Desperate for workers, West seeks immigration powers

JUSTINE HUNTER AND DAWN WALTON

VICTORIA AND CALGARY— From Monday's Globe and Mail

Canada’s Western premiers are seeking to wrest control over immigration away from Ottawa to help the West manage its growing skills shortage.

“We are well-positioned but we need to have a national discussion about what further tools provinces need to grow the national economy,” said B.C. Premier Christy Clark, who is leading the group, in an interview.

The biggest one for us in the West is immigration. It’s one of the most important economic levers any government has and we don’t have it. ... We need to devolve immigration to provincial governments.”

Ms. Clark has the backing of Alberta Premier Alison Redford and Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall, who are facing similar labour and skills shortages. They are eyeing Quebec’s immigration authority with envy.

As Ottawa struggles with a huge backlog of immigration applications, the provinces, especially in the fast-growing West, are increasingly frustrated with their inability to bring in needed workers.

Ms. Clark was in Ottawa last week but did not formally raise the immigration issue, waiting instead for a task-force report she commissioned to help build B.C.’s case.

In her current jobs plan, Ms. Clark expects B.C.’s economy to grow by one million jobs over the next decade, and a third of those jobs will need to be filled by immigrants.

Under the Provincial Nominee Program, which allows provinces to put forward candidates who want to invest and run a business for accelerated immigration, B.C. can bring in 3,500 skilled workers or entrepreneurs. B.C. wants that figure to rise to 5,000 this year and 6,500 a year after that.

“We wish there were no caps, but if there are caps we’d like them to be higher than they are,” said Liberal MLA John Yap, who led the task force. “Ultimately it would be nice to have what Quebec has. Failing that, we would like to have discussions with the federal government to let us have a greater share of the immigration process, in the context of the growth we are forecasting,” he said.

Mr. Yap’s report is due on the Premier’s desk by the end of the month. He has already travelled the province holding a series of forums to assess how to increase the number of skilled immigrants and investors in British Columbia.

Mr. Yap said he heard from businesses big and small that are frustrated about the lack of skilled workers now – and the challenge is expected to grow as B.C.’s aging population fails to produce enough skilled workers to maintain even the status quo.

“A small business owner in Prince George said he cannot bring in welders fast enough,” Mr. Yap recalled from his road show. In Fort St. John, representatives from the oil and gas industry sounded “desperate” for workers. In Cranbrook, he heard the same message from a mining company that says it needs 1,000 skilled workers to develop projects.

“The long term trend is clear,” Mr. Yap said. “Over the next 10 years we have so many people leaving the workforce and not enough people here to fill those positions. We need to fill the gap with immigration.”

Saskatchewan’s premier is also looking to persuade Ottawa to relinquish some of its control over immigration in order to source workers for both skilled and general labour shortages facing his province.

“As strong as I think the component parts feel they are able to respond to their own unique economic challenges, the devolution of that kind of influence especially in terms of immigration policy is pretty key,” Mr. Wall said.

“One of barriers to continued growth is the human resources. We have skilled labour shortage. We have a general labour shortage,” he said in an interview.

In Alberta, Ms. Redford is also anxious to see Ottawa hand over some power to the provinces with respect to immigration.

“I think we agree very much on that,” she said of her provincial counterparts in the West. “In Alberta, labour issues are paramount for us just to counter inflationary cycles and I think we are very much on the same page with respect to that in order to continue to allow the economy to grow, not just for our own benefit, but for Canada’s benefit, we need to see some more flexibility on that.”

Federal, Provincial and Territorial Governments Cooperate to Speed Up Foreign Qualification Assessment and Recognition for Skilled Newcomers

OTTAWA, ONTARIO, Mar 12, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- Governments are working in partnership to help internationally trained professionals find work in their fields through a national framework to improve the recognition of foreign qualifications.

Federal, provincial and territorial ministers responsible for the labour market announced today, through the Forum of Labour Market Ministers (FLMM), the release of a progress report on the implementation of the Pan-Canadian Framework for the Assessment and Recognition of Foreign Qualifications(1). All governments are working towards the common goal of ensuring that foreign qualifications are assessed and recognized in a fair, consistent, transparent and timely manner. This collective effort will help internationally trained professionals put their knowledge, skills and experience to work sooner in communities across the country.

"Attracting and retaining the best international talent to address existing and future labour market challenges is critical to Canada's long-term economic success," said the Honourable Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development and Co-Chair of the FLMM. "For Canada to achieve its economic potential, internationally trained professionals must have the opportunity to find work that best suits their skills and training. That's why we are improving foreign qualification recognition so that these skilled workers can find jobs in their fields faster."

Through the Framework and other initiatives, federal, provincial and territorial governments are working to improve the assessment and recognition of foreign qualifications and to better integrate internationally trained professionals into the job market.

The FLMM's progress report highlights that the first eight target occupations outlined in the Framework, including engineers and registered nurses, meet the one-year commitment to timely service in all Canadian jurisdictions. This means that internationally trained professionals will be advised within one year as to how their qualifications compare to the Canadian standard.

"I am proud of the progress we have made to date on improving foreign qualification recognition for internationally trained professionals," said the Honourable Dave Hancock, Minister of Human Services, Government of Alberta, and Co-Chair of the FLMM. "Streamlining foreign qualification recognition is a win-win for both governments and newcomers to Canada. Ensuring immigrants to Canada can work to their full potential in their chosen profession is essential for our future economic success and international competitiveness."

Governments are now working with stakeholders to improve foreign qualification recognition for an additional six target occupations, including physicians and dentists.

The implementation of the Framework has been made possible through the collaboration of federal, provincial and territorial governments, and through consultations with key partners that support specific actions to promote continuous improvement to the way that internationally trained professionals' qualifications are assessed and recognized in each of the first set of target occupations.

The FLMM also recognized the important role that federal, provincial and territorial ministries of immigration and health play in implementing the Framework.

The Framework is one example of the collaborative approach governments have taken to respond to current and future labour market challenges, such as skills shortages in key areas of the economy, while creating opportunities for all Canadians to contribute to the labour force.

The Framework is available on the Human Resources and Skills Development Canada website at http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/eng/workplaceskills/publications/fcr/pcf.shtml .

The progress report on the Pan-Canadian Framework for the Assessment and Recognition of Foreign Qualifications is available online at http://www.hrsdc.gc.ca/eng/workplaceskills/publications/fcr/2010/fcr.shtml .

This news release is available in alternative formats upon request.

Backgrounder

The Forum of Labour Market Ministers (FLMM) was established in 1983 as an intergovernmental forum to strengthen cooperation and strategic thinking on the labour market priorities of the provinces, the territories and Canada.

The FLMM was mandated to develop the Pan-Canadian Framework for the Assessment and Recognition of Foreign Qualifications, announced in November 2009. The Framework represents a new vision, guiding principles of fairness, transparency, timeliness and consistency and desired outcomes for improving foreign qualification recognition for internationally trained professionals in Canada.

Through the Economic Action Plan, the Government of Canada invested $50 million to work with the provinces and territories and other partners, such as regulatory authorities and post-secondary institutions, to address barriers to foreign qualification recognition. The provinces and territories are also investing in this work.

The following are the first set of target occupations in the Framework:

        
        --  architects
        --  engineers
        --  financial auditors and accountants, including chartered accountants,
            certified general accountants and certified management accountants
        --  medical laboratory technologists
        --  occupational therapists
        --  pharmacists
        --  physiotherapists
        --  registered nurses
        
        

The next set of target occupations in the Framework are as follows:

        
        --  dentists
        --  engineering technicians
        --  licensed practical nurses
        --  medical radiation technologists
        --  physicians
        --  teachers (K-12)
        
        

Internationally trained professionals must submit all fees and relevant documents necessary to process their applications. They may also be advised of additional requirements or may be directed to alternative occupations that would benefit from their skills and experience.

(1) While the Quebec government has not endorsed the Framework, it supports its principles and agrees to share reports already made public to its citizens, notably those tabled at the National Assembly.

        
        Contacts:
        Alyson Queen
        Director of Communications
        Office of Minister Finley
        819-994-2482
        
        Media Relations Office
        Human Resources and Skills Development Canada
        819-994-5559
        
        Sonia Sinha
        Public Affairs Officer
        Ministry of Human Services
        Government of Alberta
        780-427-2934
        
        
        

SOURCE: Human Resources and Skills Development Canada and Forum of Labour Market Ministers

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