Mr. Chair and members of the committee, good morning.
Thank you for this opportunity to answer questions about the Government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
In partnership with other departments and agencies, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship has taken a number of important measures over the last few weeks.
From the earliest days of this crisis, travel restrictions have been imposed to limit the spread of the virus. These are necessary and important to ensure the health, safety and security of Canadians.
To mitigate the negative effects of these restrictions, the Government took two immediate actions. We ensured clients weren’t disadvantaged in their applications by extending facilitation measures for the submission of documents. We also added targeted exemptions to the travel restrictions to support family reunification, returning non-Canadian residents and critical foreign workers to contribute to the economy.
I think it is important as well to clarify that my work in this area as it intersects with that of other Ministers. We are working in very close collaboration, but there are distinct accountabilities and mandates.
For example, I work closely with Minister Blair on border issues - border management falling under Public Safety and CBSA.
Another example is Temporary Foreign Workers, which is a shared responsibility between Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, and Employment and Social Development Canada.
There are two broad streams of temporary worker programming:
First, the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, which is administered by Employment and Social Development Canada, and involves a Labour Market Impact Assessment, or “LMIA”.
Second, there is the International Mobility Program, through which my department issues work permits, and which doesn’t have the LMIA.
The majority of people in this program are young people with open work permits gaining international experience. This results from reciprocal agreements we have with other countries to let Canadian youth do the same.
As most of this would not be deemed essential travel we are advising International Experience Canada applicants to delay their travel until further notice.
Most of the workers that have been talked about in the context of the COVID-19 situation, like the seasonal agricultural workers and the seafood processors, come under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.
We have senior officials with us from Employment and Social Development Canada who are well placed to respond on some of these matters.
I know my time is limited, so as per the Committee’s request, let me focus on the issue of Temporary Foreign Workers.
Temporary Foreign Workers
The Government is prioritizing work permit processing for critical occupations, such as those in the agricultural/agri-food and health care sectors.
Last month, over 11,000 temporary foreign workers arrived in Canada on charter flights to work in our agriculture and food industry.
To safeguard the continuity of trade, commerce, health and food security for all Canadians, we have implemented an exemption to our travel restrictions to allow temporary foreign workers in agriculture, agri-food, seafood processing and other key industries to travel to Canada.
While we are facilitating the entry of temporary workers into Canada, once they arrive further supports are required and the Government has made progress there as well.
On April 13, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada announced $50 million to help all food production and processing employers put in place the measures necessary to follow the mandatory 14-day quarantine period required of all workers arriving from abroad.
For workers who were already in Canada and have been impacted by COVID-19, we’ve introduced additional strategies to address work rights, status restoration and timelines for documentation.
Those who have applied to extend their permit to remain legally in Canada while awaiting a decision on their application are able to benefit from what we call “implied status.” Many workers can continue to work in this situation.
Naturally, all of these measures rely on compliance and the Government introduced new regulations to that end, which came into force on April 20.
The Government is working very closely with farmers and other employers on the need for isolation, and the vast majority have been very keen to comply. These regulations are in place to ensure the requirements are enforceable.
Employers have a responsibility to the health of their workers as well as to public health. Employer associations continue to work collaboratively with the Government to figure out how they can help fulfil both.
Anyone authorized to enter Canada temporarily and who fails to follow an isolation order could be found inadmissible, issued a removal order, and barred from returning for one year.
Failing to comply with the new employer compliance conditions could result in a range of penalties, including monetary penalties of up to a $1 million and bans from hiring foreign workers.
Conclusion
Mr. Chair, we are allowing foreign workers to enter Canada during this time of travel restrictions for many because we recognize their vital importance to the Canadian economy, including food security for Canadians and the success of Canadian food producers.
The intent with the measures I have talked about today – the facilitation, the financial supports and the regulations – is to ensure that the enormous benefits that temporary foreign workers bring to our economy are not lost in the disruption of the pandemic, even as we adjust our programs to ensure the health and security of all Canadians.
I know I have just touched on some of our work in this busy time, so thank you, Mr. Chair and committee members, and I am happy to answer questions.
