(1)    Yes we are currently involved in litigation with Employment and Social Development Canada regarding issues related to the suspension of LMOs in the food services sector. We cannot comment on the specifics of any case.

(2)    The NOC Codes affected as far as we know are listed below and does extend beyond fast food restaurants.

(3)    We cannot know how long this suspension will be in place.

(4)    Yes legal action may be an option if appropriate depending upon your individual circumstances.

Thank you,

Communications Department

Bellissimo Law Group  |  Citizenship & Immigration Lawyers

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The CIIP newcomer involvement includes three components:

1. Orientation (where newcomers are informed about job prospects, job readiness, job search, and job retention).
2. Personalized Planning (focuses on integration decisions, as well as the dos and don’ts before and after arrival in Canada).
3. Online advice (provides online resources from partner organizations as an integration platform for prospective immigrants).

The program assists immigrants in preparing for the Canadian labour market by providing them with:

• Career Planning and Job Search;
• Advice to help them consider options and make decisions that are right for them and their families;
• Language Assessment and Upgrading;
• Education Institutions; and
• Essential Skills that they will need to better integrate into their communities.

Since 2007, more than 13,000 prospective immigrants have registered with CIIP and more than 9,000 have graduated from the program. The program is currently available in numerous cities in the following countries: The Philippines China, India, and the United Kingdom.

Additional service delivery locations may include: Bahrain, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Finland, Indonesia, Ireland, Japan, Kuwait, Malaysia, Nepal, Norway, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Sweden, United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.

The post Canadian Immigrant Integration Program first appeared on Bellissimo Law Group.

Temporary foreign workers looking to go to Saskatchewan as drivers will not need to apply for an LMO if they are bilingual.  This greatly reduces the time and stress it takes to bring a foreign worker over.  While many employers weren’t aware of this rule, it could certainly make life easier now.

Click here to learn more about LMOs.

The post Bilingualism an Asset When it Comes to LMOs first appeared on Bellissimo Law Group.

• Labour Market Opinion-exempt Work Permits for Occupations in the Oil, Gas, Mineral Exploration and Mining Industries in Yukon
  • Positions for workers at mine and mineral exploration sites, positions in the service and supply sector of this industry.

• LMO-exempt Work Permits for Occupations in the Tourism/Hospitality Industry in Yukon
  • Positions will vary across sectors. Tourism and Hospitality in Yukon will include, but is not limited to, such businesses as tour operators, overnight accommodations, dining establishments, seasonal tourist attractions, and tourist transportation.

These pilots will run initially for one year – operating from August 1, 2013, to July 31, 2014. The Government of Yukon, along with the Canada-Yukon Working Group on Temporary Foreign Workers, will monitor and evaluate the program over time to assess the effectiveness and efficiency of its implementation and the overall impact on Yukon’s labour market.

Employer Eligibility

Yukon employers in the Oil, Gas, Mineral Exploration and Mining Industry or the Tourism/Hospitality Industry must apply with the Yukon Government if they wish to participate in these pilot projects.To qualify for the YTFWP, employers

• must be registered and operational in Yukon as a business, industry association or municipal, First Nation or Territorial government;
• must demonstrate to the Yukon government that they cannot find qualified Canadians or permanent residents to fill the position required;
• must be a small- or medium-sized company in the Tourism/Hospitality industry or the Oil, Gas, Mineral Exploration and Mining industry; and
• must be hiring for short-term employment of no less than two (2) and no more than twelve (12) months.

Click here for more information

The post Yukon Temporary Foreign Worker Pilot Program designed to facilitate the entry of Temporary Foreign Workers first appeared on Bellissimo Law Group.

The Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development, Diane Finley and The Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, Jason Kenney,  announced reforms to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP). The legislative, regulatory and administrative changes are effective immediately and will:

• require employers to pay temporary foreign workers at the prevailing wage by removing the existing wage flexibility;
• temporarily suspend the Accelerated Labour Market Opinion process;
• increase the Government’s authority to suspend and revoke work permits and Labour Market Opinions (LMOs) if the program is being misused;
• add questions to employer LMO applications to ensure that the TFWP is not used to facilitate the outsourcing of Canadian jobs;
• ensure employers who rely on temporary foreign workers have a firm plan in place to transition to a Canadian workforce over time through the LMO process;
• introduce fees for employers for the processing of LMOs and increase the fees for work permits so that the taxpayers are no longer subsidizing the costs; and
• identify English and French as the only languages that can be used as a job requirement.

“Canada is experiencing significant skills shortages in many sectors and regions, and Canadians must always have first crack at job opportunities when they become available,” said Minister Finley. “The purpose of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program is to help fill genuine and acute labour needs and we have been reviewing the program to ensure that goal is met and Canadian workers are never displaced.”

These changes will strengthen and improve the TFWP and ensure that employers make greater efforts to hire Canadians before hiring temporary foreign workers.   As part of the ongoing review of the TFWP, the Harper government will seek input from Canadians on further changes, to ensure that the Program is working in the best interests of Canadian workers and businesses. Cross-Canada consultations will be held over the coming months with businesses, industry and trade organizations, unions and others on additional changes to the TFWP.

Source

The post Reforms to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program – first appeared on Bellissimo Law Group.

In my interview with Kathy Tomlinson of the CBC I confirmed that Canadians should not be losing their jobs.  Although I cannot comment specifically on the RBC, iGATE story, in its simplest terms foreign workers come to Canada in one of three ways.   In each instance Canadians should be protected, execution and interpretation aside, the rules are in place.

(1)   Labour Market Opinion Process

One, and this is by far the most common avenue, is through the Labour Market Opinion(LMO) Process where an officer from Service Canada assesses the need for a foreign worker and the job offer on a number of rigorous factors including (a) Genuineness, (b)  Neutral or positive effect on the Canadian labour force, (c) Employers must comply with federal and provincial laws (d) Officers can undertake a retroactive assessment of the past 2 years to ensure wages, working conditions & occupation are substantially the same (STS) as when the LMO was issued (e) Must assess justified exemptions to STS and (f) If not, employer can be placed on a 2 Year Black List.

In assessing the factors regarding the effect on our Labour Market an Officer must further look to (a) job creation/retention for Canadian Citizens (CC) and Permanent Residents (PR) (b) creation or transfer of skills and knowledge (c) to fill a labour shortage (d) wages are consistent with prevailing wage rate (e) reasonable efforts to train or hire CC or PR’s – advertising, (f) effect on any labour dispute. LMO-based work permit is the default rule for temporary foreign workers, unless an exemption applies. The exemptions are meant to be quite specific.

(2)   No Work Permit or LMO Required

In these cases an immigration officer from Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) determines if the person(s) entering Canada are business visitors (without directly entering the Canadian labour market),  foreign representatives and their family members, military personnel,  foreign government officers,  performing artists (buskers, WWE wrestlers, rodeo contestants, circus, as examples – note that a band performing at bars, or actors in a Canadian theatrical production, on the other hand, would require both a work permit and LMO),  athletes and team members (NHL Players, professional and amateurs, including coaches and trainers, coming to participate in sports activities or events),  public speakers,  news reporters and media crews, emergency service providers (for preserving life and property, at time of flooding, natural disasters, fires, or medical emergency) and on campus employment.

(3)   No LMO, Work Permit Required- Canadian interests: significant benefit to Canada, reciprocal employment, or charitable/religious work

Within this third group a work permit is still required (at border/Visa Office) and issued by CIC officers.  With respect to “Significant benefit” – this category is intended to provide flexibility in issuing work permits where LMOs are not available, and a specific exemption is not applicable, but the balance of practical considerations argues for the issuance of a work permit in a time frame shorter than would be necessary if obtaining an LMO. It is intended to address those situations where the social, cultural, and/or economic benefits to Canada of issuing the work permit are so clear and compelling that the importance of the LMO can be overcome. The law is clear that it should not be used to try to circumvent the LMO process.  This category includes: entrepreneurs, self-employed candidates seeking to operate a business in Canada, intra-company transferees (professionals, specialized knowledge workers, etc) must be employed, retained for 1 year with company – transferring their expertise and emergency repair personnel (i.e. personnel whose admission required to carry out emergency repairs to industrial or commercial equipment in order to prevent disruption of employment).   “Reciprocal employment” –International Experience Canada program (i.e. working holidays), academic exchanges and “Charitable or religious work” include those carrying out duties for a Canadian religious or charitable organization, so long as not the workers are competing directly with Canadians in the labour market.  Others may enter pursuant to Fair trade agreements (International Agreements) – NAFTA, GATS.

Multi-national companies can transfer workers usually termed an intra-company transferee (ICT) – usually under the significant benefit category under which such workers are LMO-exempt because they are considered to enhance the overall competitiveness of Canadian entities in overseas markets.  It is generally more of an exceptional category, and the workers must be executives, senior managers or those with specialized knowledge. A work permit under this category (as specialized knowledge workers) can be renewed for up to 5 years, which also makes it appealing.  So whatever the point of entry to Canada an assessment as to impact on Canadians must be considered by either Service Canada or CIC officers.  As a side note, when the 2013 budget was introduced on 21 March 2013, the Federal Government announced some changes to the TFWP – the objectives in these changes are to push companies away from relying on foreign workers and to seek Canadians for the jobs. They are proposing longer advertising periods, and in more places, a processing fee for the employer applying for an LMO, the removal of requirements in job ads that the person speak a foreign language, etc.  So although I cannot answer the question are Canadians losing their jobs at RBC to foreign workers, no system is infallible and execution and interpretation can be wild cards but the system is robust and rigorous.  All said and separating ourselves from sometime visceral responses, there remains great need for foreign workers in many areas and the law is structured to protect Canadian labour.  If Canadians here or in any case lose their jobs to foreign workers it will not go unnoticed. It will be interesting to see how this all unfolds.

The post RBC – Are Canadians Losing Their Jobs? first appeared on Bellissimo Law Group.

Effective April 25, 2012, HRSDC/Service Canada is implementing a new Accelerated Labour Market Opinion (A-LMO) Initiative. This new Initiative applies to employers hiring temporary foreign workers in higher skilled positions such as: management, professional and technical occupations.

The 2 main objectives of the new A-LMO Initiative are:

• improving the integrity of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program and labour market outcomes;
• responding to the employers’ need for more efficient and timely LMO processing.

To be eligible to participate in the A-LMO Initiative, employers must:

• have been issued at least 1 positive LMO in the previous 2 years;
• have a clean record of compliance with the Program within the last 2 years;
• not have been the subject of an investigation, infraction or a serious complaint; and
• not have any unresolved violations or contraventions under provincial laws governing employment and recruitment.

This new A-LMO Initiative introduces efficiency measures by reducing the amount of paper-burden on employers in the application process, and by introducing attestations for specific assessment criteria that can be reviewed through a subsequent compliance review. In addition to the attestation-based assessment, HRSDC/Service Canada will provide an A-LMO based on:

• the genuineness of the job offer;
• the wage offered to the temporary foreign worker;
• whether the job offer is likely to fill a labour shortage.

If the employer is deemed eligible, HRSDC/Service Canada will issue an opinion, within 10 business days, based on the employer’s agreement to follow the necessary Program requirements and the A-LMO assessment criteria. In addition, employers ma

Please be advised that at the present time, the Initiative does not apply to the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program, the Agricultural Stream and occupations in the film and entertainment sectors.
The Initiative is currently not implemented in the province of Quebec.

Contact us today to see if you are eligible!

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