CTHRC News > 2007 > Improvements to the Temporary Foreign Workers Program Brings Renewed Hope to Employers in the Tourism Sector Faced with Increasing Labour Shortages

Improvements to the Temporary Foreign Workers Program Brings Renewed Hope to Employers in the Tourism Sector Faced with Increasing Labour Shortages

February 24 2007

Ottawa, Ontario – February 23, 2007 - The Honourable Monte Solberg, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development (HRSDC), and the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration (CIC) today announced additional improvements to the Temporary Foreign Worker program. These improvements will help address the challenges employers in Canada’s tourism sector face in filling the growing number of unfilled positions.

"As part of the Advantage Canada strategy, Canada's New Government is making changes to our Temporary Foreign Worker program to make it faster and easier for Canadian employers to meet their labour force needs," said Minister Solberg. "Employers who have exhausted their search for Canadian workers often need to hire temporary foreign workers to work for a period longer than a year, and today's announcement will allow this to happen."

"The changes will reduce the time that employers have to wait to get the workers they need," said Minister Finley. "As well, extending the time that workers can stay in Canada provides more security and stability to the workers and to the employers."

This is very good news for the tourism sector, coming at a time when acute labour shortages are causing severe business challenges for operators in many regions. "The Foreign Worker Program requires that we demonstrate efforts to recruit in Canada, but sometimes Canadians are not available," said Wendy Swedlove, President of the Canadian Tourism Human Resource Council (CTHRC). "In these situations, the improvements would help us to hire workers for these vacant jobs. The changes will make it easier for us to bring in temporary foreign workers so that we can continue to contribute to Canada's economy."

The Program allows employers to hire temporary foreign workers when there are no Canadian citizens or permanent residents available for the positions. Previously, temporary foreign workers with less formal training would have to leave Canada after twelve months, for four months, and then re-apply to come back. With these changes, they can stay for up to twenty-four months without having to request an extension.

Graeme Barrit, President of Coast Hotels & Resorts, and Business Co-chair for the CTHRC was present at the announcement in Vancouver. “This is exactly the type of initiative the sector requires. The economy in B.C. is booming as we ramp up for the Olympics, and the opportunities for the sector are immense. We need to capitalize on this opportunity, and having qualified, professional staff is an important component in Canada putting its best foot forward to the world.”

In tandem with the work the CTHRC is currently doing in the Foreign Credential Recognition arena, this announcement strengthens the tourism sector’s ability to look to external labour pools, while at the same time engaging in a number of initiatives to better attract and integrate Aboriginal peoples, mature workers, and persons with disabilities into a workforce that has traditionally looked solely to the youth demographic to meet its labour needs.