OTTAWA—The federal government is overhauling the much-criticized Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) in an attempt to keep Canadian companies from abusing the plan by favouring foreign employees over Canadians and paying them less than workers here.

“These reforms will require that greater efforts be made to recruit and train Canadians to fill available jobs,” Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said. “They will also help ensure the Temporary Foreign Worker Program is only used as intended — to fill acute skills shortages on a temporary basis.”

The changes, introduced with legislation implementing the March 21 federal budget, will require employers requesting permission to bring in foreign workers to supply more information to Ottawa to prove they are not using the program to outsource Canadians jobs.

Employers will also be required to show that they have a plan in place to shift gradually to hiring Canadian workers for the available jobs.

And the government is scrapping a controversial pilot project that allowed Canadian companies under certain circumstances to pay foreign workers 15 per cent less than their Canadian counterparts.

Also, companies will be required to pay Ottawa fees for permits for foreign workers and for the processing of requests to bring them to Canada. The specific fee costs were not spelled out Monday.

“What we’re trying to do is put more financial pressure on employers to look to and hire Canadians first,” Kenney said.

The reforms, detailed in the Star earlier this month, followed widespread criticism of the government’s foreign hiring plan in recent months. The issue flared up in April 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 government was aware of possible problems with the TFWP 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 plan.

The government is also temporarily suspending the Accelerated Labour Market Opinion program, which allowed employers to obtain permits to bring in foreign workers on an expedited basis.

Critics say it has been misused to recruit foreigners for many low-skilled positions that could have gone to Canadians. With 1.3 million Canadians out of work, the Conservative government was facing charges that it was making it too easy for companies to go abroad for their labour needs.

“What we’re trying to find here is the right balance. Ensure that Canadians get the first crack at jobs but don’t shut down businesses . . . because of a lack of labour,” Kenney told reporters.

“I know it will be hard for some businesses but at the end of the day we want to be absolutely certain that all possible measures are being taken to hire Canadians.”

The immigration minister said even more changes could be coming as the federal government meets with unions, provinces and employers across Canada in the coming months.

NDP MP Chris Charlton said government’s record so far on the file makes her skeptical they have fixed the problems.

“The reality is that they have made an absolute mess of the temporary foreign workers program,” Charlton said.

“They have systematically loosened the rules to make it easier for employers to hire cheap foreign labour at the expense of Canadian workers.”

Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading... Loading...

The bill tabled Monday implements the federal budget and changes dozens of laws. It will put in place tariff measures that will raise prices on many imported consumer goods, in the process netting Ottawa an extra $333 million annually by 2015. It will give a federal cabinet minister control over wages and salary negotiations in the dealings between federal Crown corporations such as Canada Post and Via Rail and their union and non-unionized employees.

The legislation also implements previously announced rules to clamp down on foreign takeovers of Canadian oil sands assets and to improve tax incentives for first-time donors to charitable organizations. The bill also completes the proposed merger of the Foreign Affairs department and the Canadian International Development Agency.

Read more about: