CANADIAN IMMIGRATION NEWS

Canadian Businesses Call for Immigration to Address Critical Labour Shortage

Monday, 10 November 2008

A new report from the Canadian Chamber of Commerce calls for action to address labour shortages in Canada.

The Canadian Chamber of Commerce, one of Canada's largest business associations, released a report "Building a Twenty-First Century Workforce: A Business Strategy to Overcome Canada's Skills Crisis" calling on the federal and provincial/territorial governments, as well as businesses, to act quickly to combat the real threat to Canadian prosperity, especially in light of the current global economic turmoil.

"The quest to attract talent and the drive for competitiveness are closely linked. If we don't have the brightest and the best, we will neither competitive nor productive. It is that simple. We simply must do better," said Perrin Beatty, President and CEO of the Canadian Chamber, in a speech launching the report. "Succeeding in a globalized economy is challenging, but there is no turning back for Canada. The only possible course is to move ahead to build a better future for ourselves and our families."

According to the report, by 2010, 75 percent of all new jobs created will be high skilled, meaning that those without skills will be hard pressed to find work. By 2010, only 6 percent of jobs will be open to those with less than a high school diploma. The challenge for Canada is to act quickly and wisely to prosper from these changes rather than allow them impede us.

The report identifies actions in four key areas, that if acted upon now, will do much to build and maintain a competitive workforce for Canada's businesses and economy.

The recommendations of this report call on the federal government to act, and include:

• Adjusting the Canadian pension regulations to provide greater flexibility, to allow phased retirement to become a more attractive option for older workers;
• Leading in the removal of interprovincial barriers to labour mobility;
• Developing measures to encourage greater investment in training by employers, especially by smaller businesses;
• Modifying the Temporary Foreign Worker Program to help employers meet immediate skill requirements when qualified Canadian workers cannot be found;
• Continuously improving Canada's immigration system to keep Canada competitive in the world competition for skilled workers;
• Benchmarking Canada's immigration system against other nations strongly competing for immigrants (e.g., Australia and the U.K.); and
• Reviewing and streamlining current processes to ensure that applications are processed within six to 12 months, starting with economic and business applicants.

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