OTTAWA—The federal government is investigating the possible abuse of the temporary foreign workers hiring program by Canadian companies and is expected to overhaul it to put greater onus on businesses to seek out local employees before bringing in foreign workers.

Businesses that are turning to foreign workers to fill employee shortages are also expected to be required in future to do more to train Canadians for the skilled job vacancies now going to people from overseas, a senior government official said.

The review of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program has taken on new urgency as Prime Minister Stephen Harpers' government faces a firestorm of complaints that its policies are encouraging firms in Canada to replace Canadians with foreign workers and drive down wages.

"The Conservatives are enabling companies to exploit the program and avoid hiring Canadian workers," NDP deputy immigration critic Sadia Groguhé said Wednesday. "The point of the program is to complement Canadian workers, not substitute them."

Outrage over the government's foreign hiring plan blew up after it emerged that the Royal Bank of Canada was planning to shift the information technology work done by 45 Canadian employees to foreigners contracted by iGate, a U.S.-based outsourcing firm.

But the issue has been gathering steam since last year, when HD Mining International Ltd., a Chinese-backed coal mining operation in British Columbia, brought in 201 miners from China under the temporary workers program.

The federal government is investigating the applications leading up to the staffing changes at RBC and is also conducting a wider look at the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, which has doubled in the last decade to 338,000 workers.

In the March 21 federal budget, the government said it planned to reform the program to ensure foreign workers are brought in only when Canadians are "genuinely" not available. The new rules will require employers to make more extensive efforts — including more advertising — to hire Canadians before becoming eligible to bring in foreign workers.

The government also wants to work with employers who "legitimately" rely on foreign workers to ensure the companies have a plan to move to a Canadian workforce, the budget said.

As well, the reforms would require companies to pay user fees to apply for permission to bring in foreign workers. But officials haven't said when the new rules will be put in place.

The government is also concerned about another recent measure for bringing in foreign workers quickly. The Accelerated Labour Market Opinion (ALMO) is a way to fast-track applications for skilled workers needed on a temporary basis by Canadian companies.

The Alberta Federation of Labour focused attention on this aspect of Canada's temporary worker arrangements after it obtained a list of 4,800 companies — many in the services industry — that were approved to bring in temporary help under ALMO last year.

"You look down this list and it's McDonalds, Tim Hortons, A&W, Subway Sandwiches," said Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan. "Are we supposed to believe that these are 'high-skill' employment opportunities?"

The government is looking at how "skilled workers" are defined under this program, a senior official said. Currently, a manager or supervisor in a service business can qualify as a skilled worker under the program, the official noted.

The government is "committed to fixing the (temporary worker) program to ensure that Canadians have first crack at jobs in Canada," a spokesperson for Human Resources Minister Diane Finley said. "The program exists to address real and acute labour shortages in certain sectors and regions across the country on a temporary basis. It was never meant to replace Canadians with foreign workers."

The Harper government is also concerned about another federal program called an intra-company transfer, which allows multinational companies to temporarily shift employees to Canada without the need to convince Ottawa that no Canadian can do the job. This measure is also being examined to see if it is being abused by companies wanting to avoid the usual procedures for bringing in foreign employees, the official said.

Ottawa Star, Wednesday Apr 10 2013
Byline: Les Whittington

Earlier this week, news broke that RBC plans to hire 45 temporary foreign workers through iGate, an IT contractor, to fill positions of employees who say that, in fact, they're training their own replacements.

RBC denies this, saying that no one will lose their jobs and that the Canadian employees will be moved to other departments.

In Alberta alone, 4,000 companies have been given approval to hire temporary foreign workers. Canada-wide, there are 338,000 temporary foreign workers.

Postmedia News walks you through the controversy:

WHAT IS A TEMPORARY FOREIGN WORKER?

Immigration Canada defines a temporary foreign worker as "workers (who) enter Canada to work temporarily in jobs that help Canadian employers address skill shortages."

Temporary foreign workers would, in principle, fill jobs such as carpenters, fruit pickers or managers in communication. These are areas that Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) says are suffering skills shortages.

WHAT DID RBC DO THAT CAUSED CONTROVERSY?

The reason for the temporary foreign worker program is so that companies can go outside of Canada when there is a clear absence of Canadians to fill the positions.

In this case, critics say they were being brought in to replace positions that were already filled. The fact that several jobs will themselves eventually move offshore – outsourcing – further clouds the issue.

It is unclear whether or not any rules were broken. HRSDC has launched an official probe into the hiring.

WHY WOULD A COMPANY PREFER FOREIGN WORKERS?

Briefly, it's about wages. "You can actually pay these temporary foreign workers 15-per-cent less, you don't have to pay for a lot of the other benefits, and the employer has a power balance that gets even more skewed because the workers are so much more vulnerable than residents," argues Jinny Sims, the federal NDP's immigration critic.

WHAT ARE THE ARGUMENTS FOR HAVING TEMPORARY FOREIGN WORKERS?

Under the true guidelines of the program, temporary foreign workers are seen as an aid to the economy.

"If, for instance, you run a cherry orchard, apparently it's very difficult to get Canadians to come and pick the cherries in the orchard," said Michael Hart, professor of international affairs at Carleton University in Ottawa. "You can hire temporary workers from Mexico to do that."

"The biggest reason to support it is if there are particular shortages, this is a quick and dirty way to address those needs," added Sharry Aiken, law professor at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont. "When there are very clear needs for the workers, there can be quite dramatic consequences if those jobs aren't filled."

William Watson, economics professor at McGill University in Montreal, said that "it's fair game for Canadian firms to play by the rules if that can cut their costs."

WHAT ARE THE ARGUMENTS AGAINST USING TEMPORARY FOREIGN WORKERS?

Some wonder if these workers are really necessary. Aren't they taking up jobs that Canadians can do?

"You can argue, if you are, say, a member of a labour union, that the guy who needs cherry-pickers from Mexico, if he paid a higher wage then Canadians would be willing to pick cherries," said Hart.

"Necessity is an interesting moral question. Economically, at the price that you have to pay in order to sell your cherries, you can't afford to pay $20 an hour."

"Particularly in cases where these are not temporary labour shortages – these are permanent labour shortages – why are we using a temporary foreign worker program to address what is in fact a permanent or chronic labour shortage?" said Aiken.

"It's more equitable if the workers are brought in with the view of becoming permanent residents."

WHAT WILL HAPPEN NEXT?

The Alberta Federation of Labour is starting an inquiry into how 4,000 companies in that province received permission to hire temporary foreign workers. That's in addition to the HRSDC probe.

Changes will probably come to the temporary foreign workers program, but it won't go away.

The Vancouver Sun,Wednesday, Apr 10 2013
Byline:  Karl Kofmel

Labour unions in B.C. and Alberta are pushing for reforms to the Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) program, as a judicial review begins in Federal Court into the process that allowed HD Mining to hire Chinese nationals at a coal mine in northeastern B.C.

"This judicial review of the HD Mining permits will be the most comprehensive examination of Canada's Temporary Foreign Worker Program ever conducted," said Brian Cochrane, business manager of the International Union of Operating Engineers (IUOE) Local 115.

"We know that there are over 300,000 Temporary Foreign Workers employed in Canada today and 70,000 of those in B.C., but we've never seen the internal workings of how the federal government makes decisions on granting work permits to companies requesting them,"

The IUOE and the Construction and Specialized Workers Union (CSWU) Local 1611 unions will be in Federal Court in Vancouver for a judicial review between April 9 and 11.

The judicial review will investigate the process within Human Resources and Services Development Canada (HRSDC) that granted HD Mining permission to import 201 Chinese nationals at the $300 million Murray River underground coal mine, near Tumbler Ridge, B.C.

The unions argue HRSDC failed to ensure there were no Canadians to do the work. In addition, they claim that the TFWs are being offered wages far below prevailing rates.

HD Mining received at least 300 resumes from Canadian citizens or permanent residents, who applied to work at the proposed project.

The company did not hire one Canadian applicant to work at the mine, claiming they were not qualified.

"The documents we have already obtained through our court action clearly show the Temporary Foreign Worker Program is not working for Canadians," said Mark Olsen, business manager of the CSWU Local 1611.

"I suspect that other documents being disclosed for the first time in court this week – likely on Wednesday when we make our arguments – will provide even more evidence that our concerns are just the tip of the proverbial iceberg."

Given all the problems that have already been revealed in this case, Olsen wants the federal government to make several significant changes to the TFW program.

"Available jobs need to go to Canadians first and Canadians need to be skilled up in order to do the work," he said.

"There has to be a real shortage determined and that is where unions come in. Unions should be involved to determine if there is a real shortage."

Once a real shortage is identified, Olsen said the foreign workers have to be brought into the country properly, not by brokers or companies that will exploit them.

Once in Canada, foreign workers need to be paid to the full Canadian wages and benefits standard, he said.

In addition, there needs to be enforcement by the federal and provincial government.

Finally, there needs to be a path toward citizenship.

"That's what needs to happen across the country," said Olsen. "The federal and provincial governments need to get their act together."

After obtaining a list of fast-tracked TFW applications using an Access to Information request, the Alberta Federation of Labour (AFL) agrees that the problems with HD Mining are just the tip of the iceberg.

The document lists all approved TFW applications in the first eight months of the new Accelerated Labour Market Opinion (ALMO) process.

According to the AFL, more than 2,400 ALMO guest-worker permits were granted to fast-food restaurants, convenience stores and gas stations between April 25 and Dec. 18, 2012.

These permits are supposed to be reserved for highly-skilled employment.

The AFL is calling on the Auditor General of Canada to conduct a full audit of the ALMO approval process.

"Alberta is leading the way in misusing this approval process," said AFL president Gil McGowan.

"This isn't being used as a stop-gap, and it isn't a last resort for employers."

More than 54 per cent (2,640) of the ALMO approvals in the country were for Alberta-based employers. Of these, AFL researchers said more than 58 per cent (1,542) were questionable.

The list of businesses in Alberta who received ALMO approvals included 33 A&W restaurants.

The Journal of Commerce, Monday, Apr. 08, 2013
Byline: Richard Gilbert, staff writer

Fast-food chains and convenience stores are using a loophole in Canada's temporary foreign worker program to keep labour costs down, says an Alberta labour group.

Labour spokesperson Gil McGowan says fast food chains are hiring unskilled foreign workers using loopholes in a process set up to fast-track highly-skilled workers.Labour spokesperson Gil McGowan says fast food chains are hiring unskilled foreign workers using loopholes in a process set up to fast-track highly-skilled workers. (CBC)

Documents reveal that more than half of the temporary foreign workers hired through a new fast-track process to bring in highly-skilled workers ended up working at fast-food restaurants and convenience stores, said Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan.

"It stretches the bounds of crediblity that companies like A&W, McDonalds would be hiring high-skilled workers," McGowan said.

The document obtained through an access-to-information request shows restaurants, stores and gas stations across the country were granted more than 2,400 guest worker permits under the Accelerated Labour Market Opinion process between April 25 and Dec. 18, 2012.

"These applications have been rubber stamped in as little as 10 days and the vast majority aren't subjected to any kind of review," McGowan said.

More than half of all workers, 54 per cent, who were hired under the Accelerated Labour Market Opinion during the period ended up in Alberta.

Of those, almost 60 per cent were flagged as inappropriate under the process, McGowan said.

He said it's clear to him companies are abusing the system, giving jobs to foreign workers that Canadians should have as the Harper government turns a blind eye.

"They're using the temporary foreign workers program to keep wages low," McGowan said.

The program allows employers to pay workers up to 15 per cent less than Canadians.

McGowan wants the Auditor General to open an investigation into the fast-track process.

A spokesperson told CBC News the Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development is concerned with the recent issues involving the Temporary Foreign Worker program and said officials will look into any evidence that the program is being misused.

The AFL's accusations come on the heels of a CBC Investigation revealing the Royal Bank of Canada is hiring foreign workers while laying off dozens of its Canadian employees.

CBC News Edmonton, Tuesday, Apr. 09, 2013
With files from CBC's James Hees

Alberta Federation of Labour calls for inquiry in light of growing evidence of fraud

Edmonton, April 9 – A list of fast-tracked temporary foreign worker applications shows that scandals at Royal Bank and HD Mining are just the tip of the iceberg.

The document, obtained by the Alberta Federation of Labour through an Access to Information request, lists all approved TFW applications in the first eight months of the new Accelerated Labour Market Opinion (ALMO) process.

Between April 25 and December 18, 2012, more than 2,400 ALMO guest-worker permits – which are supposed to be reserved for highly-skilled employment – have been granted to fast-food restaurants, convenience stores and gas stations.

“You look down this list, and it’s McDonalds, Tim Hortons, A&W, Subway Sandwiches. Are we supposed to believe that these are ‘high-skill’ employment opportunities?” Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan said. “These applications have been rubberstamped in as little as ten days, and the vast majority aren’t subjected to any kind of review.”

The Alberta Federation of Labour, the province’s largest labour organization, is calling on the Auditor General of Canada to conduct a full audit of the ALMO approval process.

“In the meantime, this program should be stopped immediately and the federal government should investigate each and every one of these employers to see if there’s wrongdoing,” McGowan said, noting that the labour movement is in favour of immigration. “Workers who want to come to Canada should enjoy the same rights and privileges as other Canadian residents. We shouldn’t be paying them 15 per cent less than Canadians, and the government shouldn’t be whisking them in through an accelerated and duplicitous process.”

More than 54 per cent (2,640) of the ALMO approvals in the country were for Alberta-based employers. Of these, AFL researchers flagged more than 58 per cent (1,542) as questionable. The list of businesses in Alberta who received ALMO approvals included 33 A&W restaurants. The ALMO stream, introduced in last year’s omnibus budget bill, is proving to be the latest evidence that the temporary foreign worker program is part of a low-wage agenda on the part of radical Tea-Party Tories.

“Alberta is leading the way in misusing this approval process,” McGowan said. “This isn’t being used as a stop-gap, and it isn’t a last resort for employers.”

AFL Backgrounder:  ‘Accelerated’ TFW approvals reveals widespread abuse of program

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Gil McGowan, President, Alberta Federation of Labour at 780-218-9888 (cell)
Olav Rokne, AFL Communications Director at 780-289-6528 (cell) or via email orokne@afl.org.

EDMONTON - A labour group is calling for a review of a federal program designed to help employers quickly hire temporary foreign workers for high-skill jobs.

The Alberta Federation of Labour says since the program was announced last April, more than 2,400 permits have been approved to hire foreign workers for low-skill service industry positions.

Federation president Gil McGowan says access to information documents show the employers include fast-food restaurants, convenience stores and gas stations.

"You look down this list, and it's McDonald's, Tim Hortons, A&W, Subway," McGowan said Tuesday.

"Are we supposed to believe that these are 'high-skill' employment opportunities?"

Some of the other businesses listed in the documents include The Big Moo Ice Cream Parlour in Alberta, Burger King in British Columbia and Pizza Express in Ontario.

McGowan said the permits are being used to replace Canadian workers and drive down wages.

He has sent a letter, along with the documents, to federal auditor general Michael Ferguson. It asks for an audit of the government's approval process.

Under the federal Accelerated-Labour Market Opinion (ALMO) program, employers can pay foreign workers up to 15 per cent less than Canadian workers. The program is designed to process permits to hire temporary foreign workers for high-skill jobs, including the skilled trades, within 10 business days.

"The percentage of ALMO approvals for businesses that largely employ low-skilled workers appears to be in direct contradiction to the stated parameters of the program," McGowan writes in the letter.

Officials with Human Resources and Skills Development Canada did not respond to a request for comment.

McGowan said just over half of the approvals by the department are for businesses in Alberta, including 33 A&W restaurants.

Information posted on the department's website says permits under ALMO have been approved for every jurisdiction in the country except for Prince Edward Island, the Yukon and Nunavut.

Dan Kelly, president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, said many small- and medium-size employers need temporary foreign workers to fill jobs. The need is most pressing in Western Canada and in rural communities right across the country, he said.

"I take it as a positive that businesses of all skill levels are able to access this expedited process. Our members really need those expedited processes," Kelly said from Toronto.

"We are moving into large pockets of the country where it has gone beyond a skills shortage and has moved into a general labour shortage where there is no one available to take the jobs that are on offer by Canadian employers."

The CFIB says it represents more than 109,000 businesses across the country.

McGowan said if employers are having a tough time finding workers, they should pay higher wages or the federal government could increase immigration.

He suggested initiatives such as ALMO and the Temporary Foreign Worker program are not the answer.

"Workers who want to come to Canada should enjoy the same rights and privileges as other Canadian residents," he said.

"We shouldn't be paying them 15 per cent less than Canadians, and government shouldn't be whisking them in through an accelerated and duplicitous process."

The Victoria Times Colonist, Apr. 9, 2013

EDMONTON -- A labour group is calling for a review of a federal program designed to help employers quickly hire temporary foreign workers for high-skill jobs.

The Alberta Federation of Labour says since the program was announced last April, more than 2,400 permits have been approved to hire foreign workers for low-skill service industry positions.

Federation president Gil McGowan says access to information documents show the employers include fast-food restaurants, convenience stores and gas stations.

"You look down this list, and it's McDonald's, Tim Hortons, A&W, Subway," McGowan said Tuesday.

"Are we supposed to believe that these are 'high-skill' employment opportunities?"

Some of the other businesses listed in the documents include The Big Moo Ice Cream Parlour in Alberta, Burger King in British Columbia and Pizza Express in Ontario.

McGowan said the permits are being used to replace Canadian workers and drive down wages.

He has sent a letter, along with the documents, to federal auditor general Michael Ferguson. It asks for an audit of the government's approval process.

Alyson Queen, director of communications for Human Resources Minister Diane Finley, said in an email that the department is "very concerned."

"Officials are investigating and will look into any evidence that the program is being misused," she said.

"The program exists to address real and acute labour shortages in certain sectors and regions across the country on a temporary basis. It was never meant to replace Canadians with foreign workers."

Under the federal Accelerated-Labour Market Opinion (ALMO) program, employers can pay foreign workers up to 15 per cent less than Canadian workers. The program is designed to process permits to hire temporary foreign workers for high-skill jobs, including the skilled trades, within 10 business days.

"The percentage of ALMO approvals for businesses that largely employ low-skilled workers appears to be in direct contradiction to the stated parameters of the program," McGowan writes in the letter.

McGowan said just over half of the approvals by the department are for businesses in Alberta, including 33 A&W restaurants.

Information posted on the department's website says permits under ALMO have been approved for every jurisdiction in the country except for Prince Edward Island, the Yukon and Nunavut.

Dan Kelly, president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, said many small- and medium-size employers need temporary foreign workers to fill jobs. The need is most pressing in Western Canada and in rural communities right across the country, he said.

"I take it as a positive that businesses of all skill levels are able to access this expedited process. Our members really need those expedited processes," Kelly said from Toronto.

"We are moving into large pockets of the country where it has gone beyond a skills shortage and has moved into a general labour shortage where there is no one available to take the jobs that are on offer by Canadian employers."

The CFIB says it represents more than 109,000 businesses across the country.

McGowan said if employers are having a tough time finding workers, they should pay higher wages or the federal government could increase immigration.

He suggested initiatives such as ALMO and the Temporary Foreign Worker program are not the answer.

"Workers who want to come to Canada should enjoy the same rights and privileges as other Canadian residents," he said.

"We shouldn't be paying them 15 per cent less than Canadians, and government shouldn't be whisking them in through an accelerated and duplicitous process."

CTV News, Tuesday, Apr. 09, 2013
John Cotter, The Canadian Press

This document, FOIP A-2012-00448 SS_ALMOs under the TFW program_2013Feb04, obtained by the Alberta Federation of Labour through an Access to Information request, lists all approved TFW applications in the first eight months of the new Accelerated Labour Market Opinion (ALMO) process.

Backgrounder:  ‘Accelerated’ TFW approvals reveals widespread abuse of program

EDMONTON - A labour group is calling for a review of a federal program designed to help employers quickly hire temporary foreign workers for high-skill jobs.

The Alberta Federation of Labour says since the program was announced last April, more than 2,400 permits have been approved to hire foreign workers for low-skill service industry positions.

Federation president Gil McGowan says access to information documents show the employers include fast-food restaurants, convenience stores and gas stations.

"You look down this list, and it's McDonald's, Tim Hortons, A&W, Subway," McGowan said Tuesday.

"Are we supposed to believe that these are 'high-skill' employment opportunities?"

Some of the other businesses listed in the documents include The Big Moo Ice Cream Parlour in Alberta, Burger King in British Columbia and Pizza Express in Ontario.

McGowan said the permits are being used to replace Canadian workers and drive down wages.

He has sent a letter, along with the documents, to federal auditor general Michael Ferguson. It asks for an audit of the government's approval process.

Under the federal Accelerated-Labour Market Opinion (ALMO) program, employers can pay foreign workers up to 15 per cent less than Canadian workers. The program is designed to process permits to hire temporary foreign workers for high-skill jobs, including the skilled trades, within 10 business days.

"The percentage of ALMO approvals for businesses that largely employ low-skilled workers appears to be in direct contradiction to the stated parameters of the program," McGowan writes in the letter.

Officials with Human Resources and Skills Development Canada did not respond to a request for comment.

McGowan said just over half of the approvals by the department are for businesses in Alberta, including 33 A&W restaurants.

Information posted on the department's website says permits under ALMO have been approved for every jurisdiction in the country except for Prince Edward Island, the Yukon and Nunavut.

Dan Kelly, president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, said many small- and medium-size employers need temporary foreign workers to fill jobs. The need is most pressing in Western Canada and in rural communities right across the country, he said.

"I take it as a positive that businesses of all skill levels are able to access this expedited process. Our members really need those expedited processes," Kelly said from Toronto.

"We are moving into large pockets of the country where it has gone beyond a skills shortage and has moved into a general labour shortage where there is no one available to take the jobs that are on offer by Canadian employers."

The CFIB says it represents more than 109,000 businesses across the country.

McGowan said if employers are having a tough time finding workers, they should pay higher wages or the federal government could increase immigration.

He suggested initiatives such as ALMO and the Temporary Foreign Worker program are not the answer.

"Workers who want to come to Canada should enjoy the same rights and privileges as other Canadian residents," he said.

"We shouldn't be paying them 15 per cent less than Canadians, and government shouldn't be whisking them in through an accelerated and duplicitous process."

Brandon Sun, Tuesday, Apr. 9, 2013
Byline: John Cotter, The Canadian Press