Madam Speaker, indeed, we are talking about Bill C-10, and we are talking about the temporary foreign worker program around Bill C-10.
In 2010 more than 67,500 temporary foreign workers were issued work permits for high skilled occupations. Among these, more than 21,000 work permits were issued to workers under international agreements, such as the North American free trade agreement. With regard to lower skilled occupations, just over 50,600, just over one-quarter, were admitted to fill vacancies in positions which included live-in caregivers and seasonal agricultural workers.
Given the diversity of fields for which temporary foreign workers are hired, their importance to the Canadian economy cannot be overstated. We know that many workers take great risks in leaving their homes to travel to Canada to work, and for that they should be rewarded, not punished.
Some temporary foreign workers may have weak language skills and very little money. They may have no family or friends in Canada. They may also fear the police and government. With no one to turn to, this can make them more vulnerable to abuse than other workers.
For those people who are applying to enter our country as temporary foreign workers, Canada represents a new start, but some of these workers' hopes for a new future are extinguished by those who seek to manipulate their vulnerable situation.
Canadians gave us a strong mandate to keep our streets and communities safe by getting tough on crime. This includes preventing crime and exploitation of vulnerable people, both locally and nationally. We made a campaign commitment and we are ready to honour that commitment.
Unfortunately, the opposition does not feel the same way. I guess that is why I was just interrupted. Instead, it has chosen to delay this bill and delay the protection of vulnerable people at home and abroad. The opposition should stop its shameful delay of this bill and help our government prevent human smuggling and the exploitation of vulnerable foreign workers. That is where Bill C-10 comes in.
By introducing the safe streets and communities act, our government is sending a clear message that we will not let the valuable be exploited. That is why we have introduced changes to ensure that the temporary foreign worker program continues to meet short-term labour shortages while strengthening protections for these workers.
Employers seeking to hire temporary foreign workers, including live-in caregivers, are now assessed against compliance with program requirements before authorization to hire them can be granted. What this means is that employers found to have violated workers' rights will be refused authorization. There was a clear need for clear regulations to better protect workers from poor treatment by employers who would mistreat them.
Bill C-10 will help us to further protect vulnerable foreign workers. That is because this legislation grants immigration officers the authority to deny work permits to those who are at risk of humiliating and degrading treatment, including sexual exploitation. For example, while exotic dancing is a legal occupation in Canada, there are reports linking the exotic dancing industry with abuse and exploitation of its employees.
As the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration has said, there is a lot of evidence that many exotic dancers being brought in to work on temporary work permits are being managed by organized crime. These women are then exploited through coerced activity in the sex trade. The ability to deny work permits to vulnerable workers would enable the government to protect applicants by keeping them out of these types of situations.
Instructions would potentially address not only high risk work settings, but also characteristics that would make foreign workers particularly vulnerable to abuse and exploitation. For example, the minister might be aware of evidence suggesting that massage parlours are settings of high risk for the sexual exploitation of workers. At the same time, other characteristics might make some workers more vulnerable than others. Women workers might be at more risk than men. Also evidence might demonstrate that registered massage therapists are less likely to be victimized than those with no qualifications.
The instructions would not target specific work permit applicants directly, rather they would apply to applicants of a particular occupation or a group of applicants who can be identified as vulnerable to abuse or exploitation. As I said, ministerial instructions would be based on objective evidence that clearly outlined an identified risk of abuse or exploitation. Ministerial instructions would also be published in the annual report to Parliament and in the Canada Gazette.
Given these parameters, it is very clear that these amendments stand on the principles of openness and accountability.
I want to assure the House that the legislation includes many checks and balances to ensure that the ministerial instructions are applied objectively. Immigration officers would need to apply the instructions issued by the minister on a case-by-case basis and each application for a work permit would be assessed on its own merits. Any decision to refuse a permit would need to be supported by evidence that showed a risk of humiliating or degrading treatment. Also, any decision by an immigration officer to refuse a work permit in Canada would require the concurrence of a second immigration officer. Should individuals be refused, it would be possible that they would be granted a work permit if they applied to come to Canada to work in another occupation or a different situation that would not pose the same risk.
Without these amendments, Citizenship and Immigration Canada would have no discretionary authority to deny a work permit to someone who met all the requirements to enter Canada, even if the immigration officers believed there was a strong possibility of exploitation and abuse. It would be highly irresponsible for the Conservative government to continue to admit temporary foreign workers to work in such abusive situations.
As the government, it is our responsibility to ensure that people who come to Canada can pursue their new lives without fear for their safety. Bill C-10 would help us protect vulnerable foreign workers so they could achieve their dream of a new future. That is why, in the beginning of my speech, I had to go over the premise of foreign workers and why it was so important to protect these most vulnerable people, especially when they would be in professions or situations that could lead to very strong exploitation, especially, sexual exploitation and forced labour.
