'Severe consequences': Restaurants Canada unhappy with changes to TFWP

Restaurants Canada says it is disappointed that the federal government did not consult stakeholders in the restaurant industry before making changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) Program.

The changes, which aim to “significantly cut the number of temporary foreign workers” in the industry, “will have severe consequences for rural, remote and tourist regions of our country,” the group said.

The group supports changes to the program that strengthen compliance and protections for workers and ensure the program “is being used in the manner it was intended – as a last resort for employers struggling to fill vacancies,” it said.

However, the recent changes “will cause more harm than good in those communities that have few other options to address labour shortages,” said Restaurants Canada.

Effective Sept. 26 this year, Ottawa will refuse to process Labour Market Impact Assessments (LMIAs) in the low-wage stream of the TFW program in census metropolitan areas with an unemployment rate of 6% or higher.

Group looking to ‘minimize negative impacts’ of changes to TFWP

Restaurants Canada is hoping that the federal government will collaborate with them more in this matter.

“We call on the government to engage with Restaurants Canada to better address the needs of the communities we serve across the country. We can play a key role in aligning the government’s goals while minimizing negative impacts on the communities we serve,” said Kelly Higginson, president & CEO of Restaurants Canada.

The group also noted that it has been advocating for a matching and training program to connect job vacancies in industries like foodservice – which currently has over 73,000 open positions – with the roughly one million unemployed newcomers holding open work permits in Canada. 

This proposal would benefit both businesses and newcomers seeking permanent employment opportunities, it said.

Overall, the number of positions approved to be filled by temporary foreign workers in 2023 stood at 239,646, more than double the 108,988 recorded in 2018, CBC previously reported, citing data from Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC).

‘Meaningful employment’ for temporary workers

In Alberta, Immigrant Services Calgary welcomed the development, saying it addresses the housing problems that the province is facing.

"Ensuring that the folks already in the country can access meaningful employment, have safe housing and can meaningfully contribute to the socioeconomic landscape of the city and the province and the country should be the No. 1 priority for the government," said Alka Merlin, a spokesperson with the organization, in a CBC report.

With the recent changes, unfilled jobs can be taken by newcomers that are already in Canada, Merlin said.

Recently, the Alberta government introduced measures to help temporary foreign workers who have not been able to work due to wildfires in the province.

The Alberta government also welcomed Ottawa's decision, saying that it opens the door for more young people to take on entry-level work, according to CBC.

Meanwhile, a Calgary-based immigration lawyer argued the move was a long time coming, citing exploitation that many temporary foreign workers face under the program.

"Low-wage industries are probably the most targeted when it comes to workplace abuse and this type of exploitation. Immigration fraud often runs rampant in environments where people may be less educated, they may not have the capabilities to even understand what kind of world they're entering into," said Jatin Shory in the CBC report.

One of the reasons why youth unemployment in Canada is so high is the sheer number of young people in the country entering the employment age, according to an expert.