The federal government is moving to restrict the number of low-wage temporary foreign workers in Canada, with the exception of some sectors.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau made the announcement on Monday in Halifax, where the Liberal cabinet is meeting for a summer retreat.
“We are tightening the rules and restricting eligibility to reduce the number of low-wage, temporary foreign workers in Canada, with exceptions in certain industries like health care, construction and food security,” Trudeau said.
Starting Sept. 26, the government will refuse applications for low-wage temporary foreign workers in regions with an unemployment rate of six per cent or higher.
For employers, there will be a cap of 10 per cent of employees coming from the low-wage stream of the Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) Program and a reduction of maximum duration of employment from two years to one, according to the Employment and Social Development Canada.
This comes after Quebec announced last week its own limits of low-wage temporary foreign workers — a six-month freeze in Montreal that will take effect next month.
The Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) Program allows non-Canadians to work in the country on a temporary basis.
Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault said the program was “designed to address labour market shortages when qualified Canadians were not able to fill those roles.”
“Right now, we know that there are more Canadians qualified to fill open positions,” he said in a statement.
“The changes we are making today will prioritize Canadians workers and ensures Canadians can trust the program is meeting the needs of our economy.”
Canada’s unemployment rate held steady at 6.4 per cent in July after two consecutive monthly increases, according to Statistics Canada’s latest jobs report.
The TFW program has grown dramatically over recent years and has come under fire for suppressing domestic wages and leaving workers vulnerable to abuse.
The number of temporary foreign worker positions have more than doubled since 2016, according to ESDC data.
That’s the year after the federal Liberals were first elected in 2015.
In 2023, there were 239,646 total TFW positions approved compared to 90,314 in 2016. However, not all positions result in a work permit or a temporary foreign worker entering Canada, the department notes.
The program was expanded in 2022 for several sectors experiencing labour shortages, increasing the maximum proportion for TFW’s low-wage stream to up to 30 per cent of the workforce for each employer.
Trudeau said the program has helped the economy recover in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, but with inflation slowing down and employment levels up compared to before, the country no longer needs as many temporary foreign workers.
“We need Canadian businesses to invest in training and technology and not increasing their reliance on low-cost foreign labour,” he said.
“It’s not fair to Canadians struggling to find a good job, and it’s not fair to those temporary foreign workers, some of whom are being mistreated and exploited.”
Earlier this month, a damning United Nations report described Canada’s temporary foreign worker program as a “breeding ground” for modern slavery because it creates a power imbalance preventing employees from exercising their rights.
In the days that followed, federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller said the program isn’t fatally flawed, but is in “need of a reform.”
Speaking on Monday, Trudeau said his government will also be looking at changes to the high-wage stream of the temporary foreign workers program and other adjustments.
A 90-day review will consider the changes while looking at the unemployment rates, Trudeau said.
And this coming fall, Ottawa is planning to unveil an immigrations plan, looking at permanent residents and temporary residents.
“We’re making sure that the entire package makes as much sense as possible for the needs of Canadians and for the needs of our economy,” Trudeau said.
— with files from The Canadian Press and Reuters.