In a major blow for Indians seeking to settle or work in Canada, Ottawa announced it would reduce the number of temporary residents coming onto the country’s streets. Immigration Minister Marc Miller said they would first reduce the number of temporary residents from 6.2 percent to 5 percent.
Addressing a news conference in Ottawa on Thursday, Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault said the government would reduce the percentage of temporary foreign workers that businesses can hire from 30 percent to 20 percent, except in certain sectors such as agriculture.
Temporary residents, such as students and licensed workers, are one of the main reasons why Canada’s population is growing so quickly. But that has raised concerns about finding enough housing and services, like health care, for all these new people. Currently, there are approximately 2.5 million temporary residents in Canada, including asylum seekers, refugees, students and workers.
In 2023, India sent 26,495 temporary foreign workers (TFWs) to Canada, making it one of the top ten countries of origin for PTFW permit holders.
Canada’s temporary resident population exceeds 2.5 million, representing 6.2% of the total population.
Canadian Immigration Minister Marc Miller told reporters last year that restrictions would likely be implemented on the admission of temporary foreign workers beyond 2024.
Canada’s Indian community has seen steady growth in recent years. The registered Indian population in Canada increased from 670,000 between 2000 and 2020 to more than a million. In 2020, the number of registered Indians in Canada reached 1,021,356.
Miller thinks they need to plan better and discuss with the provinces to have enough housing for workers. He also wants to make it easier for temporary residents to become permanent residents.
Meanwhile, Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault said they plan to reduce the number of temporary foreign workers businesses can hire.
Boissonnault wants employers to make more of an effort to hire Canadians or refugees before seeking workers from other countries. He said there were 1.2 million Canadians looking for work, but there were 650,000 job opportunities.
The government wants employers to show they have tried to hire asylum seekers before bringing in someone from abroad. Miller believes this, combined with hiring international students, could help alleviate the housing problem, since people already in Canada would already have a place to live.
Currently, the government sets targets for the number of permanent residents it will allow, but it does not do so for temporary residents, even though 42% of them are international students. Canada’s population has grown faster than that of other large countries, mainly due to immigration.
While the government once argued that high immigration was good for the economy and would help combat an aging population and job shortages, some economists now say it makes things like housing even harder to achieve. find.
Lok Sabha Election Results 2024: Full List of Winners
“Unapologetic travel lover. Friendly web nerd. Typical creator. Lifelong bacon fanatic. Devoted food enthusiast. Wannabe tv maven.”