Ottawa to close wage gap right away

O T TAWA • The federal government says it will drop the 15% wage differential for foreign workers, and temporarily suspend a controversial fast-track process in a bid to fix Canada’s ailing temporary foreign worker program.

Effective immediately, employers will have to pay temporary foreign workers at the same level as Canadian workers doing comparable work.

The Accelerated Labour Market Opinion process, introduced last year to speed up the issuing of work permits, was meant to better meet labour market demand in high skilled fields. Now, that will also be suspended pending a review of the program to make sure it’s not been used to fill low-skill service jobs at, for example, Tim Hortons.

Immigration Minister Jason Kenney and Human Resources parliamentary secretary Kellie Leitch made the announcement Monday, shortly after the government introduced its budget-implementation bill.

The overhaul will include regulatory and administrative reforms as well as legislative changes contained in the budget that require the approval of Parliament.

“The purpose of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program is to help fill genuine and acute labour needs and we have been reviewing the program to ensure that goal is met and Canadian workers are never displaced,” said a written statement from HRSDC Minister Diane Finley.

In the wake of a recent instance in which Royal Bank of Canada employees found themselves training temporary foreign workers to take over their jobs, the government announced it would also add new questions to employer applications to ensure the program isn’t being used to outsource Canadian jobs.

The reforms are in addition to several already laid out in the 2013 budget.

Employers will also need to broaden the length and reach of job postings and produce a plan for transitioning to a Canadian workforce over time when applying for permits under the program.

New user fees for employers seeking to hire temporary foreign workers are also expected to offset costs currently absorbed by taxpayers.

The government is also taking steps to amend the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations so that companies cannot make knowledge of a language other than French or English a requirement when hiring through the temporary foreign worker process.

“These reforms will require that greater efforts be made to recruit and train Canadians to fill available jobs,” Mr. Kenney said.

“They will also help ensure the Temporary Foreign Worker Program is only used as intended — to fill acute skills shortages on a temporary basis.”

While agricultural employers could see permits revoked

Help fill genuine

and acute labour needs

if companies are found to have misused the program, seasonal agricultural workers will otherwise be unaffected by the reforms.

An ongoing review of the program that began in fall 2011 will continue, officials said Monday, and more reforms are expected this fall, following a second round of consultations with businesses, trade organizations, unions and other stakeholders.

The number of temporary foreign workers in Canada swelled to 338,189 last year, up from 179,800 in 2003. By comparison, Canada welcomed just 257,515 immigrants in 2012, 160,000 of whom were federal skilled workers.