A coalition of Canadian boards of trade wants the federal government to allow fast-track hiring of temporary foreign workers by “trusted” employers.

The proposal is being released Wednesday by the Canadian Global Cities Council (CGCC) as part of its “Talent Policy Playbook” ahead of next month’s federal election. The Star was given exclusive English-language access to the playbook before its publication.

It currently takes up to 100 days to process temporary foreign worker applications. In contrast, work visas for highly skilled workers issued under the much smaller “global skills strategy” program can take as little as 10 days to process.

A hundred days is simply too long at a time when companies are facing a labour shortage, said Michel Leblanc, president and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal.

“We are in a labour shortage right now in Canada. We need to ask ‘What red tape can be taken off?’” said Leblanc in an interview.

As part of the temporary foreign worker program application process, companies need to complete a labour market impact assessment, looking at whether there’s a genuine shortage of Canadians qualified to fill the openings, and to commit to reducing their reliance on foreign workers. Those assessments are often repeating the same information found in earlier applications, said Leblanc, meaning they’re often redundant and time-consuming.

The approach proposed by the CGCC means companies who haven’t previously broken any rules in the temporary foreign workers program could, in effect, give the federal government a heads-up that they’re hiring temporary foreign workers, rather than asking permission.

But “trusted employer” status shouldn’t be automatic, nor would it be permanent once given. Increased monitoring of companies using the program should be part of any new system, Leblanc said.

“If they’re misusing the system, their status can be taken away,” said Leblanc.

And if the labour shortage goes away, the proposed new approach could go away too.

“This doesn’t need to be permanent. If the tension eases a bit in a few years, and there’s a surplus, then look at getting rid of this,” Leblanc added.

The House of Commons standing committee on human resources, skills and social development and the status of persons with disabilities recommended a trusted employer approach as part of a host of suggested changes to the temporary foreign workers program in 2016, but that recommendation wasn’t accepted.

The labour shortage is caused by demographic trends and exacerbated by competition from other countries, said Todd Letts, CEO of the Brampton Board of Trade.

“The boomers are retiring, and there’s more competition for global talent than ever before,” said Letts.

Another recommendation in the Talent Policy Playbook is for more tax breaks for employers who build onsite daycare for their employees, and allowing a larger personal income tax deduction for childcare expenses. While there might be a temporary revenue hit, that would be more than made up for by increasing the number of people entering the workforce, Letts argued.

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“Better access to childcare would bring more women into the workforce and add $150 billion to the Canadian economy by 2026,” said Letts.

Other recommendations in the playbook include a tax break for small businesses that provide on-the-job training for employees, more federal support for co-op programs in the skilled trades, and “flexible funding” approaches for local Indigenous-led economic development.