Fast Tracking Skilled Labour Foreign Hires.

[winterlog]

"But then we are not as smart as you are." Hybrid

 

Well said!

[shakey]

Well you must have at least broken the code who we are not going to vote for Hybrid. I'll give you a hint, it rhymes with pot preservative. Also you haven't received a raise in 4 years because of the foriegn hire policies. It's not that hard to figure out. Even for somebody of lower intelligence like myself.

[helijoe]

below you will find a couple of links on the avcanda forum site pertaining to this issue. One link is for the list of companies that have applied for pilots. You would be surprised as to which companies are on the list and the personnel they are looking for.. eg Wood buffalo looking for a 1000hr pilot for ft Mac,CHC looking for pool pilots for Goose Bay. These are pretty stantard flying positions and they cannot find canadian pilots for these positions. Perhaps if these companies would upgrade Canadian pilots they would not need to go outside the country. At one time these positions were for new pilot (100hr) . there is no shortgae of pilots in canada, We have thousands of ^{unemployed commercial pilots and the flight schools are turning them out by the hundreds every year. What we need is an industry and government commitment to get these kids workiing.}

^{We should be taking care if our own first.}

 

 

https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/105225711/LMO%20Pilot%20applications%202013.pdf

http://www.avcanada.ca/forums2/viewtopic.php?f=54&t=94314

[Seeker]

It will be interesting to see what our next prime minister, Justin Trudeau, will do?

[Whitestone]

Under the disguise of democracy (a really cute word, but not much else...) we the people elect our government officials yet most of the policy that is written and implemented is penned by life long bureaucrats. Then too it is the rich, be it corporations or individuals who dictate and direct government policy because it's all corrupt and driven by greed.

 

An interesting development though today, it seems with enough bad press the government will make changes to it's foreign worker hire policy. An article in the paper about canceling food worker permits (Tims, etc.) and not filling any presently in the system. I am guessing this will be the case till the media fervor dies down...

 

What is needed is to bring national press attention to bear on the problem, not bitching about it on an obscure helicopter forum (no offense intended Vertical) So if anyone has a cousin who works a major newspaper chain, now's your chance to stir the pot.

 

W.

[putz]

Wow interesting set of documents..

 

I think my favorite is "we did not have one response to our recruitment drive thru ads on KIJJI AND CRAIGSLIST" Why didn't I think to look for a helicopter pilot job amongst all the sex/wife swap ad's on craigslist???

 

Oh and the " no helicopter pilot in Canada with specialized office computer skills to do our admin work for $17hr " is another good one.

 

And these applications get approved???

[Twin Helix]

Something about squeaky wheels? I guess if someone feels they were overlooked by a particular company they could give it a shot. Likely won't achieve much in the short term, but maybe if enough wheels squeak...

 

From the Official website:

 

Abuse of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program will not be tolerated. To report misuse or abuse, contact:

 

Service Canada Confidential Tip Line

1-866-602-9448

integrity@servicecanada.gc.ca

 

Anonymous tips can also be provided to the Employer Contact Centre: 1-800-367-5693

[ragbagflyer]

I sent an email to the College of Professional Pilots asking if they have taken a stance on this issue. I'll be sending a letter to Minister Kenney and my MP as well. I encourage the rest of you to do the same because simply ranting on Vertical will very little if the discussion doesn't get beyond this website. There's an opportunity to gain some traction here if the pilot's side of the aviation industry speaks with a united voice. Let's use the current news cycle to our advantage. I'm unaffected by this policy (fixed wing bush pilot), but it pains me to see it affect your industry and severely kneecap the deveolpment of a functional domectic pilot market. HAC certainly isn't going to speak for you on this so find somebody that can.

[Heizenberg]

I sent an email to the College of Professional Pilots asking if they have taken a stance on this issue. I'll be sending a letter to Minister Kenney and my MP as well. I encourage the rest of you to do the same because simply ranting on Vertical will very little if the discussion doesn't get beyond this website. There's an opportunity to gain some traction here if the pilot's side of the aviation industry speaks with a united voice. Let's use the current news cycle to our advantage. I'm unaffected by this policy (fixed wing bush pilot), but it pains me to see it affect your industry and severely kneecap the deveolpment of a functional domectic pilot market. HAC certainly isn't going to speak for you on this so find somebody that can.

I did the same quite some time ago and got this lengthy reply:

 

On behalf of the Honourable Jason Kenney, Minister of Employment and Social Development and Minister for Multiculturalism, I am responding to your email, which the office of the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, the Honourable Chris Alexander, forwarded to him on February 5, 2014. You wrote concerning the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) and foreign helicopter pilots. I regret the delay in replying.

 

The TFWP is legislated through the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act and Regulations and is jointly administered by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) and Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC). ESDC reviews applications from employers who wish to hire temporary foreign workers and issues an opinion on the likely impact these workers would have on the Canadian labour market. Meanwhile, CIC reviews applications from temporary foreign workers, issues visas and authorizes work permits.

 

The TFWP assists employers in filling their genuine labour requirements when qualified Canadians and permanent residents are not available. The Program is driven by employer demand and is an option of last resort for employers to address immediate skills and labour needs on a temporary basis. In fact, employers who wish to use the TFWP must comply with strict program criteria to ensure that the entry of a temporary foreign worker will not have an adverse effect on the Canadian labour market.

 

As part of the labour market opinion (LMO) assessment process, ESDC looks at available labour market information for the region and for the occupation, and considers the following:

 

· the efforts made by an employer to recruit or train Canadians or permanent residents;

· whether hiring a foreign worker will result in transferring skills or knowledge to Canadians, or in creating or retaining employment for Canadians;

· whether a temporary foreign worker is likely to fill a labour shortage;

· whether the wages and working conditions are in accordance with the norms for the occupation;

· whether the employment of a foreign national is likely to adversely affect the settlement of any labour dispute that may be in progress; and

· whether an employer-employee relationship exists in which the foreign worker agrees to work full time for an employer for a specific wage or salary.

 

A negative LMO will be issued if an assessment indicates that hiring a temporary foreign worker will have a negative impact on the Canadian labour market or if an employer has not complied with TFWP policies. The LMOs and work permits are issued for specific durations, and workers are expected to return to their home countries once their work permits have expired.

 

Over the last several months, ESDC and CIC have been doing a comprehensive review of the TFWP in order to ensure that Canadians and permanent residents are first in line for available jobs, and that the Program is aligned with today’s labour market needs.

 

As part of the review, the Government announced several changes, which include:

 

· requiring employers to pay temporary foreign workers at the prevailing wage by removing the existing wage flexibility;

· temporarily suspending the Accelerated Labour Market Opinion process;

· increasing the Government’s authority to revoke work permits and suspend, revoke and refuse to process LMOs;

· ensuring that employers who rely on temporary foreign workers have a firm plan in place for a transition to a Canadian work force over time through the LMO process;

· introducing a $275 processing fee for each temporary foreign worker position that an employer requests through an LMO so that taxpayers are no longer subsidizing the costs;

· restricting employers from requiring languages other than English and French as a job requirement, unless they can demonstrate that another language is a bona fide requirement for the job;

· adding questions on the LMO application form to ensure that the TFWP is not used to facilitate the outsourcing of Canadian jobs;

· modifying the advertising requirements, to almost double the length and reach of employers’ advertising efforts; and

· amending the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations to strengthen program integrity by providing enhanced inspection powers to verify employer compliance with the program requirements. These amendments came into force on December 31, 2013.

 

The results of these changes will strengthen and improve the TFWP to support Canada’s economic recovery and growth, and ensure that more employers hire and train available Canadians before turning to temporary foreign workers.

 

ESDC takes the integrity of the TFWP very seriously. Under theImmigration and Refugee Protection Regulations, the Government of Canada has the authority to review the actions of employers. Let me assure you that the Department is following up on your concerns to the full extent of its authorities.

 

I hope that this information is helpful in addressing your concerns. Thank you for writing and for sharing this information.

 

Yours sincerely,

 

 

Alexis Conrad

Director General

Temporary Foreign Worker Directorate

Skills and Employment Branch

Employment and Social Development Canada

[shakey]

I received the exact word for word response as well.