BlogLabour Impacts AssessmentWork PermitsWorking in CanadaTemporary Foreign Worker Program Under Fire: Government Moving Full Speed Ahead to Reduce Number of Foreign Workers in Canada
On August 6, 2024, the Honourable Randy Boissonnault, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Official Languages issued a statement in which he publicly mused about the possibility of reducing the number of foreign workers in Canada by prohibiting employers from certain parts of Canada from hiring low-wage workers through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP). Less than three weeks later, on August 20, 2024, the Minister took the first such step by approving a temporary pause prohibiting employers located in the Montreal economic region from employing workers earning less than $27.47 per hour through the TFWP. Only six days later, on August 26, the Minister further announced another series of policy changes that will make it more difficult for Canadian employers to hire low-wage temporary foreign workers across Canada. What is driving these changes and what should employers be prepared for?
