CFIB wins LOL award for griping about temporary foreign worker
CFIB wins LOL award for griping about temporary foreign worker This article is more than 9 years old

CFIB wins LOL award for griping about temporary foreign worker “red tape”

A business lobby group on Friday awarded the federal government’s embattled Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) with its Paperweight Award for “ridiculous rules and red tape.” The Canadian Federation of Independent Business, representing small- and medium-size businesses, says the TFWP is “maddening at the best of times.” And now, the government “has added new requirements, […]

A business lobby group on Friday awarded the federal government’s embattled Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) with its Paperweight Award for “ridiculous rules and red tape.”

The Canadian Federation of Independent Business, representing small- and medium-size businesses, says the TFWP is “maddening at the best of times.” And now, the government “has added new requirements, fees and longer wait times.”

Let’s put CFIB’s breathtaking position in context: even Stephen Harper acknowledges businesses have been “abusing” the program and harming Canadian workers “only for the sake of the bottom line profit.” 

Set aside Harper’s hypocrisy and forget all the ways his own government facilitated the rapid growth — and abuse — of the program since coming to power in 2006. The result? The sales and services McJobs sector now employs more migrant workers than any other in Canada.

Now, we have a business group attacking baby steps to curb the abuse as “red tape.” 

Harper’s government used to allow employers to pay 15% less to all workers doing the “‘high-skilled’ job for which temporary work permits were sought, and 5% less for ‘low-skill’ jobs.” And until 2013, the application process was free, translating into a $35 million public subsidy for employers.

Advertising rules have changed, too. Employers could post jobs in Canada for as little as six days before looking for TFWs, down from six weeks. The rule is now 14 days. 

“These changes were a knee-jerk reaction to media stories of misuse of the program by a few big businesses and banks, but threaten to drive some small enterprises, that rely on the program and are using it appropriately, out of business,” CFIB said Friday.

Right. 

Photo: julia_manzerovaUsed under a Creative Commons BY-NC-ND 2.0 licence. 

Our journalism is powered by readers like you.

We’re an award-winning non-profit news organization that covers topics like social and economic inequality, big business and labour, and right-wing extremism.

Help us build so we can bring to light stories that don’t get the attention they deserve from Canada’s big corporate media outlets.

 

Donate
PressProgress
PressProgress is an award-winning non-profit news organization focused on uncovering and unpacking the news through original investigative and explanatory journalism.

Most Shared

thumb-2023-03-09-federal-budget-canada-student-grant Analysis

Ontario Budget 2023: Doug Ford Pulled a Sneaky Move to Quietly Cut Education

Related Stories

Analysis

Budget 2023: Canada Student Grants are Getting Cut By $1,800 Per Year, Not ‘Enhanced’

View the post
News

BC Workers are Being Forced Into Mandatory Drug Testing and Private ‘Recovery’ Programs

View the post
News

Budget 2023: Dental Care Plan Will Cover Millions More Uninsured Canadians Than Originally Estimated

View the post

Explainers

Human rights & inclusion

Amira Elghawaby

Here’s The Problem With Hoping Corporations Will Be Socially and Environmentally Responsible On Their Own

View the post
Politics & strategy

Jeremy Appel

The battle of the PACs in Calgary’s municipal election

View the post
Politics & strategy

Jeremy Appel

27 Different Candidates are Vying to be Calgary’s Mayor. Here Are the Biggest Issues at Stake.

View the post
Newspapers always have a business section – why not a labour section? We’ve launched a free newsletter covering labour issues in Canada.
Get Canadian Labour News You Won't Find in Corporate Newspapers.
We’ve launched a free newsletter covering labour issues in Canada.
Get Canadian Labour News You Won't Find in Corporate Newspapers