Citizenship and Immigration Committee on May 5th, 2021

[Jasraj Singh Hallan, Conservative, Calgary Forest Lawn, AB]

Thank you, Madam Chair, and thank you to all the witnesses today.

I'd like to hear a little bit more about the processing delays. Over and over again, we hear from a lot of people that there are already so many delays when it comes to processing applications. With more announcements now being piled on by immigration, people are concerned that those processing times are going to be pushed even further back.

To the NCFA and anyone from the chamber, can you please talk a little bit more about what your concerns are with those delays, and what kind of red tape you're seeing?

[Casey Vander Ploeg]

I'll be brief. Yes, the processing times, delays, rejected applications and having to resubmit are all part of this frustrating administrivia that employers have to deal with.

We've suggested two things that might be changed to help this out. The first is to incorporate a trusted employer status within the temporary foreign worker program, so that those employers who have a good record with foreign workers could get their applications expedited. We could hold back on delays and increased turnaround times.

The second idea is to draw a distinction between those coming into the temporary foreign worker program who are truly temporary and seasonal, and those who are applying for full-time permanent work in the agriculture stream, who will transition out of the temporary foreign worker program and into permanent residency. We think that those are two options to improve the program and help correct this situation.

[Brandon Ellis]

Thank you for the question. I will answer on behalf of the chamber.

We would also support a trusted employer designation. We have a similar program under the Atlantic immigration pilot program, and we think that it would be good in other parts of the country as well.

The delays I've been hearing a lot about around the region are primarily in the entry-level workforce. For example, there's a Tim Hortons in Happy Valley-Goose Bay in Newfoundland and Labrador that has to begin their application a year in advance prior to any worker going there. They do not have access to workers under express entry due to the skill level of the work. It is creating exceptional delays for them. They take between 12 and 18 months to get a worker there. I've also heard the same for some long-term care homes within the region.

Some of the delays we're experiencing are primarily due to the skill level and to government not necessarily recognizing that employers need access to a labour market at all skill levels.

[Jasraj Singh Hallan, Conservative, Calgary Forest Lawn, AB]

Thank you so much for that. I've been hearing the same thing from all the groups that I've been talking to. Usually it's the employer who's left scrambling after all these big announcements are made because there's no real plan or there's no real help for them.

For example, I got a call today from an employer who said his entire workforce might have to take the entire day off tomorrow because they're going to have to apply for the newly announced express entry program. That's a huge concern. Right when the announcements were made, there was this big panic of having English classes filling up because people had to take them just to catch up to that portion of getting accepted.

I'll open it up to both of you again. Are you hearing concerns from employers about this new program that's being released tomorrow and the burden or the panic that it has caused for employers?

[Casey Vander Ploeg]

Jolayne, do you have any thoughts on that?

[Jolayne Farn]

Yes. There are quite a few employers concerned about this, as there are going to be many who want to get into this program but there's so much red tape when you try to get into it. For us, we have many who are trying to get into English classes too, to be able to be accepted in this program.

[Brandon Ellis]

At this time we have not heard any feedback on the new express entry streams.

[Jasraj Singh Hallan, Conservative, Calgary Forest Lawn, AB]

Thank you very much for that.

With what we currently have, we're also seeing delays with the new quarantine measures, where some people are waiting for more than 20 days for a test to come back. Can you talk a little bit about how much of a negative impact this has on employers?

They're already spending so much money to bring people here. Can you talk about the burden and what we can do to get rid of some of this red tape?

[Jolayne Farn]

I can speak on behalf of the National Cattle Feeders. We have had long delays in getting tests back for our employees. We've had to pay 30 hours per week while they're in quarantine. That is a cost that we've had to incur because of the long waits in testing. That's what I can speak about on our behalf. I'm not sure about the chamber.

[Brandon Ellis]

It's not so much in the form of testing, but the extraordinary costs to get an employee into the workforce here in Atlantic Canada now are quite substantial.

[The Chair, Liberal, Salma Zahid]

I'm sorry for interrupting, Mr. Ellis, but your time is up.

We will now proceed with Mr. Schiefke for six minutes.

[Peter Schiefke, Liberal, Vaudreuil—Soulanges, QC]

Thank you very much, Madam Chair.

Let me start by thanking all our witnesses for joining us today, including Mr. Dubé.

Mr. Dubé, it is a shame that we cannot hear you, but we will gladly read your document.

My line of questioning today will start with Ms. Somerville from the Atlantic Chamber of Commerce.

Both of you talked about challenges relating to the costs associated with bringing in temporary foreign workers during COVID-19. I'm wondering if you could speak to the subsidies that were put forward by the federal government, and whether that had a positive impact on you and your members.

[Sheri Somerville]

I can speak to that, certainly. I think what we're seeing is that, overall, any amount of time that people have to spend in quarantine and quarantine hotels certainly ups the costs. Any subsidy the government provides at this time, especially considering all the added costs and the losses that businesses are currently incurring as a result of 18 months of shutdowns and then being back in business, is always very helpful. Nonetheless, they still have to quarantine. They still have to spend time in the hotels.

Right now I don't have any hard and fast numbers on where those costs lie. I can anecdotally say that the subsidies would probably be very welcome, but it certainly doesn't negate the costs they're already incurring.

[Peter Schiefke, Liberal, Vaudreuil—Soulanges, QC]

I understand.

Several witnesses testified in previous committee meetings about having to incur these costs on an annual basis, the thousands of dollars required to put forward these applications. Many put forward the idea of having one application that would be good for multiple years because many of the workers keep coming back every year.

Is this something that you think would be beneficial to the members of the Atlantic Chamber of Commerce?

[Sheri Somerville]

Brandon, you can jump in if you'd like, but we have the designated employer program, which works very well in Atlantic Canada. If you think about it, anything that you don't have to do twice increases your efficiencies, and that's what you want: increased efficiency, increased efficacy, a reduction in the time intensity that employers and employees have to put in. Every lost day counts. You want to reduce that, so I would say, absolutely, let's try to get a program in place.

I know our colleagues at the Canadian chamber have talked about implementing the temporary program across Canada. We have had a very good experience with that in Atlantic Canada—I don't believe I'm overstating it—and it's a model that could be replicated. I believe our colleagues at the Canadian chamber had mentioned a NEXUS-like program. We have models we can replicate and take best practices from to help expedite processes and make it less time-intensive and reduce your red tape.

[Peter Schiefke, Liberal, Vaudreuil—Soulanges, QC]

The Atlantic Chamber of Commerce put out a tweet with regards to the program we put forward for temporary residency to permanent residency, speaking to the fact that you're happy to see that 90,000 people in Canada will be granted permanent residency, including farm workers. Your tweet was “The demand is strong for Canada’s 6 new immigration programs with nearly 1.5 million workers and students in Canada. Some 90,000 new permanent residence spots will be available beginning May 6.”

Is this a program you would like to see expanded upon, and would it be beneficial to the members of the chamber?

[Sheri Somerville]

I believe so. Quite frankly, we need more bodies in Atlantic Canada. We have an aging and shrinking population, and inclusive growth is part and parcel of our economic growth and the region's sustainability. Absolutely, I would say yes to that.

[Peter Schiefke, Liberal, Vaudreuil—Soulanges, QC]

Thank you.

For my last question, I'm going to turn my attention to the National Cattle Feeders' Association.

Ms. Farn, you mentioned something very interesting. You said that the workers who are processing the files are not as well versed as they should be with regard to farming. Could you be more specific and elaborate on what you mean by that, so that we can improve on the system and perhaps better educate and better inform those who are processing these important files?

[Jolayne Farn]

Sure.

When we submit the LMIAs, a job description is attached. That job description is very clear that when we bring calves in, we have to process cattle. They do not understand what that is. Processing cattle is putting an implant in their ear—a tag—vaccinating, ensuring their health and making sure that they're placed with food and water.

They don't understand low-stress cattle handling either. We have to explain and go through the whole process of what low-stress cattle handling is. Some have told me that they understand, but there's been such inconsistency from one officer to another, we spend a lot of time explaining. The outcome will affect the employer, because of that lack of knowledge.

[Peter Schiefke, Liberal, Vaudreuil—Soulanges, QC]

Thank you very much, Ms. Farn.

Madam Chair, how much time do I have left?

[The Chair, Liberal, Salma Zahid]

You have about 25 seconds.

[Peter Schiefke, Liberal, Vaudreuil—Soulanges, QC]

Okay.

Ms. Farn, I'll ask a quick question of you once again, or perhaps you, Mr. Vander Ploeg.

You put out a tweet that you're happy to see the 90,000 people in Canada temporarily now being granted permanent residency. Are you also in favour of an expansion of that program that was just put forward?

[Jolayne Farn]

With some changes....

Go ahead, Casey.

[Casey Vander Ploeg]

Jolayne mentioned some of the issues we have with the current 90,000, but the concept, the idea, of better improved pathways to permanent residency addresses a critical need that we've been raising on this file for years.

[The Chair, Liberal, Salma Zahid]

I'm sorry for interrupting. The time is up.