Rural businesses will feel brunt of foreign workers program changes

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This article was published 08/08/2024 (650 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The federal government’s plan to reduce the number of temporary foreign workers is expected to lead to labour shortages and higher operational costs — especially in rural areas, experts say.

Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault announced Tuesday potential new measures to curb misuse of the temporary foreign workers program.

In a meeting with Canada’s largest business associations, Boissonnault said the program should not be used to bypass hiring Canadian workers. He said there are actions to enforce a 20 per cent cap policy, stricter oversight in high-risk areas, potential increases in Labour Market Impact Assessment fees and future regulatory changes.

The positive LMIA employers list, published on the federal government website, stated that between October 2023 and March 2024, 1,054 employers in Manitoba received LMIAs for low-wage and primary agricultural jobs, indicating a significant reliance on foreign workers.

Brandon University Rural Development Institute director Wayne Kelly said local businesses in rural areas, particularly in sectors like agriculture and manufacturing, should be worried about the impact these changes could have on their operations.

“The announcement could affect rural immigration programs,” Kelly told the Sun in an interview. “Fewer TFWs could lead to labour shortages, higher operational costs and disruptions in service delivery.”

He admitted RDI’s research on TFWs from 2007 is quite dated but noted many of the issues remain consistent.

“In rural areas, TFWs address labour shortages due to declining and aging populations and youth outmigration.”

Kelly said statistics indicate a higher prevalence of temporary foreign workers in rural areas compared to urban centres, adding there are significantly more international students than temporary foreign workers in Manitoba, with the latter predominantly working in agricultural and related industries situated in rural locations.

RDI immigration research co-ordinator Shirlyn Kunaratnam said data from the 2021 Manitoba Immigration Facts report stated Brandon had 15 TFWs and 585 international students, while rural areas outside of Winnipeg and Brandon had 695 TFWs and 475 international students.

“This underscores the greater need for TFWs in rural areas,” she said.

Kelly added that though the report is only three years old, there are indications that the number of temporary foreign workers has doubled.

“The numbers have doubled across Canada in the last two to three years, right as part of the federal government’s immigration initiatives,” he said. “There needs to be more data, more research done on temporary foreign workers in places like rural Manitoba.”

Since temporary foreign workers typically receive lower wages than Canadian-born workers, fewer temporary foreign workers could force businesses to pay higher wages, requiring more business income to cover higher labour costs. Businesses would also need to invest more in training and improving the skills of local employees, Kelly said.

Retaining local employees, he said, would become a significant priority for businesses in both rural and urban areas if fewer temporary foreign workers are available to fill the gaps.

Brandon economic development director Gerald Cathcart told the Sun changes to the TFW program would impact other programs.

“Looking forward, changes to any one immigration path will always create interest from employers in other pathways,” he said. “The Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot has been replaced with the Rural Community Immigration Program, but IRCC has not yet announced which rural communities have been selected for the new pilot nor the exact details of the program.”

Boissonnault said other potential new measures under the TFW program include refusing to process applications under the low-wage stream for certain areas and industries.

He said there are efforts to modernize the program with a new stream for agriculture and fish and seafood processing, adding these actions aim to improve employer inspections and increase fines for non-compliance.

“Abuse and misuse of the TFW program must end,” he said. “Bad actors are taking advantage of people and compromising the program for legitimate businesses. We are putting more reforms in place to stop misuse and fraud.”

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