temporary foreign workers Archives | Page 3 of 6

The money will be aimed at improving living quarters for temporary foreign workers, the federal government said. Photo: Getty Images

Agriculture workers not mentioned in TFW rule changes

Food processing sees foreign worker limit reduced by ten per cent; construction, healthcare exempted

By Geralyn Wichers March 22, 2024

The federal government announced Thursday that, effective May 1, some sectors would be allowed no more than 20 per cent of their workforces to be made up of temporary foreign workers (TWFs) brought in via the low wage stream—down from 30 per cent since 2022.

File photo of seasonal agriculture workers from Jamaica at Suncrest Orchards near Simcoe, Ont. (Farmtario photo by Diana Martin)

UN rapporteur calls Canada’s TFW system ‘breeding ground for modern slavery’

Tomoya Obokata says government needs to better protect worker rights and provide better residency path

By GFM Staff September 14, 2023

A United Nations special rapporteur on modern slavery has called out Canada’s temporary foreign worker (TFW) programs, including those in the agriculture sector. Tomoya Obokata, who was appointed by the […] Read more

File photo of an Ontario cherry orchard. (UpdogDesigns/iStock/Getty Images)

Pilot plan to cut red tape for reliable TFW employers

Farm employers can apply starting next month

By Dave Bedard August 17, 2023

Canada’s temporary foreign worker (TFW) program is set to give farms a head start in an express lane expected to cut the annual paperwork for that program’s most “trusted employers.” […] Read more

The federal government recently announced a two-year extension to the Agri-Food Immigration Pilot program that aims to allow temporary foreign workers to achieve permanent residency.

News

Federal government extends Agri-Food Immigration Pilot program

Pathway to permanent residency program for TFWs given two more years

By Diana Martin June 7, 2023

Temporary foreign workers and their families can apply to the Agri-Food Immigration Pilot until May 2025 to get permanent Canadian residency. Sean Fraser, federal minister of immigration, refugees and citizenship, […] Read more

Seasonal Agriculture Workers from Jamaica at Suncrest Orchards near Simcoe, Ont.

News

Canada cleared of seasonal agriculture worker slavery allegations

Migrant worker groups say the report lacks balance

By Diana Martin June 7, 2023

The Jamaican government has cleared Canada’s Seasonal Agriculture Worker Program of allegations that it has systematic slave-like conditions, following receipt of an independent investigation. In August 2022, two Jamaicans employed […] Read more

News

TFW program in good shape despite PSAC strike

By Diana Martin April 27, 2023

Concern is rippling through Canada’s agriculture sector as the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) labour disruption drags on. PSAC represents 155,000 workers, most of whom walked off the job […] Read more

Workers in the JBS beef plant at Brooks, Alta. appear in a screen shot from a 2018 corporate video. (JBS Canada video screengrab via YouTube)

Changes to TFW program to expand worker availability

Workplace LMIAs now valid for 18 months

By Dave Bedard April 10, 2022

The federal government is boosting the availability of temporary foreign workers (TFWs) to ag and other understaffed sectors under a list of policy changes announced Monday. Employment and Workforce Development […] Read more

(Sollio Co-operative Group video screengrab via YouTube)

Business, Markets/Business

Resource-rich Canada grapples with key labour issues

From agriculture to the oilpatch, lack of labour is driving up wages

By Nia Williams, Rod Nickel December 6, 2021

Canada’s economic recovery from the pandemic is being hampered by labour shortages across industries ranging from energy to aviation to agriculture, forcing companies to consider multiple salary hikes and offer […] Read more

Ken Forth, president of Foreign Agricultural Resource Management Services, said the federal government lacked planning by pulling funding to quarantine workers before the end of the growing season.

News

Feds halt funds to offset TFW quarantine costs

Agriculture organizations wanted extension to end of season

By Diana Martin September 20, 2021

Producers will bear the total cost of quarantining temporary foreign workers (TFWs) and seasonal workers in Ontario after Aug. 31. “As long as the quarantine act is in place, we […] Read more

News

Free COVID-19 course available for foreign workers, employers

Guides available in English, French and Spanish

By D.C. Fraser June 25, 2021

An online course is being launched to help producers and international farm workers protect themselves from COVID-19. The Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety (CCOHS) is offering the free […] Read more