If you are an employer in Canada who is interested in hiring a foreign worker, you have probably heard of the recent changes that occurred within the Temporary Foreign Worker Unit. The previous Labour Market Opinion was typically the first step to obtaining a work permit in Canada, now; the Labour Market Impact Assessment has replaced that.
The Labour Market Opinion had several different categories under which you could apply:
- High Skilled Workers;
- Low-Skilled Workers;
- Seasonal Agricultural Workers;
- Agricultural Stream;
- Live in Caregiver Program.
As you might able to tell just by their namesake, the previous Labour Market Opinion focused heavily on job duties and the National Occupational Classification. This is no longer the case under the Labour Market Impact Assessment.
Previously, the National Occupational Classification or NOC was used to determine what the intended duties of a foreign worker should be as per their classification and ranked that occupation in a matrix that revolved around skill level.
Presently, this is no longer the case. The Labour Market Impact Assessment focuses on wages; high or low, with remaining space for agricultural workers and the live in caregivers. The categories under which you can apply through the Labour Market Impact Assessment are:
- High Wage;
- Low Wage;
- Primary agricultural stream; and
- The Live in Caregiver Program.
Along with this change of job categories come other interesting additions to the program including:
- The requirement of incorporating a “transition plan” for high wage occupations;
- The increased processing fee of $1000.00;
- The ability for employers to offer short term positions to Low Wage applicants.