Following consultations with labor market partners, Quebec has introduced over 30 additional jobs to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program that will be eligible for streamlined processing.

Jean Boulet, the Minister of Labour and Acting Minister of Immigration released a list of qualifying occupations for streamlined processing under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP) on November 2.

Retail commerce, lodging, and food services, and processing are among the targeted sectors of economic activity.

The revised employment list is the outcome of a consultation process as part of a new agreement between Quebec and the federal government. One of the four terms of the agreement was to broaden the program’s eligibility for streamlined processing to include lower-skilled vocations defined by Quebec. These additional qualifying vocations would be covered under the TFWP’s new, more flexible provisions, bringing the program closer together.

The consultations on the industries and occupations chosen by the Quebec government for the implementation of these measures, all of which are aimed at making the hiring of temporary foreign workers easier, resulted in a solid consensus (TFWs)

In addition, Quebec has stated that many other low-skilled or unskilled vocations, including cashiers, front-counter servers, and cleaning employees, will be exempt from the necessity to advertise. For specific sectors of the economy, the announced adjustments include raising the bar for foreign workers in a corporation from 10% to 20%.

According to the press release, the plan has been submitted to the federal government, and an agreement is likely to be reached “within weeks.”

The announcement has been highly anticipated by Quebec’s business community, who see it as one of the most important answers to the labor issue.

Business groups are now urging the federal government to act quickly to begin their overseas recruitment process and obtain the talent that they so sorely require.

Despite the implementation of these reforms, some groups are advocating for more substantial changes to the program.

In a news statement, Karl Blackburn, President and CEO of the Quebec Employers Council, said, “The adjustments announced [on November 2] will substantially facilitate the usage and accessibility of the TFWP, but the next step is a full assessment of this federal program to modify it to the current environment.”

The labor crisis in Quebec is wreaking havoc on a variety of industries. It existed prior to the pandemic but has since gotten worse, prompting stakeholders to stress the importance of increasing immigration as part of the solution.

Quebec has been campaigning for additional flexibility under the TFWP for several months, in order to allow for the hiring of more temporary foreign workers and to make the application procedure for positions requiring low-skilled workers easier.

The process of recruiting temporary foreign employees for low-paying employment can be complex and time-consuming, which is one of the reasons for Quebec’s efforts.

Positions must be advertised in most cases, companies must complete a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) before applying for a work permit, and paperwork must be delivered to both the Quebec and Canadian governments.

In an interview with the French-language newspaper Le Devoir, Boulet stated that this is “one of the alternatives” for addressing labor shortages. “It won’t cover all of our needs, but it will allow our firms to significantly expand their workforce,” he said.

The new measures would be in effect until December 2023 if they were approved by the federal government.