The provincial government of Alberta announced recently that they will shut down the temporary foreign worker program starting November 1, 2020. Thousands of Albertans lost their jobs since the start of the pandemic. That is why the province shut down tits Temporary Foreign Worker Program so that more than 1,000 jobs can be made available to residents in the province.
A Filipino-Canadian business owner, Nelson Rodriguez was not surprised with the announcement. At an interview with Mr. Rodriguez, he said that “It’s actually expected. Reason for that is, of course when COVID-19 hit and lockdown was implemented, to be honest with you, in my industry, it killed a lot of business and me, personally, it has affected by the way , you know us operating our business. Some of our locations are still closed. So, with that, we must be really be careful with the staffing level, as much as we would want to save each position. Again, business is not normal. Forty to sixty percent were down. Just imagine that, it’s a very significant number.
Statistics Canada reported that close to 470,000 foreign nationals have been issued work permits in 2019. Temporary foreign workers in Canada have played an increasingly important role in the Canadian labour market in recent years. However, their contribution to the labour market could be severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nathaniel Baltazar entered Alberta on a work permit seven years ago. He is not happy with the announcement. Mr. Baltazar said “ Naka apply ako ngayon for permanent residence pero nahihirapan pa rin ako ipa approve siay or dahil nga sa nangyayari ngayon dito sa Alberta dahil sa pandemic. Sana naman magkaroon ng option or magkaroon ng program ang government of Alberta para sa mga katulad ko na matatagal na dito sa Alberta.
As on November 1, 2020, dozens of additional occupations categories will be added to the “Refusal to Process List”, removing the vast majority of occupations from the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFW). These changes will impact 475 occupations in sectors such as accommodation and food services, retail trade, transportation, construction and professional, scientific and technical services.
The changes do not impact occupations in the following sectors namely: Agriculture, Caregiving, Technology and Emergency Response.
Alberta introduced to new immigration programs: The International Graduate Entrepreneur Immigration and Foreign Graduate Start-Up Visa streams under the Alberta Immigrant Nominee Program (AINP).
Recently, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced plans to admit 401,000 new permanent residents next year, a target that if met would be a historic number of newcomers.
IRCC reported that in 2019, Philippines placed third in the top 1o source countries of immigrants.
If you have questions regarding the above article you may contact Marjorie at [email protected]
Source: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC)
A word of caution: You should not act or rely on the information provided in this column. It is not a legal advice. To ensure your interests are protected, retain or formally seek advice from a Regulated Canadian Immigration Consultant (RCIC) in good standing of ICCRC. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of RCIC’s.
