Premier David Eby has made a surprising call to put an end to Canada’s temporary foreign worker (TFW) program, attributing the overcrowding of homeless shelters and food banks to Ottawa’s flawed immigration policies. Eby expressed his views during an unrelated announcement in Surrey, B.C., stating that the current TFW program is ineffective and should either be terminated or significantly reformed.
This unexpected stance by Eby, a member of the B.C. NDP, aligns with federal Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre’s recent demand to scrap the program. Poilievre, in a press conference in Mississauga, Ont., accused temporary foreign workers of displacing Canadian youth from employment opportunities.
The TFW program enables Canadian employers to hire foreign workers for temporary positions when local workers are unavailable. However, Eby highlighted concerns of exploitation within the program, especially in Surrey, with reports of fraudulent activities surfacing. Neera Agnihotri, a Surrey immigration consultant, disclosed instances of fraud involving forged Labour Market Impact Assessments (LMIAs) that some recruiters and consultants exploit to target foreign workers seeking employment in Canada.
Despite the prevalence of fraudulent practices, Agnihotri emphasized that completely abolishing the TFW program is not the solution. She acknowledged the necessity of foreign workers in certain industries where there is a shortage of local labor. For instance, David Mutz, owner of Berry Haven Farm in Abbotsford, emphasized the significance of temporary foreign workers in the agriculture sector.
Both Eby and Poilievre expressed support for maintaining a separate program, such as the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP), to address labor needs in the agricultural industry. The SAWP, which brings in seasonal workers from Mexico and other participating countries, has not experienced the same level of fraud as the TFW program.
While calls for reforms to the TFW program make sense, critics caution against its complete elimination, citing its importance to the economy. The Canadian Federation for Independent Business believes that scrapping the program entirely would have detrimental effects on many businesses, particularly in rural areas.
B.C. Conservative leader John Rustad proposed the creation of a provincial immigration program to address the specific labor demands of sectors like farming and tourism. Meanwhile, Prime Minister Mark Carney indicated that the government is evaluating the temporary foreign worker program and aims to decrease immigration levels as a proportion of the population in the upcoming years.
