The Globe and Mail

At a high level, there are growing questions about the underlying justification for the program. The government has said it is needed to fill a growing labour shortage, but experts, including the C.D. Howe Institute and numerous economists, have said the quality of Canada’s labour market data is so poor that it is impossible to know for sure whether there is a serious labour shortage.

There are also specific stories about how the program is working in practice. Last year, Royal Bank apologized in response to controversy over its use of the program and inter-company transfers to outsource IT workers. More recently, a series of stories by CBC reported on allegations that Canadian were displaced by temporary foreign workers at three McDonald’s restaurants in Victoria (pictured above) and at a pizza restaurant in Weyburn, Saskatchewan.

Business groups, such as the Alberta Hotel and Lodging Association, insist the need is very real and the federal government’s recent moratorium banning the foodservice sector from the program will have a “devastating” effect on business.