by 2027. This move is part of a broader immigration reset aimed at managing infrastructure and public service demand. Quebec has a different approach Quebec maintains its own guidelines under the TFWP. For example, all LMIA applications must be submitted in French unless they concern in-home caregivers. Quebec also has exemptions for certain skilled workers already holding work permits and Quebec Selection Certificates (CSQs). A pilot project in partnership with the federal government allows Quebec employers in specified NOC categories to bypass recruitment requirements until the end of 2024. Business groups caution against abrupt changes that could disrupt sectors reliant on temporary foreign workers. "We need balance," says an executive from the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. "Without foreign workers, many farms, restaurants, and hospitals simply cannot function."
Time of India
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Conservative MP Jamil Jivani calls for an end to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program
Live Events Response from the government Immigration problem in Canada (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel Conservative Member of Parliament from Ontario, Jamil Jivani , has initiated a petition to terminate Canada's Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP), asserting that it significantly contributes to unsustainable immigration levels and adversely affects Canadian workers by taking away their says the program is a "large contributor" to an unsustainable level of links immigration to various systemic issues in a social media post as he states, "There's a pretty clear consensus, even across people with different political views, that immigration levels are just unsustainably high.""Anyone who goes to a hospital can see there are not enough beds. Anyone who goes to look for a family doctor can't find one. You go to buy a house, there's not enough of those. You go to find a job, there might not be one of those for you either."His petition specifically excludes temporary workers in the agricultural sector, suggesting that seasonal agricultural workers should be under a separate pointed to Statistics Canada 's May jobs report, highlighting youth unemployment as a driving factor for his petition, which indicates that the unemployment rate for individuals aged 15 to 24 reached 14 percent in April this Minister Patty Hajduin response remarked, "I know MP Jivani wasn't included in Andrew Scheer's shadow cabinet, but he may want to ask that the party resume briefing him, because if they had, he'd know that in the last year alone, we considerably scaled back the TFW program to reflect local labour needs."She added that the government is consulting with labour and industry groups about future changes to the program and stated it "in no way" replaces Canadian talent. She emphasized the program's importance, noting it is "vital" to the agricultural sector and tourism appears to be acting independently with his petition, as he does not hold a Conservative critic position. The roles of immigration and employment critics are held by Alberta MPs Michelle Rempel Garner and Garnett Genuis, federal government has announced plans to reduce the number of temporary foreign workers admitted to Canada. This includes refusing to process applications in metropolitan areas with unemployment rates exceeding six percent. The government aims to admit 82,000 workers annually under the TFWP from 2025 to 2027, according to its immigration levels immigration system is facing challenges as rapid population growth strains housing, healthcare, and education, leading to shortages and increased competition for Minister Mark Carney has proposed stabilizing permanent immigration levels, reducing temporary residents, and capping temporary residents to 5% of the population by approach aims to balance economic needs with infrastructure capacity and social cohesion.
Saudi Gazette
31-01-2025
- Politics
- Saudi Gazette
Migrant workers in Canada exposed to ‘shocking abuse and discrimination,' Amnesty says
ONTARIO — Migrant workers in Canada have been exposed to 'shocking abuse and discrimination' while working under the country's Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP), according to a new report by Amnesty the report published Thursday, Amnesty criticized the structure of Canada's TFWP, which allows employers to hire migrant workers for primarily low-paid jobs across sectors including agriculture, food processing, construction, and human rights organization said laborers were vulnerable to abuse through 'harmful provisions' in the program, including closed work permits that tie workers to a single employer who controls both their migration status and labor interviewed 44 migrant workers from 14 countries for the report, predominantly from what it termed the Global South, with most workers reporting unpaid wages and excessive hours. Some workers told Amnesty their contracts stipulated zero rest workers said they suffered discrimination at work, including being tasked with the hardest physical jobs. Some workers said they suffered severe injuries or developed medical conditions due to unsafe working woman from Cameroon, Bénédicte, told Amnesty she had suffered racist psychological and sexual abuse at the hands of her employer while working on a two-year closed work permit on a leaving the farm in July 2018, her employer canceled her work permit, leaving Bénédicte with an irregular migration status. 'I did not expect to be a slave here,' she told worker told Amnesty he faced 'severe forms of control' by his a Guatemalan migrant worker with a two-year visa under the TFWP, told Amnesty he was threatened and surveilled. He said his boss confiscated his passport and placed cameras in the container where he lived and the garage where he worked.'The abuse experienced by migrant workers in Canada is deeply troubling, especially for a country that claims to be a leader when it comes to protecting human rights,' Erika Guevara-Rosas, senior director for research, advocacy, policy and campaigns at Amnesty International, also said many workers reported living in inadequate housing conditions, with a few saying they did not have drinking water in their official at Amnesty International Canada, Ketty Nivyabandi, called on Canada's leaders to implement reforms to 'bring the program in line with Canada's human rights obligations – and, ultimately, to respect the rights of workers.'The Canadian government told CNN it was aware of the Amnesty report.'The government of Canada takes the safety and dignity of temporary foreign workers very seriously and has been taking strong action to protect workers,' said Nancy Caron, the spokesperson for Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).'While in Canada, temporary foreign workers have the same employment standards, rights, and protections under federal, provincial, and territorial law as do Canadian citizens and permanent residents.' She added the government was 'continuously taking steps to strengthen its temporary foreign worker programs,' including programs to help workers obtain private health insurance, a tip line to report wrongdoing, and 'open work permits' to allow temporary foreign workers to change employers. — CNN
CNN
31-01-2025
- Politics
- CNN
Migrant workers in Canada exposed to 'shocking abuse and discrimination,' Amnesty says
Migrant workers in Canada have been exposed to 'shocking abuse and discrimination' while working under the country's Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP), according to a new report by Amnesty International. In the report published Thursday, Amnesty criticized the structure of Canada's TFWP, which allows employers to hire migrant workers for primarily low-paid jobs across sectors including agriculture, food processing, construction, and hospitality. The human rights organization said laborers were vulnerable to abuse through 'harmful provisions' in the program, including closed work permits that tie workers to a single employer who controls both their migration status and labor conditions. Amnesty interviewed 44 migrant workers from 14 countries for the report, predominantly from what it termed the Global South, with most workers reporting unpaid wages and excessive hours. Some workers told Amnesty their contracts stipulated zero rest days. Many workers said they suffered discrimination at work, including being tasked with the hardest physical jobs. Some workers said they suffered severe injuries or developed medical conditions due to unsafe working conditions. One woman from Cameroon, Bénédicte, told Amnesty she had suffered racist psychological and sexual abuse at the hands of her employer while working on a two-year closed work permit on a farm. After leaving the farm in July 2018, her employer canceled her work permit, leaving Bénédicte with an irregular migration status. 'I did not expect to be a slave here,' she told Amnesty. Another worker told Amnesty he faced 'severe forms of control' by his employer. Miguel, a Guatemalan migrant worker with a two-year visa under the TFWP, told Amnesty he was threatened and surveilled. He said his boss confiscated his passport and placed cameras in the container where he lived and the garage where he worked. 'The abuse experienced by migrant workers in Canada is deeply troubling, especially for a country that claims to be a leader when it comes to protecting human rights,' Erika Guevara-Rosas, senior director for research, advocacy, policy and campaigns at Amnesty International, said. Amnesty also said many workers reported living in inadequate housing conditions, with a few saying they did not have drinking water in their accommodation. An official at Amnesty International Canada, Ketty Nivyabandi, called on Canada's leaders to implement reforms to 'bring the program in line with Canada's human rights obligations – and, ultimately, to respect the rights of workers.' The Canadian government told CNN it was aware of the Amnesty report. 'The government of Canada takes the safety and dignity of temporary foreign workers very seriously and has been taking strong action to protect workers,' said Nancy Caron, the spokesperson for Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC). 'While in Canada, temporary foreign workers have the same employment standards, rights, and protections under federal, provincial, and territorial law as do Canadian citizens and permanent residents.' She added the government was 'continuously taking steps to strengthen its temporary foreign worker programs,' including programs to help workers obtain private health insurance, a tip line to report wrongdoing, and 'open work permits' to allow temporary foreign workers to change employers.
