Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada’s priority is the well-being, safety and security of both newcomers and the staff of local service provider organizations.
In order to mitigate the impacts of COVID-19, service provider organizations are focusing on delivering critical resettlement and settlement services until further notice.
This includes providing income support and basic services for government-assisted refugees, support with medical appointments and interpretation, and offering crisis counselling to newcomers.
When possible, service providers are also providing non-critical services by telephone, email or online.
Settlement service provider organizations have access to both federal and provincial settlement funding. Provincially-funded services are used to support temporary residents, such as temporary foreign workers.
IRCC has heard from service providers that the “crisis stage” has passed and they are now focused on providing ongoing support and monitoring.
Supplementary messages
IRCC has worked closely with Canada’s network of more than 500 settlement service provider organizations, including umbrella organizations through the National Settlement and Integration Council, as well as provincial/territorial counterparts, other federal departments, and key stakeholders to ensure newcomers continue to be well-supported and that services are adapted to meet their needs in the changing COVID-19 context.
Health, Safety and Security of Newcomers and Frontline Employees
IRCC has supported requests for an increase of up to 15% in wages for front line staff delivering critical in-person services from April 1 to June 30, 2020, with the possibility of extension.
We continue to work with community-based settlement organization to ensure that government-assisted refugees have access to accommodations and support upon arrival in Canada to respect the 14-day isolation period of symptomatic travelers and upon final destination for asymptomatic travelers.
To overcome language barriers in accessing up-to-date information and directives related to COVID-19, IRCC is translating information related to Public Health Agency of Canada, Finance Canada and Employment and Social Development Canada in key newcomer languages.
My Department is also working with Service Canada and the Canada Revenue Agency to offer webinars to provide information on federal benefits and supports to both newcomers and settlement agency front line workers in various languages. The first session was on May 5, 2020, where Service Canada and the Canada Revenue Agency gave presentations and responded to questions. The session had 500 participants and presenters. The session on May 13, 2020, was fully subscribed and had 1,000 participants. A dedicated webinar in French was held on May 14, 2020. The need for more sessions will be assessed going forward.
Flexibility in Settlement Program Delivery
IRCC has been responsive in introducing flexibilities in existing contribution agreements with settlement agencies to allow for immediate needs, such as the purchase of additional laptops and/or cell-phones that can be loaned to clients, to ensure that they continue to receive settlement and resettlement services.
IRCC has created a centralized email mailbox to respond to service provider organization questions regarding service delivery in the context of COVID-19. The mailbox will be monitored daily and response times will be within 3 business days.
Due to the unprecedented impacts on in-person programming, my Department has also given settlement agencies administrative guidance to decouple administrative funding as a result of unexpected slippage in the program delivery cost category.
Ongoing Engagement with Settlement Agencies
I have regularly engaged with the leadership of the national and provincial settlement organizations to understand the situation in communities across Canada, and to inform decision-making.
In addition, officials in my Department have held regular teleconference calls with the members of the National Settlement and Integration Council, which brings together a broad range of organizations involved in supporting the successful integration of newcomers.
A special, joint Settlement Sector-IRCC working group has been established to undertake targeted work on the immediate and medium-term needs of those organizations which provide essential services to resettled refugees.
Provinces and territories are informed of key developments related to the delivery of settlement services via teleconferences and sharing of relevant information by e-mail.
Supporting facts and figures
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada provides funding to more than 500 settlement service provider organizations across Canada to deliver pre- and post-arrival settlement services.
On April 1, 2020, the Department entered into a new set of five year funding agreements with over 500 organizations across Canada to deliver a comprehensive set of settlement services across the country.
We have added 79 new organizations, including 40 francophone organizations, to deliver settlement services across Canada. A particular focus was placed on ensuring rural and remote communities were served, as well as the provision of targeted measures such as mental health supports, and supports for LGBTQ newcomers.
In 2018-2019, nearly 520,000 clients accessed at least one settlement service. We have seen a 20% increase in the use of settlement services over the past two years, demonstrating the importance to providing direct supports and services to recent immigrants and refugees.
Background
On March 16, 2020, IRCC advised service provider organizations to suspend all non-essential services and focus on the provision of critical services to vulnerable clients only, including government-assisted refugees, until further notice. They were also encouraged to provide non-critical services by alternate means (such as virtual delivery and telework), where possible.
As of March 16, 2020, IRCC has been communicating and engaging with the Settlement Sector representatives through weekly National Settlement and Integration Council teleconferences. The main objectives of the calls are to update the sector on the Government’s latest COVID-19 announcements and provide an opportunity for the sector to raise concerns and engage in discussions.
