P.E.I. declines Ottawa's offer to let rural employers hire more temporary foreign workers
Province says the federal measure is not needed right now
Prince Edward Island is the only Atlantic province that has opted out of a federal measure allowing rural employers to hire more low-wage temporary foreign workers.
In March, Ottawa announced it would temporarily raise the cap on low-wage TFWs from 10 to 15 per cent of a workplace for rural employers in participating provinces and territories, citing ongoing labour shortages.
“After considering the available information and the needs of Island employers, Prince Edward Island determined that participation in the temporary measures was not required at this time,” the province said in a statement to CBC News.
Louis-Philippe Gauthier, Atlantic vice-president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, called the decision “unfortunate.”
“(Local) people are simply not responding to the positions. People are not applying, and apparently, for many, they just don't want to do those types of jobs,” Gauthier said, pointing to positions in accommodation and food services that rural employers are struggling to fill.
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The province said it had worked with some rural employers as part of its review of Ottawa’s proposal.
Information provided by the federal government showed the measure would have affected 14 employers and about 46 positions on P.E.I., most of them in accommodation and food services, the statement said.
“As part of that review, provincial officials engaged with potentially affected employers and explored workforce solutions, including existing permanent immigration pathways for year-round positions that met program criteria,” the statement read.
“The province will continue to work with employers to address labour market needs through existing workforce development, immigration and recruitment initiatives.”
TFWs 'necessary' to keep businesses running: CFIB
Gauthier said CFIB has been hearing from small businesses, especially in restaurants and customer service, that migrant workers are now “necessary and a requirement” just to maintain normal operating hours.
Mitch Martin, executive director of the Greater Summerside Chamber of Commerce, said the province's decision could put further pressure on small and medium-sized businesses already struggling to recruit and retain workers, particularly for entry-level and seasonal positions.
“When additional labour supports are not available, employers can face increased wage pressures, reduced operating hours, and added strain on existing staff,” Martin said in an email statement to CBC News.
Beyond food service, Martin said the impact could be felt in sectors including tourism and hospitality, seafood processing, agriculture, manufacturing and retail.
Gauthier added that migrant workers are not cheap hires.
“It costs more for employers to hire TFWs than it would to hire a Canadian on Canadian soil,” he said.
He pointed to the cost and effort involved in Labour Market Impact Assessments — a federal document Canadian employers often need to hire temporary foreign workers, as well as other paperwork. Employers must pay $1,000 for an LMIA for each position requested.
He also rejected the idea that simply raising wages would solve the problem.
“Businesses have tried that; it doesn't work. The reality is the people just don't respond to certain positions in certain areas, and that's why the need for TFWs is still very much present,” he said.
“Just thinking that it gets fixed by wages simplifies a reality to one point of conversation, which … needs to have multiple aspects looked at.”
Those factors, he said, include an aging population and fewer people available or willing to take certain jobs.
While there have been concerns about TFWs taking jobs traditionally held by young Canadians, Gauthier said the situation is more complicated than simply saying fewer foreign workers would mean more jobs for young people.
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He said CFIB polling shows a “mismatch in expectations,” including what young people expect to earn and where they are willing or able to work.
“Young people don't necessarily have the ability or the desire to move from one location to the other. That leaves pockets of a need for labour that can't be filled,” Gauthier said.
“When you look at rural areas, it's not necessarily true that a young person will have the ability or the desire to drive 30 minutes an hour to be able to go to a position that's being offered.”
Fewer TFWs could mean fewer vulnerable workers, advocate says
Joe Byrne, co-ordinator of the Migrant Worker Resource Centre at P.E.I.'s Cooper Institute, said P.E.I.’s decision could mean fewer migrant workers are placed in precarious situations.
He said there are longstanding problems with the TFW program, including the use of closed work permits that tie workers to a specific employer. That can leave migrant workers more vulnerable to abuse and exploitation, he said, particularly if they are laid off or uncertain about how long their employment will last.
“This spring already, the number of workers that had come to P.E.I. with a promise of six to eight months of work who were laid off after two months is appalling,” Byrne said.
“So I’m not unhappy that we are putting fewer workers in the place of vulnerability that they … come into when they come to P.E.I.”
Byrne said the closed work permit system needs to be reformed.
He said giving migrant workers open work permits, along with a pathway to permanent residence, would allow them to stay in Canada, change jobs if necessary and build more stable lives in rural communities.
“Then we would find workers who are prepared to stay,” he said.
With files from Tony Davis