Canada should tap into U.S. labour pool: Kenney

The Canadian Press

Date: Friday Sep. 16, 2011 6:41 PM ET

CALGARY — Ottawa is mulling ways to tap into the U.S. labour force as worker shortages loom on our side of the border, the federal immigration minister said Friday.

"We're at a preliminary point of examining ways that we could do a better job of accessing unemployed American labour," Jason Kenney told a business audience in Calgary -- a city all-too familiar with worker shortages, especially in the oil and gas sector.

"There are a number of policy things that we're considering. I don't want to go into too much detail...We think, particularly in the energy industry, that may be a significant solution to some of the emerging labour market shortages."

The U.S. unemployment rate was just over nine per cent in August, whereas in Alberta -- where a renewal in oilsands development may soon lead to another bout of labour tightness -- the unemployment rate was only 5.6 per cent.

There are "a lot of skilled tradespeople in the U.S. who could walk straight into productive jobs here. We should see if there's something we can do in the rules to facilitate having those unemployed Americans contribute to our economy," Kenney said.

There are provisions under the North American Free Trade Agreement that enable workers to move easily between countries. But the number of those visas granted each year is capped, and only apply to certain types of occupations, Kenney said.

"It's a very good model, but it's very limited," Kenney said.

"We, as a government, have begun thinking about how we could perhaps expand that model."

Kenney also announced Friday that consultations are set to take place in Calgary next month on the federal Temporary Foreign Worker program, which he admits has been "maligned and misunderstood" by its critics.

The program enables companies to bring workers to Canada from around the world on a temporary basis, so long as they can prove they can't get the labour closer to home.

Some 185,000 such workers came to Canada last year, 58,000 of whom ended up in Alberta. Critics of the program argue workers who come to Canada under the program are often exploited.

In his remarks to the Calgary Chamber of Commerce, Kenney took aim at those accusations.

"They paint this picture of some sort of Industrial Revolution sweatshop or something that these people are coming to. Let me say, that most of the critiques of the Temporary Foreign Worker program are ridiculous, unfounded," Kenney said.

"When I meet temporary workers across Alberta, they say to me that they're able to earn in this province in a couple of days what it would take them a month to earn back in their country of origin. And that, for them, represents over a year or two a life savings to start a new business, to build a new home."

Read more: http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Canada/20110916/jason-kenney-says-canada-should-tap-us-labour-110916/#ixzz1auDKubiA

Temporary Foreign Worker Program to be Revamped

The Canadian government will be restructuring the country’s temporary foreign worker program.

Federal Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney recently told the audience at a meeting in the western city of Calgary that the streamlined program will make it easier for employers to hire foreigners on a temporary basis.

Kenney has already been meeting with stakeholders across Canada over the past few months on the programme and how to restructure it, and will be holding another set of meetings in October in the western province of Alberta.

in Alberta, employers in the oil and gas sector, as well as those in agricultural and construction sectors, have been clamouring for a more relaxed foreign worker program, as well as an immigration system that does not put too much emphasis on higher education.

The argument is that while Canada does need highly qualified engineers and others, it also needs plumbers, electricians and those that can work in the oil patch, but do not necessarily possess higher education certificates.

Meanwhile, Kenney is also suggesting that Canada’s oil patch should discuss bringing in unemployed workers from the south of the border, in the US.

Jobs With Future in Canada – Nursing

Canada needs nurses. Lots of them.

According to Health Canada and the Canadian Nurses Association, Canada might need up to 113,000 nurses by year 2016.

Generally, the shortage of nurses is a worldwide phenomenon, for reasons ranging from increasing population to diseases becoming treatable.
And in many countries, such as Canada, the population is also ageing, and therefore demand for geriatric care is increasing.

In Canada, nursing population is also ageing: in 2006, the average age of a nurse was 45, with about a third over 50 years.
In fact, a former official of the Canadian Nurses Association has said securing sufficient nurses would be vital for the sustainability of Canada’s health care system.

Those in Demand in Canada

The latest list of High Demand Jobs issued by the Canadian ministry of immigration lists three categories within the nursing profession.

Head Nurses/Supervisors
Registered Nurses
Licensed Practising Nurses

At present, just under eight percent of Canadian nurses are foreign-trained but this can be expected to increase as Canada tries to meet the demand. As well, Canada is becoming very diverse and in some parts of the country, such as the Greater Toronto Area, health institutions carry notices in more than one language.

How to Apply
Nursing in Canada is delegated to provinces/territories and, as such, it is they who regulate the profession.
Anyone needing more information about immigrating to Canada as a nurse, and sitting for the exams can approach the local consulate/embassy/high commission. More information can also be found at the website of the Canadian Nurses Association.