Immigration packages expose staff in Canada to pretend jobs, abuse

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Samuel Gibson usually works the “worst” shifts — both late evening or early morning, typically again to again — at a nice eating restaurant in Ontario and hasn’t had a pay enhance in three years. His work-life steadiness is “horrible,” however he can’t stop as a result of his employers maintain the important thing to his future.

“This job is my best shot at becoming a permanent resident,” mentioned the 27-year-old chef who got here to Canada from South Asia in 2017 to check culinary administration. “I am a specialized chef today. There’s not a lot of people out there who can do what I do. (The employers) are just taking advantage of my situation.”

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Gibson (whose title has been modified to guard his identification) is pressured to work in what some are calling an exploitative setting as a consequence of latest adjustments in Canada’s immigration sector that would power 1000’s of extremely expert overseas staff to go away the nation or turn out to be undocumented by year-end.  

Because the scores required to qualify for the nation’s points-based immigration packages get increased, many overseas staff have been making an attempt to get extra factors to spice up their rankings. A method that may be performed is that if employers apply for a Labour Market Impression Evaluation (LMIA), a authorities doc that offers staff no less than 50 additional factors and results in a brand new work allow.

Canada has historically relied on immigration to spice up its economic system and the LMIA program permits corporations to rent momentary overseas staff both from overseas or from contained in the nation. An LMIA approval is meant to substantiate that no Canadian employee or everlasting resident is out there to try this particular job.

About 71,300 LMIAs had been permitted by the federal government within the first quarter this yr, in comparison with 63,300 throughout the identical interval final yr. The 13 per cent enhance suggests there’s an growing demand for LMIAs amidst the excessive cut-off scores, mentioned Stephen Inexperienced, managing companion at Inexperienced and Spiegel LLP, an immigration legislation agency. Most purposes had been for positions reminiscent of farm staff, cooks, food-counter attendants, truck drivers and development labourers.

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However as Gibson and others have came upon the laborious manner, the hunt for LMIA-supported employment may also push momentary residents in the direction of exploitation, pay cuts and even pretend jobs.

His employer requested him to pay $10,000 for an LMIA to cowl the prices related to the applying. The federal government charge is $1,000, although corporations additionally spend cash on promoting the job and utilizing legal professionals to submit the purposes. However the 27-year-old refused to pay and threatened to stop his job.

“I did that because they initially said they wouldn’t charge me at all,” he mentioned. “But as time passed and my work permit was nearing the expiry date, they started demanding money. They wanted me to be desperate. It doesn’t cost $10,000 for an LMIA. They were going to pocket a huge sum. I had made up my mind to leave Canada and get a job elsewhere.”

As time handed and my work allow was nearing the expiry date, they began demanding cash. They wished me to be determined. It would not price $10,000 for an LMIA

Samuel Gibson, a pseudonym for a overseas employee who desires to guard his identification

The chef’s menace, nonetheless, compelled his employers to renegotiate and each events finally agreed to pay $2,000 every. It was a greater deal for Gibson, however it was nonetheless unlawful since employers are imagined to cowl all the prices linked to an LMIA.

Gibson’s troubles didn’t finish there. With an LMIA-supported job, he additionally obtained a brand new work allow that doesn’t enable him to work for another firm aside from the restaurant that utilized for his LMIA. Beforehand, he had an open work allow that allowed him to work for the employer of his selection. As such, his present employers are ensuring they get again at him via pay cuts and back-to-back shifts.

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“They are bitter because they had to pay for half the LMIA,” he mentioned.

For now, Gibson plans to bear the brunt. The LMIA elevated his rating and helped him obtain an invite from the federal authorities in mid-July to use for everlasting residency. He nonetheless wants paperwork from his employers to use and your entire course of is predicted to take about six months, however he mentioned he’ll stop his present job as quickly as his standing adjustments. 

The influence of rising cut-off scores

There are a lot of immigration packages in Canada, however most momentary residents and foreigners residing exterior the nation attempt to immigrate as expert staff. These packages are managed by a web based system referred to as Specific Entry, which began a few decade in the past and gives potential immigrants with factors for his or her training ranges, work expertise, English and French language proficiency, age and different components.

The upper candidates rating — out of a complete of 1,200 — the extra probability they’ve of turning into everlasting residents, which finally results in citizenship. The system is designed in a approach to appeal to younger, expert individuals from all over the world.

For instance, candidates underneath 30 obtain the best potential variety of factors within the age class. Candidates additionally obtain factors for Canadian academic levels and work expertise, and LMIAs, though there gave the impression to be a comparatively lesser reliance on these up to now in comparison with immediately.

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Many momentary residents, reminiscent of college students, spend 1000’s of {dollars} on tuition and make investments three to 6 years of their lives in Canada — whereas they examine and earn a post-graduate work allow — with the hopes of receiving these extra factors to make the minimize and turn out to be everlasting residents.

Momentary residents aren’t promised a everlasting keep, however they’re influenced by the system’s stakeholders, reminiscent of overseas brokers, and even feedback made by politicians up to now decade, and infrequently assume they’re most probably going to make the minimize. The hike in cut-off scores, although, appears to ship a message that Canada goes to be extra selective in its immigration plans.

It’s actually miserable. I educated for eight months to get a everlasting job, however I needed to stop simply as I used to be about to earn the massive bucks

A 28-year-old practice conductor whose work allow ends in August

One cause why the cut-off scores are so excessive immediately is as a result of there are much more individuals competing for a restricted variety of everlasting residency spots yearly as a consequence of a report enhance within the variety of momentary staff and college students in Canada lately, immigration consultants say.

A brand new coverage launched final yr that permits the federal government to bypass the present immigration rating system and set decrease cut-off scores for sure teams, reminiscent of engineers, health-care staff and French audio system, has additionally performed a task in elevating the scores, analysts say. The result’s that the coverage leaves fewer spots for 1000’s of basic candidates who don’t match into these teams.

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The cut-off scores — at present across the 520s — have by no means been this excessive for therefore lengthy. The rating to beat in one of many attracts about three years in the past throughout the pandemic was simply 75. The unpredictable fluctuations have irked many current momentary residents, who discover it unfair that they don’t seem to be in a position to make the minimize when candidates who had been quite a bit much less certified did so within the latest previous.

Some economists have additionally warned that the steep enhance in cut-off scores might power many momentary residents with specialised skillsets to depart Canada, thereby additional hurting the nation’s struggling labour productiveness ranges, which have fallen in 12 of the previous 15 quarters.

For instance, a 28-year-old practice conductor who works for a railroad firm mentioned he’s planning to stop and go away Canada after his work allow ends in August for the reason that firm received’t apply for an LMIA. He discovered a enterprise proprietor who supplied him an LMIA-supported job in return for $40,000 earlier this yr, however he refused to pay.

“It honestly doesn’t make sense to spend so much money,” mentioned the practice conductor who got here to Canada in 2019. “It’s really depressing. I trained for eight months to get a permanent job, but I had to quit just as I was about to earn the big bucks.”

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Equally, a transit supervisor in British Columbia is on the hunt for an LMIA since his post-graduate work allow expired in mid-July. Some immigration brokers he spoke to mentioned he would want to pay a minimal of $30,000 to seek out an LMIA-supported job, with no ensures of success.

“I am at a loss as to what more I could have done differently,” mentioned the 33-year-old who got here to Canada in 2018. “I possess a strong educational background, I have worked as a transit supervisor — a role recognized as essential — for two years and earn a wage that falls within the high-wage bracket for the industry. I have diligently paid taxes and contributed to the economy.”

He has utilized for a customer’s report, which, if permitted, will enable him to increase his keep for a short interval. He mentioned he’ll attempt to search for an LMIA-supported job that “doesn’t cost him a fortune.”

Extra fines, extra bans

These examples present a rising demand for LMIAs has additionally led to a rise in fraudulent actions linked to the doc, some immigration consultants say.

That LMIA-supported jobs have been bought by brokers to overseas staff will not be new, however the common worth appears to have elevated in latest instances.

“I have heard of LMIAs being sold for $70,000 as well,” immigration marketing consultant Kanwar Sierah mentioned. “Unlike previous occasions, post-graduate work permit holders don’t expect the government to extend their work permits this time. Hence, the demand for LMIAs seems to have increased.”

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A post-graduate work allow is given to worldwide college students after they graduate. It’s not usually extendable, however the authorities did so throughout the pandemic to fill labour shortages.

Authorities information additionally means that extra employers are getting fined and banned for getting concerned in unlawful practices with respect to momentary overseas staff.

Between April 2023 and March 2024, Employment and Social Growth Canada (ESDC), which takes care of the LMIAs, levied $2.1-million price of fines in opposition to employers that violated guidelines whereas hiring overseas staff — that was 36 per cent increased than the earlier yr. As well as, 12 employers had been banned from hiring momentary overseas staff this yr, in comparison with seven final yr.

“Shortsighted policies” have allowed LMIA fraud to turn out to be a profitable enterprise in Canada, immigration marketing consultant Steven Paolasini mentioned. He lists three sorts of LMIA frauds current available in the market immediately.

The primary is when an employer doesn’t actually need to rent a employee, however applies for an LMIA for the monetary advantage of getting somebody to purchase it.

On this state of affairs, an employer creates a place, reminiscent of an administrative assistant, after which companions with a marketing consultant to get an LMIA permitted. The job is later bought to a overseas employee seeking to get the additional factors to turn out to be a everlasting resident for a worth that would go as much as $50,000, he mentioned. If every little thing goes in accordance with plan, the newcomer will get the additional factors and stop the job after turning into a everlasting resident.

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In case the conversion to everlasting residency takes time, the newcomer will nonetheless be proven as an worker on the firm on paper. To try this, the employee will likely be requested to not directly pay the employer money, which is able to then be deposited into the employee’s account and proven because the applicant’s wage. In the meantime, the employee will look to illegally earn money elsewhere. Paolasini refers to this because the payroll biking scheme.

The second sort of fraud entails employers that genuinely want staff of their firm and resolve to rent a marketing consultant to get them. The corporate and the marketing consultant could look to solely rent people who find themselves prepared to pay for the roles, which might exclude real job seekers, together with Canadians, everlasting residents and Indigenous individuals.

Within the third state of affairs, an employer could rent a overseas employee and find yourself paying the employee lower than what was initially promised within the employment supply. The employee could not need to protest with a purpose to keep away from dropping the job and an opportunity to turn out to be a everlasting resident.

Regardless of these points, most consultants agree that LMIAs are beneficial for the Canadian economic system and are required in sectors that want specialised staff and in people who undergo from a labour scarcity, reminiscent of well being care and development. Questions, although, stay in regards to the extent to which they’re required in different industries.

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“Maybe in some areas, the government needs to review its policy with respect to the issuance of an LMIA,” immigration lawyer Inexperienced mentioned. “The only way to get an LMIA is if an employer has tested the market and shown the position can’t be filled.”

It’s a ‘gold mine’

The federal authorities has mentioned that addressing LMIA fraud is a key precedence.

“Sectors identified as high risk for LMIA fraud are assessed more rigorously to validate the employer’s business operations and the human resource needs,” ESDC spokesperson Mila Roy mentioned in an e mail.

Nonetheless, a authorities officer who processes LMIAs for the ESDC mentioned the steps taken to test the validity of LMIA purposes aren’t sturdy sufficient to deal with the rising variety of fraudulent purposes amidst an growing backlog.

“Things have spiralled to the point where you can see the same few immigration consultants applying again and again,” mentioned the officer, who requested to stay nameless. “They are making new businesses that don’t even make sense, but they have documents supporting it from lawyers and chartered professional accountants.”

These consultants are going door to door, they mentioned, telling companies, “Hey, I can throw some temporary foreign workers here.”

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The official mentioned some huge consultants are additionally shopping for up companies to create extra pretend jobs — for instance, an agent who buys up daycares.

“She initially applies to get an early childhood educator, which makes sense and is likely to get an approval,” they mentioned. “But soon after, she will start applying for administrative assistants, cooks and other positions that don’t really make sense.”

The official describes the pretend LMIA enterprise as a “gold mine,” with “more and more people” becoming a member of in. With locations reminiscent of Toronto and Vancouver saturated, the corrupt community is now exploring cities which are additional away.

“That’s where we are seeing the most growth,” they mentioned. “In areas that we had never seen before.”

Even when LMIA processing officers are suspicious about sure purposes, they aren’t in a position to reject them with out “solid evidence,” the officer mentioned. And a lot of LMIAs that get rejected are as a consequence of points linked to the “burdensome” paperwork.

“If they are new, if they have never applied before and don’t have a consultant, they might make mistakes that other people know how to game. Those are the common ones that fail,” they mentioned.

The ESDC mentioned the feedback made by the officer didn’t “reflect the steps being taken to ensure the integrity” of the momentary overseas staff program and the safety of staff.

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“ESDC’s compliance regime regularly monitors employer obligations, and the Government of Canada recently strengthened the rules on this front, with more inspections and more fines being issued to non-compliant employers,” it mentioned in an announcement.

A transparent message to overseas staff

LMIAs usually tend to be bought exterior Canada to foreigners searching for work permits than inside for the reason that Canadian authorities “has no teeth” to go after corrupt companies overseas, Inexperienced mentioned.

Many individuals exterior Canada assume they’ll legally purchase an LMIA for $40,000 and that that is a part of the immigration system, he mentioned, including that the federal government wants to raised clarify that it isn’t.

Such a robust message might have helped 37-year-old Mandeep Singh, a newcomer who got here to Canada from India in 2022 after paying $45,000 to a marketing consultant. He was instructed the cost coated costs for his job, work allow approval and his spouse’s work allow.

Inside two months after coming to Canada and establishing his checking account, he obtained $1,474 as his biweekly wage from the restaurant he was contracted to work for. He was shocked since he had but to begin working.

He later realized the job wasn’t actual. He can be paid $1,474 each two weeks as his wage and he must pay his employer round $2,000 in return to make sure the job was actual on paper and the cost cycle continued. He was requested by his marketing consultant to earn cash underneath the desk someplace else.

Singh, nonetheless, stop the job after a couple of months and is now hoping to take authorized motion in opposition to his employers and the Canadian marketing consultant that introduced him right here.

“I was so broken mentally when I first came to know this was a scam,” he mentioned. “All I want right now is for the consultants to be punished. They must have cheated many more people before me.”

• Electronic mail: nkarim@postmedia.com

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