INTRODUCTION

The Temporary Foreign Worker (TFW) Program is complex and multi-faceted, touching the lives of many Canadians, permanent residents, and foreign nationals. It is designed to facilitate economic growth by responding to labour market needs, while ensuring a balance is kept between the interests of businesses and those of the Canadian workforce.

The TFW Program was created in 1973 to allow employers to hire foreign nationals to fill gaps in their workforces on a temporary basis. The program has grown and been updated over the years to respond to Canadian labour market conditions. However, employers and temporary foreign workers have expressed long-standing concerns over various aspects of the program. Significant reforms announced in June 2014 have also had an impact on them. In February 2016, in response to feedback from various stakeholders with respect to the TFW Program, the Honourable MaryAnn Mihychuk, Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour, indicated that a comprehensive review of the program was imminent and that a study by a parliamentary committee could offer support in this regard.[1]

On 21 March 2016, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities (the Committee) adopted a motion to study the TFW Program, with a “focus on the current program and ways to improve it.”[2] The Committee held a total of five meetings between 11 May and 1 June 2016, during which time it heard from 47 witnesses, including representatives from two federal government departments, labour organizations, advocacy groups, industry associations, business representatives, as well as temporary foreign workers. In addition to these public hearings, the Committee received a total of 63 briefs.

Committee members are deeply appreciative of the insights and personal experiences shared by the various participants, and would like to sincerely thank them for their assistance in understanding program intricacies and potential reform options. The Committee listened carefully to the testimony placed before it and now reports on its findings.