By Zak Vescera, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

B.C. businesses are hiring a record number of temporary foreign workers as they struggle to fill jobs.

The latest federal data show there were more than 32,200 people in B.C. under the federal government91裸聊视频檚 Temporary Foreign Worker Program at the end of 2022, more than Ontario, which has more than twice B.C.91裸聊视频檚 population.

It91裸聊视频檚 a sign that companies 91裸聊视频� especially restaurants, farms, construction firms and retailers 91裸聊视频� are increasingly reliant on importing workers. They point to a tight labour market, with B.C.91裸聊视频檚 unemployment rate at 4.2 per cent in December.

91裸聊视频淚t worries us, but in a good way,91裸聊视频� Labour Minister Harry Bains told The Tyee.

91裸聊视频淚t means our economy is booming. It91裸聊视频檚 running on all cylinders, and we have more jobs than people available.91裸聊视频�

The federal Temporary Foreign Worker Program allows Canadian businesses to hire foreigners for up to two years if they can demonstrate they were unable to hire a Canadian resident for the position.

Those employers are also required to register with the provincial Employment Standards Branch. In 2021, the branch received 2,955 applications from employers. In 2022, it received more than 12,300, over 10,000 of them in the last four months of the year.

The surge is partially attributable to new federal regulations in September that urged businesses to register with provincial labour departments and follow their rules.

But industry representatives say there is growing demand for foreign labour, particularly in sectors like hospitality, construction and agriculture where companies are struggling to hire and retain staff.

Some industry associations say foreign workers have become vital to their businesses as they compete for employees in a tight labour market. Others, though, say they would much rather hire workers with a clear path to residency, unlike temporary workers who generally only stay in the country for one or two years. Critics of the program say workers are poorly paid and vulnerable to exploitation.

91裸聊视频淭he Temporary Foreign Worker Program often places workers in vulnerable positions, at the mercy of their employer,91裸聊视频� BC Federation of Labour president Sussanne Skidmore said. 91裸聊视频淎nd the same is true of migrant and undocumented workers of all kinds, who play a critical role in key areas of our economy.91裸聊视频�

Employment and Social Development Canada says there is growing demand for those workers because of the nation91裸聊视频檚 low unemployment rate. The program received more than 5,000 applications per month in October 2021, the department said. By November 2022, that was up to more than 8,000 applications a month.

In B.C., the program is often associated with agriculture, and farm workers make up the largest category of employee sought by companies.

But The Tyee91裸聊视频檚 analysis of data from the first three quarters of 2022 also show mounting demand for cooks, carpenters, general labourers and retail assistants as those sectors struggle to find staff.

In the period examined by The Tyee, almost 8,000 approved positions were for general farm workers. The second biggest category was cooks. B.C. businesses got the green light to hire nearly 3,000 in the first three quarters of 2022. Food service supervisors came in third place, with more than 2,100 applications.

91裸聊视频淚f you were to phone any business owner, they would tell you the biggest issue was the labour shortage,91裸聊视频� said Ian Tostenson, the president of the BC Restaurant and Foodservices Association.

Tostenson said that91裸聊视频檚 consistent with what his association hears from their roughly 3,000 members across B.C. The service industry struggled to keep staff during the early years of the COVID-19 pandemic as it weathered restrictions and a plunge in sales. Now, it91裸聊视频檚 struggling to recruit.

91裸聊视频淭he question becomes, how do you fill the void?91裸聊视频� Tostenson said. In recent years, Tostenson says his association has retained an immigration consultant to facilitate hiring foreign workers. 91裸聊视频淲e91裸聊视频檝e probably brought in the last several years close to 3,000 skilled foreign workers into our industry,91裸聊视频� he said.

But recently, Tostenson says, they91裸聊视频檝e hit delays. The provincial government brought in new rules in 2020 requiring employers hiring temporary foreign workers to register with the Employment Standards Branch, part of a bill meant to protect rights of those employees. But the recent surge of applications has caught the branch off guard.

91裸聊视频淯p until September or so on last year, they were pretty steadily [receiving] 200 to 250 applications,91裸聊视频� Bains said. 91裸聊视频淚n October they went up to 4,000, and now it91裸聊视频檚 hovering around that.91裸聊视频� The branch, Bains said, is prioritizing applications from sectors like agriculture, given the constraints of the growing season.

Tostenson said some of his members report months-long hold ups. He91裸聊视频檚 called on government to temporarily scrap the requirement to apply to the province.

91裸聊视频淭hey91裸聊视频檙e completely overwhelmed, and we are completely underwhelmed by their response,91裸聊视频� he said. 91裸聊视频淲e can91裸聊视频檛 go to the next stage in the immigration process, which is the federal government, until that certificate is approved.91裸聊视频�

Chris Atchison, president of the BC Construction Association, views the numbers with some concern. Construction companies are hurting for workers; his industry projects more than 27,600 job openings in the sector by 2027.

But Atchison doesn91裸聊视频檛 see the Temporary Foreign Worker Program as a solution.

91裸聊视频淲e91裸聊视频檝e always said that the temporary foreign worker model in construction should only be used if there is a pathway to permanent residency. We are not a sector that is wanting to bring people in for short periods of time and send them home,91裸聊视频� Atchison said. Most foreign workers are on closed contracts for a specific boss at a specific place for a specific length of time.

91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 not a desired option. It91裸聊视频檚 a last resort,91裸聊视频� Atchison said.

On paper, temporary foreign workers enjoy the same protections as any other British Columbian employee. In practice, critics say workers are vulnerable to exploitation with little ability to negotiate their conditions of work.

Wages for temporary foreign workers are determined by the federal median wage; a cook in B.C., for example, would be paid $16.25 an hour. Workers who pick fruit would be paid just $16.05 an hour. The vast majority of those workers are on closed permits, meaning they must work for a specific employer in a specific role.

Hugo Velazquez, a senior manager at the Vancouver non-profit MOSIAC, says workers can apply for an open permit if their employer abuses them. But they have to document and provide that proof, which takes work and time.

91裸聊视频淚n the meantime, they have no income and they have nowhere to live,91裸聊视频� Velazquez said. MOSAIC has seen a surge in demand for its services for temporary foreign workers, Velasquez said, including a new program that offers emergency support to migrants who have lost their job or housing. 91裸聊视频淚t91裸聊视频檚 growing exponentially. All the time we have more clients,91裸聊视频� he said.

MOSAIC has called for reforms to the program, Velazquez said, including automatic open work permits for workers in the program and tougher sanctions for employers who break the rules.

91裸聊视频淭hey could still be very productive as part of the workforce of B.C., but they could probably change employers easily when they91裸聊视频檙e not respected,91裸聊视频� Velazquez said.

The single biggest driver of demand for temporary foreign workers continues to be agriculture. In 2021, B.C. welcomed more than 10,000 temporary foreign agricultural workers, Statistics Canada said, compared to just 2,200 in 2007. Of the top 10 employers of temporary foreign workers in B.C. that The Tyee identified in the first three quarters of 2022, nine of them were farms or greenhouses. And demand continues to grow.

91裸聊视频淓mployers who have been successful in hiring domestic workers in recent years just aren91裸聊视频檛 able to find those people anymore,91裸聊视频� said Reg Ens. Ens is the director of the Western Agriculture Labour Initiative, which works as an intermediary between government and farms to develop labour policies for temporary foreign workers.

The program, Ens said, has become vital to many B.C. farms. But it has also drawn criticism because of the treatment of some of those workers, who depend on their employers for housing as well as wages.

Berenice Diaz Ceballos, Mexico91裸聊视频檚 consul general in Vancouver, says thousands of Mexican workers come to the province each year for the growing and harvesting seasons. Ceballos has heard stories of 91裸聊视频渆xcellent91裸聊视频� farmers who treat employees well and even host parties on Sept. 16, Mexico91裸聊视频檚 Independence Day. But her consulate has also identified long-standing issues with workers91裸聊视频� rights, particularly the housing provided by farmers. At one point, she estimated 60 to 70 per cent of farms visited by consular authorities had inadequate housing.

91裸聊视频淭hey don91裸聊视频檛 have mattresses. The workers sleep on the floor. In other cases, there is a very worrisome situation where there are no emergency exits or sprinklers inside of the houses,91裸聊视频� she said.

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