Canadian companies will soon be required to increase the minimum wage for some temporary foreign workers (TFW), encouraging employers to hire more Canadians while also protecting TFW rights.
Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Official Languages Randy Boissonnault announced the targeted reforms to one of the TFW Program streams on Tuesday.
Effective November 8, the starting hourly wage for TFWs coming into Canada through the high-wage stream will be increased by 20%, higher than it currently is, which is the median wage in the province or territory of work.
The government says this represents an increase of between $5 and $8 per hour, depending on where they’re working.
For example, the minimum wage for TFWs in BC is currently $28.85 an hour. In November, high-wage stream TFWs in BC will get a pay increase of 20% ($5.77), bumping their hourly wage to $34.62.
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“This change to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program reinforces our commitment to protecting temporary foreign workers, while prioritizing the Canadian workers available to join the labour force,” said Boissonnault in a statement. “By raising the threshold for high-wage stream positions, we are supporting wage growth for Canadians.”
As a result of this change, the government says a greater number of jobs are expected to be subject to stricter rules of the low-wage stream, including additional employer requirements related to housing, transportation and recruitment of workers already in Canada.
Boissonnault also announced that starting on October 28, employers will no longer be able to use attestations from professional accountants or lawyers to prove their business legitimacy.
He added that the TFW Program will further build on existing information-sharing agreements with provincial and territorial partners, as well as existing employer registries, to enhance data sharing.
“These measures will help to ensure that only genuine and legitimate job offers are approved, helping prevent misuse of the program and ensuring stronger worker protection,” explained Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC).
The changes announced are expected to result in 34,000 positions moving from the high-wage stream to the more stringent rules of the low-wage stream, according to the government.
“This shift could result in as many as 20,000 fewer positions being approved through the TFW Program when combined with other policies in effect as of September 26, 2024,” said ESDC.
These policies include the government not processing Labour Market Impact Assessments in the low-wage stream in cities with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher and employers hiring no more than 10% of their total workforce through the TFW Program, with some exceptions to high-demand sectors.
This comes after the government said in August that it would introduce new measures to address issues with the TFW Program, including enforcing a 20% cap policy for workers and introducing regulatory changes for employer eligibility.
The United Nations has criticized Canada’s TFW Program for being a “breeding ground” for contemporary slavery.