Joe Oliver

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, our message to employers is clear and unequivocal. Canadians must always be first in line for available jobs. That is the basis of our temporary foreign worker program.

We have made reforms to the program, ensuring Canadians are first in line for available jobs. Our reforms include: authority to conduct on-site inspections; the ability to ban non-compliant employers; to put their names on a blacklist; to require employers who legitimately rely on the program due to lack of qualified Canadian applications to have a plan to transition to a Canadian workforce over time; to require employers to pay temporary foreign workers at the prevailing wage by removing the existing wage flexibility; adding questions to the employer LMO applications; and introducing fees for employers—

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, this government is focused on a low-tax plan for jobs and growth. Employment is a critical issue, and that is why we are proud and why Canadians are proud that there have been more than a million new jobs created since the depths of the recession.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, as we have said repeatedly, we have one of the best records of employment creation since the depths of the recession, with well over one million net new jobs.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, there are a variety of numbers, and we can get those numbers. I am not sure what the member opposite is driving at. He apparently has some numbers that he wants me to put on the record. He can put them on the record himself.

The point is that there are over one million net new jobs created in Canada since the depths of the recession. We have had one of the strongest growth rates in the G7.

The employment-to-population ratio is 72.3%. Perhaps that is the number that the member wants to put on the record.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, the total number of employed people in Canada as of April was 17.8 million people.

There were over a million jobs created in the economy: full time, 87%; high-wage industry, 64%; private sector, 83%.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, at the time it was 7%. It is now down to 6.9%.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, I do not have that number. I will be able to get it. There are a variety of numbers. I know the current numbers.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, I do not have that specific number, but we can get it for the hon. member.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, the increase in employment is over a million people from 2008 until the present time.

[Business of Supply, May 14th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, the unemployment rate in Canada now is 6.9%. It was 7% until fairly recently. The number of unemployed is 1.3 million as of April of this year.