Evidence of meeting #76 for Citizenship and Immigration in the 42nd Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was business.
A video is available from Parliament.
Owner Operator Recruiter, Day & Ross Transportation Group
From our standpoint, we're looking at it from two different aspects. It's Day and Ross who wants to hire owner-operators and business people, but we're also looking at our brokers who have empty trucks. We want to fill those empty trucks with foreign drivers.
National Manager, Owner Operator Recruiting, Day & Ross Freight, Day & Ross Transportation Group
The revenue that an owner-operator generates would be a phenomenal amount of money for some of these foreign workers who are coming in. It's one of the better-paying jobs that someone can get in Atlantic Canada. We're more than happy to bring in as many permanent residents as we can right off the bat.
NDP
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
Thank you. The added advantage to that, of course, would be that, not only would you get the worker, you'd also get the worker's family. We're hearing all kinds of statistics about the aging population. In fact, earlier today we had another panel, and the statistics that came through were quite shocking, really. The information provided to us was that the death rate is exceeding the birth rate. Making people wait and not have their family here doesn't make any sense at all for our immigration policy, and most particularly, it appears to me that it doesn't make any sense at all for the Atlantic provinces.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Rob Oliphant
Could I just interrupt? I won't take your time.
I think we might have heard Ms. Huang trying to get in on the telephone. I just want to check with her in case she had something to add.
Liberal
NDP
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
Thank you for that.
I want to ask this question on resettlement services. Earlier today we also heard of issues around helping the immigrant population and refugees resettle. Therefore, retention and attraction would also be a key part.
Mr. Hatcher, did I hear you correctly when you said that the resettlement service agencies you have to use for this purpose are five other agencies outside your region?
National Manager, Owner Operator Recruiting, Day & Ross Freight, Day & Ross Transportation Group
Correct.
National Manager, Owner Operator Recruiting, Day & Ross Freight, Day & Ross Transportation Group
Yes. That was a little bit confusing to me too. There are five settlement agencies—one in Halifax, one in Montreal, a couple in Toronto, and one in Vancouver. Any foreign worker we're looking to hire has to contact one of these settlement agencies. They put the settlement plan together for the foreign worker coming over.
I don't think someone working in a settlement agency in Toronto really understands rural New Brunswick and knows the challenges that someone would have working here. There are settlement agencies, such as a multicultural association in the town of Woodstock, New Brunswick, that could really benefit the foreign worker much better than going through one of those other agencies.
NDP
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
Do you know why your own region's agency is excluded in this process? Can you tell us why that is?
National Manager, Owner Operator Recruiting, Day & Ross Freight, Day & Ross Transportation Group
It is excluded for people who are outside the country who are wanting to come in. It is just part of the process with the Atlantic immigration pilot project.
NDP
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
So a policy change needs to take place with respect to that—to use local people, local talent, and so on.
National Manager, Owner Operator Recruiting, Day & Ross Freight, Day & Ross Transportation Group
Of course, yes.
Owner Operator Recruiter, Day & Ross Transportation Group
When they do arrive in Canada, one of the first steps we as employers are supposed to do is put them into contact with these people. If they've already built that relationship, it's another retention aspect to it.
NDP
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
I want to mention another immigration policy change, perhaps, that would be beneficial to the Atlantic provinces—and I would argue for the rest of the country as well—on the language issue. On an earlier panel, again, we had an employer from the aquaculture industry. The language requirement in the written and verbal formats is onerous for people who may not be sitting there writing reports and stuff like that all the time.
I wonder if you can shed some light on that language requirement. If those requirements were reduced, would that also enhance things for people in your industry?
Owner, Tisdale Trucking Ltd.
Well, they need to know English because they travel into the States. There has to be a certain level.