Prince Edward Island has chosen not to participate in a federal initiative that permits rural employers to increase the number of low-wage temporary foreign workers they hire. The decision comes after Ottawa announced a temporary adjustment to raise the cap on low-wage temporary foreign workers from 10% to 15% of a workplace for rural employers in participating regions due to ongoing labor shortages.
According to a statement provided to CBC News, Prince Edward Island stated that, after evaluating the available information and considering the needs of local employers, they concluded that partaking in the temporary measures was not necessary at this time. Louis-Philippe Gauthier, the Atlantic vice-president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, expressed disappointment over the province’s decision.
Gauthier emphasized the challenges faced by rural employers in sectors such as accommodation and food services, where local individuals are not responding to job openings. The province confirmed that they had collaborated with some rural employers during their assessment of Ottawa’s proposal. The federal government’s data indicated that the measure would have impacted 14 employers and approximately 46 positions on Prince Edward Island, predominantly in accommodation and food services.
Meanwhile, Gauthier stressed that migrant workers are crucial for sustaining operations in various businesses, especially in restaurants and customer service. He highlighted that small and medium-sized enterprises, already struggling to recruit and retain workers, may face additional pressures without access to more labor support.
Gauthier further debunked the notion that increasing wages alone could address the labor shortage issue. He pointed out that other factors, such as an aging population and a reluctance among locals to take certain jobs, contribute to the ongoing need for temporary foreign workers. Despite concerns about foreign workers displacing young Canadians in the job market, Gauthier argued that the situation is multifaceted and not solely about job availability.
Joe Byrne, from the Migrant Worker Resource Centre at P.E.I.’s Cooper Institute, commended the province’s decision, suggesting that reducing the number of migrant workers could alleviate vulnerabilities faced by these workers. Byrne advocated for reforms in the closed work permit system to provide migrant workers with more stability and flexibility in their employment arrangements.