Employment and Social Development Canada (“ESDC”) has announced several new restrictions to Low-Wage Labour Market Impact Assessments (“LMIA”), starting this fall.

Background

The Temporary Foreign Worker (“TFW”) Program is intended to be used when employers are facing short-term skill and labour shortages. The TFW Program allows an employer to hire TFWs for a maximum period of 2 years when no Canadians and permanent residents are available. The employment duration must align with the employer’s reasonable employment needs.

Changes Announced

The changes announced by ESDC will impact employers across Canada, but specifically in larger cities. ESDC has already announced that LMIA applications submitted for low-wage positions in the economic region of Montreal will not be processed from September 3, 2024 to March 3, 2025.

Effective September 26, 2024, the following changes will be made to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program:

• The Government of Canada will refuse to process Labour Market Impact Assessments (LMIAs) in the Low-Wage stream in census metropolitan areas with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher;
• Employers will be allowed to hire a maximum of 10% of their total workforce through the TFW Program. This maximum employment percentage will be applied to the Low-Wage stream and is a further reduction from the March 2024 reduction to 20%; and
• The maximum duration of employment for workers hired through the Low-Wage stream will be reduced to one year (from two years).

ESDC has indicated that exceptions will be granted for seasonal and non-seasonal jobs in food security sectors such as primary agriculture, food processing and fish processing, as well as in construction and healthcare.

Impact to Employers

Employers should review their labour needs and consider whether current labour strategies will be impacted by these changes. Employers should also remain alert as the TFW Program remains under review and additional changes may be forthcoming.

Looking ahead, the government may continue to review relevant TFWP policies in line with its continued focus to reduce the temporary resident population in Canada. Within the next 90 days, a further review will be undertaken of the program which could result in changes to the High-Wage stream as well, in addition to further restrictions or suspensions of LMA applications.

ESDC’s full News Release can be found here.

If you have any questions about the TFW Program, or any questions relating to workplace law generally, please do not hesitate to contact a Mathews Dinsdale lawyer.