QUESTION PERIOD — Ministry of Labour
Temporary Foreign Worker Program
February 9, 2023
Welcome, minister.
A recent documentary entitled Essentiels really resonated in Quebec. It is about temporary foreign workers who work hard to harvest our fruits and vegetables, and who are essential to our farmers. It shows migrant workers to whom the Canadian government has issued closed work permits, which don’t allow them to change employers. These captive workers often find themselves at the mercy of unscrupulous employers, who are in a position to abuse their workers.
As minister, you have the power to change the regulations and issue open work permits that would let workers change employers and provide a path to permanent residency. Why not do that? This is about human rights.
Senator, I thank you for the question. Sometimes my title belies more jurisdiction than I actually have. By way of accuracy, as a minister per se, this would not fall under my jurisdiction. However, as a minister of the Crown, I take account for the decisions that are made at the table. Would I have some say in this? I absolutely will take responsibility for that.
The government does recognize the importance of the temporary foreign workers. They are extremely important to food producers and processors. A number of departments have been working to simplify the processes to make sure we facilitate the safe entry of many of the workers who are there. We are getting our heads around working with the Department of Agriculture, the Department of Immigration and with my colleague Minister Qualtrough at Employment Services on how we deal with this.
We do not want people to be vulnerable and not protected in this country when they perform such important work.
