On April 4, Canada introduced measures to ease Canadian employers’ access to temporary foreign workers. These came as a response to the nationwide labour shortage. These measures result from a low unemployment rate and a large number of job openings at the same time in the country.
The first solution is bringing in temporary foreign workers to fill occupations where there were no Canadians to handle the job. According to a government press release, the changes made to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) are to help Canada develop its workforce.
Here are the immediate five major upgrades that TFWP will undergo
1. The Labor Market Impact Assessments, now valid for 18 months, from the previous nine months. LMIAs is documentation showing the Canadian government that hiring a foreign worker won’t negatively impact the labor market. The validity period of LMIAs was only six months just before the outbreak.
2. The maximum employment duration for employees in High-Wage and Global Talent Stream increased to three years. Because of this extension, workers will be able to qualify for additional pathways to permanent residency, thus facilitating their contribution to the Canadian workforce in the long run.
3. Additionally, the Seasonal Cap Exemption that has been effective since 2015 will become permanent. The employers in seasonal industries will no longer be limited to the amount of low-wage positions they can fill through TFWP. The low-wage position’s maximum duration will be expanded from 180 to 270 days yearly.
