Deal will provide yet another avenue for employers to choose foreign workers over Canadians

EDMONTON – The Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) signed between Canada and the European Union will disrupt the Canadian labour market by allowing European firms to bypass Canadian workers when doing business here.

“This deal will essentially create another stream of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program,” Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan said. “Documents made available today by the European Union show that the CETA will allow European companies to bring staff along with them when they set up shop in Canada. The documents also show that the deal will liberalize the Canadian energy market.”

The European Union’s announcement of the CETA shows that it will “make it easier for firms to move staff temporarily between the EU and Canada. This will make it easier for European companies to run their operations in Canada.” [Click here to link to CETA document] It also shows the CETA will allow European firms to access the Canadian market in “key sectors” such as energy. The Harper government’s announcement on the deal makes no mention of the effect on Canadian workers other than to say states the “rights of workers will be respected.”

“The Harper government’s announcement of the deal has no details whatsoever, but, judging from the European Union’s information, we can only conclude that this deal allows European firms – especially those operating in Alberta’s oil sands – to bring their own workers from overseas instead of hiring Canadians first.

And we’re not just talking about trade’s people here. We’re also talking about engineers, managers and other professional workers,” McGowan said. “It’s strange, though not unexpected, that the Harper government’s announcement heralding the deal is silent on the fact that the CETA will allow European firms to bring their own labour when doing business in Canada.”

In light of the Harper Government’s track record with guest worker programs, labour activists say that Canadians should be concerned about the labour mobility clauses in the CETA.

“The Harper government simply cannot be trusted when it comes to workers rights,” McGowan said. “They’ve fumbled the Temporary Foreign Worker Program file by only listening to the interests of businesses, not those of the workers on job sites earning a living working with their hands and backs.”

“Canadian workers should brace themselves for further displacement by workers from overseas, especially in the oil sands.”

MEDIA CONTACT:

Olav Rokne, Communications Director, Alberta Federation of Labour at 780.289.6528 (cell) or via e-mail [email protected]

Alberta Federation of Labour blasts Harper for helping employers put Canadians out of work at Husky Sunrise project

Edmonton – Almost 300 Canadians are no longer working at the Husky Sunrise project near Fort McMurray because they’ve been replaced by a firm that makes extensive use of the Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) program.

The site – located 60 kilometres north of Fort McMurray – is the workplace for more than 1,500 people. It is estimated that less than a third of those workers are Canadian.

In September, more than 270 employees of Toronto-based Black and MacDonald were told they were no longer working at the Husky Sunrise site. Italian-owned oil sands firm Saipem Canada Inc.’s, which makes extensive use of the TFW program, has since taken over the contract.

“Barely six months ago, Minister Jason Kenney was trumpeting assurances that no Canadians would lose work because of the Temporary Foreign Worker program. The events at Husky Sunrise show that, if he wasn’t lying outright, he was deeply naive to make that claim,” AFL president Gil McGowan said at a press conference today. “This just shows how broken the Temporary Foreign Worker program is – it’s lowering employment standards, it’s creating opportunities for exploitation, it’s disenfranchising workers, and it’s displacing well-trained Canadian trades people.”

Over the next months, Albertans can expect to see more cases of Canadian workers being displaced thanks to a new program that allows some employers to skip the usual process of applying for Temporary Foreign Workers. Under the Alberta Pilot for Occupation-Specific Work Permits, some employers can hire TFWs without any attempt to advertise the job locally.

“This allows employers to recruit overseas without having to consider hiring Canadians who can do the job,” McGowan said. “The government has been very secretive about this pilot program. We do not know the number of workers and their occupation utilizing this pilot project. The Alberta Federation of Labour (AFL) has submitted an Access to Information request to the federal government to obtain this information, but the request as yet to be fulfilled.”

The AFL has been a leader in opposing the Temporary Foreign Worker program, conducting extensive research into the use and abuse of the guest worker program. Through a series of government documents the AFL obtained, the organization has helped pressure the Harper Government into making changes to the program, including suspending the fast-track Accelerated Labour Market Opinion (ALMO) stream.

“The minister seems oblivious to the problems that the program is causing,” McGowan said. “He announced yesterday that the government might resume the ALMO stream, despite the extensive abuse of that program the last time it was implemented. I’m actually shocked that they can’t learn from their mistakes.”

AFL Backgrounder: Husky Sunrise and the Temporary Foreign Worker Program

MEDIA CONTACT:
Olav Rokne, Communications Director, Alberta Federation of Labour at 780.289.6528 (cell) or via e-mail [email protected]

Alberta Federation of Labour president will comment on misuse of Temporary Foreign Worker program at Husky Sunrise project. Almost 300 Canadians are no longer working at the project near Fort McMurray because they’ve been replaced by a firm that makes extensive use of the Temporary Foreign Worker program.

Time:                         1:30 p.m., Thursday, October 10

Place:                        River Valley Room, Chateau Lacombe Hotel (10111 Bellamy Hill, Edmonton)

Who:                          Gil McGowan, president, Alberta Federation of Labour

MEDIA CONTACT:
Olav Rokne, AFL Communications Director at 780-289-6528 (cell) or via email [email protected].

2013 Backgrounder_Husky Sunrise and the Temporary Foreign Worker Program

AFL News Release: Oct 10 Temporary Foreign Worker Program Displacing Canadians

2013-ATIP A-2013-00218 TFWs earning 9 75

AFL Release Aug. 29: "Minimum-wage TFW list shows program undermining Canadian wages"

Uncovered documents prove employers using TFW program as a first choice rather than offering a decent wage to Canadians

Edmonton – Canadian wages are being undermined by employers who use the Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) program to avoid paying anything more than minimum wage.

A list obtained by the Alberta Federation of Labour (AFL) shows that 243 employers in Alberta are accessing the Temporary Foreign Worker program rather than paying employees more than the province’s sub-poverty $9.75 minimum wage – the lowest general minimum wage in the country.

“If employers were really using the TFW program as a last resort, rather than a first choice, they wouldn’t be paying these workers the minimum wage,” Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan said. “They can’t say they’ve actually tried to hire Canadians if they’re not offering more than minimum wage.”

Of the 243 employers, the majority (58 per cent) are in the food service industry. The list includes Boston Pizza locations, Ricky’s All-Day Grills and a variety of sushi restaurants and pubs. The full list can be downloaded HERE. Most of these approved Labour Market Opinions (LMOs) will permit the employer to hire multiple Temporary Foreign Workers.

“This list shows that the TFW program is being used to suppress wages and displace Canadian workers. Anyone claiming that there’s a labour shortage is either deliberately lying, or deeply misinformed,” McGowan said. “If there’s a labour shortage, wages are supposed to be going up to attract workers to fill the vacancies.”

Under the Temporary Foreign Worker program, employers applying to bring in workers must commit to paying the prevailing wages for the type of worker they are hiring. By paying the TFWs minimum wage, these employers are admitting that paying bottom dollar is their standard practice.

“It’s an irony that the Harper Government claims to be a big defender of the free market, but it’s clear that they’re using the TFW program to undermine the Canadian labour market,” McGowan said. “The Federal Conservatives are deliberately using their power to help service-sector employers keep wages low when economic conditions suggest they should be going up.”

The documents released by the AFL also help explain why more and more teenagers and recently arrived landed immigrants are having a hard time getting entry-level jobs. According to Statistics Canada, the unemployment rate for youths aged 15-24 in Alberta was more than 11 per cent in May.

“For young people, low-wage jobs in the service sector have traditionally been the entry point into the labour market,” McGowan said. “But now those bottom rungs on the ladder are increasingly being filled with exploitable TFWs.”

As of September 1, the minimum wage will be increased to $9.95, but will remain the lowest general minimum wage in Canada. It will remain a wage that is well below the poverty line. Working 35 hours a week, 52 weeks a year, someone earning Alberta’s new minimum wage of $9.95 an hour will earn $18,109 a year before taxes. According to Statistics Canada, the Low-Income Cut-Off (LICO) for a single wage earner with no dependents is $23,298.

“The people campaigning against increases to the minimum wage argue that it’s a starting point, and that most people don’t stay on it. But this list of TFW employers shows that to be a lie,” McGowan said. “Because of the temporary nature of this program, these workers will likely never get a raise.”

The AFL has called for the government to institute a minimum wage that would allow those working full-time to earn a minimum of $23,298 – That would work out to $14.05 without benefits, or $12.08 with benefits.

“Someone working full-time at one of these jobs is below the poverty line. These employers are importing workers so they can be poor here,” McGowan said. “They’re importing poverty.”

AFL Backgrounder:  Temporary Foreign Workers and Minimum Wage

MEDIA CONTACT:

Olav Rokne, Communications Director, Alberta Federation of Labour at 780.289.6528 (cell) or via e-mail [email protected]

Minister should be ashamed of Twitter tag-team to peddle TFW expansion and other bad policies

Edmonton – A Twitter forum organized by the Harper government and the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) is nothing more than a cheap gimmick aimed at justifying low-wage policies like the expansion of the Temporary Foreign Worker program, says the Alberta Federation of Labour.

Today at noon, Federal Immigration Minister Jason Kenney joined CFIB president Dan Kelly on the social networking site Twitter to answer questions about the Canada Jobs Grant program and “ongoing labour market pressures,” despite Statistics Canada reporting that there are 6.4 unemployed Canadians for every vacant job.

“The CFIB says that there’s a labour shortage – but they always say there’s a labour shortage,” says Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan.

“The low-wage employers that the CFIB represents are using this myth about labour shortages to justify bad public policy, like the expansion of Temporary Foreign Worker program. But experts at the U of A, the U of C, CIBC, and the federal government’s own researchers say the CFIB is wrong.”

In May, the University of Calgary’s School of Public Policy published a report stating that Canada had all the workers that we need.

That opinion was echoed by the University of Alberta’s Institute for Public Economics in June, when they wrote that problems in Alberta have more to do with training and productivity than labour shortages.

In 2011, Human Resources and Skills Development Canada projects that there will be no major labour market imbalances over the next ten years.

“We’ve crunched the numbers as well, and it’s clear there is no general labour shortage in Alberta,” McGowan said. “Despite all of the CFIB’s whining, if there is a shortage of anything, it’s a shortage of people willing to work for the crappy wages that employers in the service sector are offering.”

“This Twitter conversation is not a conversation at all. It’s a gimmick designed to spread falsehoods,” concluded McGowan.

“The Minister should be ashamed of himself for spreading misinformation about Canadian labour markets. And he should be ashamed of using the power of government to help low-wage employers keep wages low when economic conditions suggest they should be going up. The Minister has clearly forgotten that he works for Canadians, not the CFIB.”

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MEDIA CONTACT:

Olav Rokne, Communications Director, Alberta Federation of Labour at 780.289.6528 (cell)
or via e-mail [email protected]

Putting local job seekers first in line, but labour union says changes not enough

Employers looking to hire temporary foreign workers will now have to first secure a Labour Market Opinion and pay a corresponding processing fee of $275.

The announcement by Minister of Employment and Social Development Jason Kenney which came into effect on August 1, is part of measures which aim to ensure that employers hire locals first before considering foreign workers.

"Our government's number one priority remains jobs, economic growth and long-term prosperity," said Kenney. "These additional reforms help ensure that Canadians are first in line for available jobs. They also ensure that taxpayers no longer pay the cost of processing employer applications for temporary foreign workers."

"Qualified Canadians, including new Canadians, should have first crack at available jobs," added Chris Alexander, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. "These new measures demonstrate that our Government is committed to ensuring the Temporary Foreign Worker program functions as intended."

The processing fee requirement for employers will help curb unnecessary spending of taxpayer money, as was the case in 2012 when 60 percent of positive Labour Market Opinions did not lead to a work permit being issued to a temporary foreign worker, according to the government.

Aside from the LMO requirement, the revised Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations now defines a new language assessment factor that states English and French are the only languages that can be identified as a job requirement, both in LMO requests and in advertisements by employers applying to hire temporary foreign workers, unless employers can demonstrate that another language is essential for the job.

Job advertising requirements have also been extended from two to four weeks, while the 15 per cent pay gap for temporary foreign workers has also been eliminated, according to the government.

The government is also planning to implement rules on the cancellation of work permits as well as the suspension of LMO processing, and requiring employers to submit future plans for transitioning to local employees.

"The reforms announced today and in recent months further strengthen the integrity of the Temporary Foreign Worker program and ensure that more employers hire Canadians before hiring temporary foreign workers," said Kenney. "These improvements help ensure the Temporary Foreign Worker program is only used as intended—to fill acute skills shortages on a temporary basis."

Meanwhile, the Alberta Federation of Labour (AFL) warns that revisions to the foreign workers program will not be effective against employers who seek to exploit foreign workers.

The AFL, which has long been a critic of the program, says that the $275 Labour Market Opinion processing fee will only cost employers around three and a half cents each hour over the four-year course of a temporary foreign worker's employment duration.

"A lot of these low-wage employers in the service sector will happily pay that for a worker who is willing to work for less for years and is too vulnerable to complain. $275 is a drop in the bucket and will not provide a significant disincentive to any employers who are trying to keep wages low," said Gil McGowan, president of the AFL.

"Leaving the determination of whether TFWs are adversely affecting the economy in the hands of employers to see if Canadians are being displaced is laughable. Low-wage employers can't be relied upon to protect the public interest."

The topic of temporary foreign workers is now popular among politicians, with the number of immigrant workers shooting up to over 340,000 in just 10 years despite poor economic conditions and the number of unemployed locals looking for jobs.

Fanning the flames are reported cases of employers exploiting TFWs.

"The Temporary Foreign Worker Program, which has been greatly expanded since the Conservatives took power in 2006, is discredited, and has lost public support," McGowan said. "They're hoping these changes will make it palatable, but Canadians know exploitation when they see it. Canadians don't want to see the creation of a permanent non-voting underclass of workers who don't have the same rights as other residents of the country."

Beacon News online, Friday, Aug. 9, 2013
Byline: Kharl Prado

Low-wage employers won’t be deterred by change to guest worker program

Edmonton – A $275 processing fee for employers will not stop the exploitation of Temporary Foreign Workers (TFWs).

The Alberta Federation of Labour which is one of the most prominent critics of the Temporary Foreign Worker program, pointed out that the fee ends up costing the employer about three and a half cents per hour, when amortized over the four years a worker stays in Canada under the Temporary Foreign Worker program.

“A lot of these low-wage employers in the service sector will happily pay that for a worker who is willing to work for less for years and is too vulnerable to complain,” Alberta Federation of Labour president Gil McGowan said. “$275 is a drop in the bucket and will not provide a significant disincentive to any employers who are trying to keep wages low.”

The processing fee came into effect on August 1, along with a series of marginal changes to the program that were announced in April. The changes included increased advertising from two weeks to four weeks, elimination of the 15 per cent pay gap for TFWs, and a requirement that employers assure the government that bringing in a TFW won’t adversely affect the local economy.

“Leaving the determination of whether TFWs are adversely affecting the economy in the hands of employers to see if Canadians are being displaced is laughable,” McGowan said. “Low-wage employers can’t be relied upon to protect the public interest.”

Over the past decade, the number of Temporary Foreign Workers in Canada has ballooned to more than 340,000. TFW permits have been granted regardless of economic circumstances, and in many cases, even when there were Canadian workers looking for work. A series of scandals involving employers who are abusing the system has made the program a political hot topic.

“The Temporary Foreign Worker Program, which has been greatly expanded since the Conservatives took power in 2006, is discredited, and has lost public support,” McGowan said. “They’re hoping these changes will make it palatable, but Canadians know exploitation when they see it. Canadians don’t want to see the creation of a permanent non-voting underclass of workers who don’t have the same rights as other residents of the country.”

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MEDIA CONTACT:

Olav Rokne, Communications Director, Alberta Federation of Labour at 780.289.6528 (cell) or via e-mail [email protected]