CIMM – Employer Compliance Regime – December 05, 2023

Key Facts And Figures

• From the inception of the International Mobility Program (IMP) in 2015, to October 31, 2023, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has imposed 144 Administrative Monetary Penalties (AMPs), totaling over $679,000.
• In total, more than $1.4M in compensation has been paid to foreign workers as a result of inspections under the IMP. These figures do not include other types of compensation made to foreign workers in forms that are not easily quantifiable (such as insurance coverage).
• As of October 31, 2023:
  • 315 employers are ineligible to access either the IMP or the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) due to non-payment of their AMP.
  • One employer has received a permanent ban as a result of an inspection under the TFWP.
  • 19 employers have active temporary program bans as a direct result of inspections under both the IMP and TFWP. These program bans range from one year to 10 years.

Key Messages

• Canadian employers hiring foreign workers on employer-specific work permits are subject to an employer compliance regime to promote safe and fair working conditions for foreign workers and to help prevent program misuse.
• These employers are subject to inspections in both the TFWP and the IMP to verify compliance with regulatory conditions, including compliance with employment standards legislation, providing a workplace free of abuse, and ensuring that the foreign worker is working in accordance with their job offer.
• Non-compliant employers may be subject to consequences which include AMPs and temporary or permanent ineligibility from hiring temporary foreign workers under these programs.

Supplementary Information

• In September 2022 new regulations came into force to further enhance the employer compliance regime by improving protections for temporary foreign workers (TFWs) and strengthening the Government’s ability to effectively conduct inspections. Some changes include prohibiting employers from charging and recovering fees associated with the recruitment of foreign workers; ensuring workers receive information regarding their employment rights in Canada; and ensuring workers are provided with a signed copy of their employment agreement.
• Over the course of an inspection, when IRCC finds that the employer had been non-compliant with the Regulations, the employer is given the opportunity to justify their non-compliance (as a procedural fairness step). An employer may be found Compliant with Justification if they are able to demonstrate that the reason for their non-compliance can be justified using the justifications included in the Regulations (for example, an error made in good faith by the employer, a change in federal or provincial law, or a change to the provisions of a collective agreement), and if they remedy the effects of the violation (for example, compensating the foreign worker for unpaid wages).
• Since program inception in 2015 until October 31, 2023, 2,911 Compliant with Justification decisions were rendered by IRCC. Of the 2,911 decisions, 1,476 pertained specifically to working conditions.
• From program inception in fiscal year 2015-2016 to October 31, 2023, more than $975,000 in compensation has been paid to foreign workers as a result of employers not providing the same wages, occupation, or working conditions as set out in the offer of employment. In total, including all program conditions (for example, the requirement for employers to pay wages to foreign workers if they are forced to isolate under the Emergencies and Quarantine Act), more than $1.4M in compensation has been paid to foreign workers as a result of inspections under the IMP. These figures do not include other types of compensation made to foreign workers in forms that are not easily quantifiable (such as insurance coverage).
• If the employer is not able to demonstrate that the reason for their non-compliance is justified, the employer may be subject to an AMP and/or a ban.
• For the AMPs issued under the TFWP, IRCC would defer to Economic and Social Development Canada as they oversee employer compliance inspections under the TFWP.
• Any employer who has received a ban as part of their consequence for non-compliance under either the IMP or the TFWP is ineligible to use either program until the period of their ban has elapsed.
• Further to a program ban, an employer may be ineligible to access the IMP or TFWP as a result of non-payment of an AMP.