According to Mathew Jeffery, an immigration attorney in Toronto, the Canadian legislation needs to revamp the immigration law to provide the much-needed labour for the expanding work-force. He asserts that the country’s economy is growing and the unemployment rate is about 5.4%, the lowest level it has been since 1976.
Jeffery told AdvocateDaily.com that though there is a reason for optimism in the jobs sector, there’s still a shortage of skilled labour. This is an issue that can be resolved through an immigration policy revamp. Unfortunately, the current demanding application process has made it more challenging for both business and non-business organizations to acquire skilled labour from other countries.
Simply put, the current process has been in place for decades, and it’s increasingly becoming stringent. Employers are required to demonstrate their inability to find a citizen or permanent resident before hiring a foreign employee. This, according to Jeffery, forces companies to waste a lot of time looking for a specific skill.
Jeffery strongly recommends a comprehensive LMIA process revamp to make it less complicated for Canadian organizations to bring in foreign employees. This doesn’t mean that Canadian employers should dismiss all job applications from domestic candidates or undermine the wages of their current workers. Amendments to the immigration policy should be geared towards creating flexibility and ensuring that Canadian employers can acquire foreign labour when necessary.
The current LMIA process, according to Jeffery, requires hefty legal fees, and the government has made it more complex. Indeed, you will always need the help of an attorney. This is limiting the ability of both business and non-business organizations to bring in foreign workers.
The bottom line is, revamping the immigration policy while protecting the Canadian citizens will make it easier for employers to find their desired talent both locally and internationally.
