Evidence of meeting #19 for Citizenship and Immigration in the 39th Parliament, 2nd session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was alberta.
Director, Edmonton Mennonite Centre for Newcomers
And it would be much better for Canada's reputation abroad.
But yes, what we seem to do here is repeatedly either have these sudden short-term solutions, such as the currently proposed amendments to the act, or chase after temporary workers, as ways to deal with something for which we should instead be going back to really assess how IRPA works and how to make the process work, as you've said, quickly and effectively for Canada and for prospective immigrants.
Conservative
Ed Komarnicki Conservative Souris—Moose Mountain, SK
What we know is that having 800,000 in the backlog is not the answer, and waiting six years to get a skilled worker is absolutely not the answer. That has to change and it has to change quite radically. Would you not agree with me?
President, Edmonton, Ukrainian Canadian Social Services
Let me just add to Mr. Komarnicki's comment that I think part of the problem is that employers then resort to what our friend the lawyer has indicated. It takes them so long to get an LMO that they go ahead and hire the people illegally and pay them cash, and there's no record. That also has to definitely improve. I can't understand why it takes six to eight months to get a labour market opinion.
Conservative
Ed Komarnicki Conservative Souris—Moose Mountain, SK
So there needs to be some reform with respect to that.
The other part I take from what you're saying is that if we're going to have temporary foreign workers, there are some things we could do with that, and there may be disagreement as to how much. But essentially we need to be able to bring not only the skilled worker or the person filling a job, but his family, so that we can grow the communities.
What I hear you saying is that we need to find a way of getting them in. I know we've been talking about a “Canadian experience” class in which we say that if you've worked in Canada as a temporary foreign worker of a certain type, or if you were, let's say, a foreign student here and lived in Canada and went to school, we should allow you to apply for permanent residence from within Canada.
What are your thoughts about incorporating something like that into the system?
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Norman Doyle
Before you answer, I think Mr. Telegdi has a request. He wants his executive assistant to take a picture of the panellists and all of us--
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Norman Doyle
I said it was okay, but I won't deduct it from your time. Is that okay? I'm asking the committee if that's okay.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Norman Doyle
Go ahead. Obviously he has a householder he wants to get out, and we have to respect that, I suppose.
You're okay with that, are you?
Liberal
Jim Karygiannis Liberal Scarborough—Agincourt, ON
That avoids the question of whether Mr. Telegdi is going to be outside the room.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Norman Doyle
I don't think we'll include him in the picture.
Who had a comment?
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Norman Doyle
Yes, you're still on. You go right ahead. You've got five minutes yet.
Conservative
Ed Komarnicki Conservative Souris—Moose Mountain, SK
Fair enough.
We were talking about the importance of getting newcomers or immigrants, if you want to phrase it that way, through either temporary foreign workers or on a regular basis, who have some opportunity in a reasonable period of time to become permanent residents and also to bring their wives, husbands, or children to settle into the community.
Temporary Foreign Worker Advocate, Alberta Federation of Labour
The problem with this whole thing is that temporary foreign workers are being used not as truly temporary foreign workers but as a replacement for a totally dysfunctional immigration system. Let's be clear about that. Those people are not here on a temporary basis. Even Immigration knows this.
Conservative
Ed Komarnicki Conservative Souris—Moose Mountain, SK
So what we're saying is there's a need to be filled with respect to the growth of our economy and the expectation of the community. That need has to be met in some fashion, and that should translate somehow into permanent residence in our country.
Temporary Foreign Worker Advocate, Alberta Federation of Labour
Well, that's what the need is; it's for permanent residency. From a humanitarian point of view, it's the permanent residency that grants people rights in this country, and that's the problem. Temporary foreign workers have very limited rights.
Conservative
Ed Komarnicki Conservative Souris—Moose Mountain, SK
My time is limited, and I want to move to the amnesty thing.
From what you're saying, I gather that if there are going to be temporary foreign workers, we need to have some basic fundamental rights that are respected across the nation--national rights as opposed to provincial--because essentially right now the labour standards of each province are what takes care of it. Is that a common thought?
Temporary Foreign Worker Advocate, Alberta Federation of Labour
I think that's true, yes.
Conservative
Ed Komarnicki Conservative Souris—Moose Mountain, SK
With respect to amnesty--and I'll close with that--there have been several attempts to have amnesty for those who come illegally. They have limited success, and of course in a short while after the amnesty you get a number of more thousands and you deal with them again.
To me the fundamental issue seems to be that people are trying to come in because they haven't got a legitimate means to do so, and we should be focusing on creating legitimate ways for people to come in, in an expedited way, to meet the demands of the economy. At the same time, there will always be those who wish to come in without going through the system.
What do you say to the people who use the system if you're going to simply regularize those who came outside the system? Don't you have to balance that off somehow by stipulating that a provision for amnesty has to be conditional, because others are coming through a number of means--including, for example, the provincial nominee program, through which the province can nominate them--on a fairly efficient basis?
I'll start with Mr. Diachuk and go on that way.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Norman Doyle
We've only got about half a minute, and I'm trying to get one more speaker in.
President, Edmonton, Ukrainian Canadian Social Services
I do want to say something about the provincial nominee programs in the provinces that have them, and I'm not too sure which ones do. Here in Alberta, the provincial government has doubled the number of nominees they're going to process, but again, even that takes time, because it still has to be approved by Canada Immigration. That nomination isn't automatic.
Conservative
Ed Komarnicki Conservative Souris—Moose Mountain, SK
Well, that's because there are, of course, security and criminality issues. That's essentially when the federal government steps in, while the province dominates. The actual matching of person to job is provincial.
President, Edmonton, Ukrainian Canadian Social Services
I'm aware that it's working very effectively both in Alberta and in Saskatchewan, where you come from.