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Temporary Foreign Worker Program

Monitoring Initiative Fact Sheet

1. What is the purpose of the Monitoring Initiative?

The Monitoring Initiative is designed to provide opportunities for you, as an employer, to demonstrate your compliance with the terms of employment as specified in your Labour Market Opinion (LMO) confirmation and associated annex, to temporary foreign workers, in anticipation of future changes to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations. It will also allow you to gain a better understanding of your responsibilities as an employer of temporary foreign workers.

The Initiative will enhance employer compliance by:

  • allowing employers who are using the Temporary Foreign Worker Program to participate voluntarily in the initiative following the arrival of temporary foreign workers in Canada;
  • fostering positive and consistent relationships between employers and Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC)/Service Canada;
  • providing education and outreach to employers to encourage compliance;
  • providing timely resolution of employer compliance issues through corrective measures and reasonable timeframes to demonstrate compliance through employer compliance reviews; and
  • collecting up-to-date labour market information.

2. Can all employers using the Temporary Foreign Worker Program participate in the Initiative?

No. The Monitoring Initiative is currently only open to employers applying for temporary foreign workers through the “regular” LMO process (i.e., skilled workers) and the Pilot Project for Occupations Requiring Lower Levels of Formal Training (NOC C and D). It currently does not apply to employers in Quebec, to employers using the Live-In Caregiver Program, to employers participating in the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program, or those requiring Arranged Employment Opinions.

HRSDC/Service Canada encourages you to participate in the Initiative, in order to build a history of past program compliance that will assist us in assessing your future LMO applications.

3. If I agree to participate, will my Labour Market Opinion application be processed faster and will it influence the outcome of my application?

Regardless of whether you participate or not, your application will be assessed against the six factors enumerated in S.203(3) of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations. In anticipation of regulatory changes, HRSDC/Service Canada is moving to more systematically assess employers’ past compliance with the terms of employment.

By participating in the Monitoring Initiative, you may have an opportunity to demonstrate compliance in advance of filing a new LMO application. That is, the information gathered through an employer compliance review process will be used to help us assess future LMO applications.

Employers who have not demonstrated past compliance through an employer compliance review may be asked to demonstrate compliance when they submit a new LMO application. This may result in processing delays as HRSDC/Service Canada officers seek additional information to assess compliance.

4. What will I be asked to do as a participant?

As a participant, you have voluntarily consented to an Employer Compliance Review by HRSDC/Service Canada. Under such a review, you may be asked to submit documentation demonstrating that you have respected the terms of employment (e.g., wages, working conditions, etc.) for the temporary foreign workers you hired. The documentation requested will vary depending on the skill level of the position(s) in question. If you employ temporary foreign workers in managerial (NOC O) and higher-skilled (NOC A & B) occupations, you will be asked to demonstrate that:

  • you are paying the prevailing wage;
  • your temporary foreign workers’ main job duties are consistent with the occupation specified in the LMO confirmation;
  • your temporary foreign workers are working full-time hours as defined on the LMO confirmation; and
  • you are providing safe working conditions.

If you employ temporary foreign workers in occupations requiring lower levels of formal training (NOC C & D) occupations, you will also be asked to demonstrate that:

  • a signed employer-employee contract is in place;
  • you are providing private health care coverage until the temporary foreign worker is eligible for public health insurance;
  • you have registered the temporary foreign worker with the appropriate provincial workers compensation/workplace safety insurance plans;
  • you have paid the transportation costs for the worker to travel from his/her country of permanent residence to the location of work in Canada and for the return to the country of permanent residence;
  • you helped the temporary foreign worker find suitable, affordable accommodation; and
  • you have made no effort to recover any hiring costs from the temporary foreign worker.

Documentation requested could include payroll records, proof of health coverage, and proof of payment of transportation costs (if applicable).

The employer compliance review process may take as little as 14 days or as many as 55 days, depending on how quickly you submit the required documentation.

5. What happens if I am found not to be upholding the terms of employment to a temporary foreign worker?

In cases of an initial finding of non-compliance, HRSDC/Service Canada will work with you to undertake appropriate corrective measures, depending on the specific circumstances of your case. In most cases, once you have undertaken the agreed-upon corrective measures, and submitted proof to this effect, you will be deemed compliant. No further action would be taken.

However, if you do not demonstrate that you have undertaken adequate corrective measures, you will be found non-compliant. Details concerning instances of non-compliance may be considered in the assessment of future LMO applications.

In serious cases of non-compliance, HRSDC/Service Canada may revoke confirmed LMOs, for which no work permits have been issued, particularly where the conditions that supported them are found to be no longer valid (e.g., misrepresentation, or a change in circumstances or in the labour market that affects the application).

Subject to information sharing authorities, we may also share information about non-compliance with provinces, territories, and other government departments and agencies.

6. What happens if I agree to participate but change my mind later?

Participation in the Monitoring Initiative is voluntary. If you wish to withdraw, please notify Service Canada in writing of the reason for your decision. This will help us refine the design of the Monitoring Initiative and associated communications products.

Any information collected up to the point of withdrawal will be kept on file by HRSDC/Service Canada.

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Date Modified:
2011-02-11