Labor Market Impact Assessments (LMIAs) are being abused by some people within the trucking industry.

Trucking association executives – national and provincial – told me that this important part of the temporary foreign worker program is being abused.

Foreign workers are paying up to $60,000 each for an opportunity to live and work in Canada. And there are no guarantees they will be invited to become a permanent resident, paving the path to citizenship.

But they are willing to try and there are unscrupulous people getting rich fuelling these dreams.

When an employer in Canada is unable to find an employee – a Canadian or permanent resident – with a certain skill set for their business, they can file an LMIA application with Employment and Social Development Canada to hire a foreign worker.  

LMIA applications can be made for people outside and within Canada. For visitors to our country, a successful LMIA action means they get a work permit and can stay on legally.

Driver shortage used to add weight to LMIA application

The driver shortage is being used by some employers to add weightage to their LMIA applications. Some companies are not only hiring drivers. They are hiring administrative staff, mathematicians, statisticians, computer programmers, and other professions.

Finding Canadians or permanent residents to perform administrative tasks should not be difficult. Why does one need foreign workers for these jobs? Also, why do trucking companies need mathematicians and statisticians?

And then there are some employers who have hired dozens of workers via LMIAs, but when inquiries were made with them, they said they were not hiring.

An immigration consultant said that some are using LMIAs to bolster their comprehensive ranking system score by 50 points, so it becomes more competitive in the express entry pool for immigration.

Worker abuse

People are trying to enter Canada by any means possible. Some pay thousands of dollars up-front. Others are told the money will be deducted from wages. These workers are likely to be, and sometimes are, abused.

There are harrowing tales of indentured servitude and forced labor. Then there is the fear of being fired or deported. Sometimes, family and loved ones back home are threatened to ensure workers don’t speak up about abuses they suffer.

People should choose a career because they are interested in the job or trade. Our industry needs passionate and enthusiastic workers.

In this case, foreign workers are being forced to choose a career because they are desperate to immigrate and will take anything offered.

What kind of commitment can these workers offer? There is no love for the job. It is just a stepping stone along their immigration journey. Some may stay on; others will likely move on to careers or trades that they are interested in or have trained for in their home countries.

This kind of revolving door of employees is not going to address driver shortage. The people benefitting from this are the ones raking cash under the counter, fuelling extravagant lifestyles.

Trucking will pay the price.