2009-08-03
Globe and Mail
Unemployment has risen fast this year, but employers still bring in temporary foreign workers at a near-record pace. It is a sign that Canada isn't doing a good job of getting domestic job seekers to where a job is waiting. The country needs more nimble systems for matching job seekers to job openings elsewhere, and some incentives to ease the move.
The Globe and Mail
Unemployment has risen fast this year, but employers still bring in temporary foreign workers at a near-record pace. It is a sign that Canada isn't doing a good job of getting domestic job seekers to where a job is waiting. The country needs more nimble systems for matching job seekers to job openings elsewhere, and some incentives to ease the move.
It is not that foreign workers should be kept out; whether temporary or permanent, they are vital to Canada's future. Some meet specific skill shortages, and some jobs are ones Canadians often don't want; seasonal agricultural workers will still come.
The issue, rather, is helping Canadians move to the jobs they'd like to take. Labour mobility has long been an issue in Canada. There are pockets of labour shortages, despite unemployment. Filling some of those jobs with Canadians will matter if unemployment keeps rising. New jobs don't always appear where the laid-off live.
At present, we import the mobile, in the form of temporary foreign workers - not just fruit-pickers and nannies, but also pipe-fitters, truck drivers and kitchen workers. A record 193,000 work permits were issued last year, and demand has dipped only slightly this year. Those numbers may drop further if the recession persists, but Canada could do better at marrying its own unemployed to jobs.
Employers are still willing to pay extra costs to bring in workers because - with the help of recruiters - they can be more easily found abroad. But a matchmaker could help a firm looking for 10 welders in B.C, or 30 meat-plant workers in Brandon. Where is the temporary Canadian workers program?
Jobs must be advertised locally first. But when there is a request for outside workers, Ottawa's Human Resources department should move quickly to find people who fit the bill in Canada. If an employer is willing to fly in a foreign worker, they should be willing to do likewise for a Canadian.
Not everyone wants to move: Family ties, attachment to home, and the costs and risks of a move are discouragements. But shrinking the costs would mitigate risks.
The federal government budgeted $16.3-billion for employment-insurance benefits this year, but also $2.6-billion for EI job-training programs, delivered mostly by provinces. Where are the programs to encourage relocation?
In 2008, an expert panel on older workers, commissioned by Ottawa, called for the creation of a relocation benefit, paid out of EI job-training funds. The federal government proved unwilling to pick up that cost. But given that provincial governments cannot be expected to pay for cross-Canada mobility, the responsibility falls to Ottawa to craft pilot programs to help EI recipients relocate to work.
When Canadian employers look across the planet to fill a job in a recession, it's time to look harder at what stands in the way of recruiting Canadians, too.
Agriculture and horticulture workers, Occupations in services - Domestic work, Sales and service occupations - general, Trades, transport and equipment operators and related occupations - general, Natural resources, agriculture and related production occupations - general, and Labourers in food, beverage and associated products processing
Policy analysis
Public awareness
Canada, Ontario, Alberta, Manitoba, Quebec, British Columbia, Other provinces, Federal, Nova Scotia, and National relevance
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