Thank you very much, Sheri.
Thank you very much to the committee members for having us here today, and to you as well, Madam Chair.
My name is Brandon Ellis. I am the senior manager of policy for the Atlantic Chamber of Commerce. As was mentioned, we're also joined by our chief executive officer today, Sheri Somerville.
The Atlantic Chamber of Commerce represents 94 chambers of commerce and boards of trade, and the interests of 16,000 businesses across four Atlantic provinces.
Throughout the pandemic, and in the time predating it, we have seen immigration play a vital role in the economic stability of our region. Immigration programs have allowed Atlantic Canadian communities to grow their population and have seen businesses diversify their skill sets and their workforces as well.
The Atlantic chamber is pleased to see the recent commitment by government to increase immigration targets by over 400,000 per year for the next three years. We're also pleased to see former leaders making positive contributions to the discussion on immigration, such as the Right Honourable Brian Mulroney with his recent commentary suggesting that Canada needs to triple its population by the end of the century.
In order to grow and have a robust workforce, we must begin taking down the barriers for employers and newcomers. Labour market impact assessment processing times have generally decreased throughout the pandemic, yet many employers, particularly in agriculture, as our fellow witnesses have just relayed, have said that more communication from government is needed as travel restrictions continue to evolve.
It has also become more costly for employers to recruit immigrant workers due to the rising cost of flights, the implementation of quarantine hotels, the provision of food to workers while they're quarantining, and in Atlantic Canada, the mandatory two-week quarantine restrictions across the four provinces. All of these costs are, in most cases, at the expense of the employer.
Furthermore, LMIAs and slow permit processing times have contributed to an increasingly burdensome process for recruiting entry-level workers. While express entry programs can see immigrants come to Canada in a relatively short time frame, there are examples of employer attempts to recruit entry-level workers—who do not qualify for the express entry category—taking between 12 to 18 months within our region.
It is not only permit processing that adds to the administrative length and burden. Additional factors include needing to establish an account with the Government of Canada's job bank, getting vacancies posted, the required one-month advertising period, and then the LMIA processing, as well.
Government should establish collaborations with businesses and communities to assist immigrants and international students as they attempt to connect with the workplace. There must be an increase in resources to help immigrants settle in their new communities. Immigrants will be put in a position to succeed when they are welcomed as members of the community. To facilitate that, there must be adequate resources that are allocated to ensure long-term success.
The Atlantic chamber believes that immigration will be instrumental in the economic recovery of Canada. Government must focus on programs to increase experiential learning, accelerate immigration, recognize foreign credentials, simplify seasonal work programs and enhance settlement services and retention strategies.
In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, we must ensure that we will have a robust labour market with access to qualified workers. This will ensure that we not only recover but also grow.
We would like to thank the Government of Canada and the citizenship and immigration committee for the important work that you are doing. Immigration is vital to the future of Canada, and we must all work collaboratively to ensure that immigrants are in a position to succeed upon arrival. We must also actively work to reduce the regulatory burden and wait times for immigrants and employers.
We welcome any questions that the committee may have.
Thank you, Madam Chair.