A recent report from Employment and Social Development Canada found a 94% compliance rate among employers participating in the Temporary Foreign Workers program.
“Of the employers inspected, 94% were ultimately found compliant, and 6% were found non-compliant,” the report, published Sept. 27, stated.
ESDC conducted more than 2,100 inspections between Apr. 1, 2022 and Mar. 31, 2023, resulting in 116 employers being found non-compliant.
Of the three examples given of egregious non-compliance, it singled out “an employer in the construction industry” – identified through compliance documents as Green West Building Maintenance Ltd. of Burnaby – as having been fined $53,000 and banned from hiring temporary foreign workers until February 2028 “for failing to provide adequate wages and working conditions.”
It was one of 93 employers fined a total of $1.54 million in period for violations, and one of seven issued a temporary ban on hiring workers through the program.
Other companies that fell afoul of inspections included BD Construction Ltd. of Surrey, fined $28,000 for failing to keep documents and breaking provincial laws related to the employment of foreign workers, as well as AFF Construction Ltd. of Abbotsford, C&T Concrete Forming Ltd. of Langley and Sunview Electrical Ltd. of Surrey, each fined $15,000 for failing to provide documents as requested.
All told, companies in B.C.’s building sector accounted for 13 of the 116 cases of non-compliance, but industry associations say that doesn’t paint the full picture.
“It’s disheartening to think there are people treating people like that,” said Chris Gardner, president of the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association. “The fact that they were found out, they were fined and they’re not going to be able to take advantage of the program for a five year period is good.”
However, tapping temporary foreign workers is essential for many businesses, including those in the construction sector, because of a lack of skilled domestic workers. While permanent residents are preferred, conditions don’t always allow this.
“It’s about employers who have been, up until recently, facing significant shortages of skilled workers and saying somehow we’ve got to find them,” Gardner said.
Canada hosted 204,700 temporary residents holding work permits through the TFWP, according to ESDC. These workers represented roughly one per cent of the total labour force.
BC Construction Association president Chris Atchison said the sector encourages full compliance with employment regulations, but would like to see employers make more frequent use of the federal skilled trades and category-based draws.
The creation of a BC immigration stream which would invite skilled tradespeople to apply for permanent residency and grant them entry without tying them to a specific job offer would also help, Atchison said.
“The Temporary Foreign Workers program is not a good fit for BC’s construction industry,” he explained. “It brings workers in on a temporary basis, and ties them to a single employer. It offers workers a precarious status, and insufficient protection.”
While the federal government has take steps to expand workers’ path to permanent residency under the program, the recognition of credentials under the current system is a further hurdle.
“[This] excludes Red Seal trades such as electrical, where certification is compulsory,” Atchison said. “What the construction industry needs is qualified workers, including skilled tradespeople and trained journeypersons, who will come with their families to settle in B.C. and become part of the construction sector’s stable workforce.”
Statistics Canada estimates the B.C. construction sector employed 222,900 workers in September.
