Skilled immigrants under ‘express entry’ to fill labour market needs

The federal government is addressing one of the main criticisms of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program through a new immigration system it plans to launch in 2015.

Starting in the new year, the government will offer “express entry” to qualified skilled immigrants who want to come to Canada as permanent residents, as a way to fill open jobs where there are no available Canadian workers.

The government has been reviewing the Temporary Foreign Worker Program,​ which has come under increased scrutiny following a series of stories by CBC News reporting alleged abuses of the program. The results of that review and ensuing reforms will be unveiled soon.

One of the ways Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau had proposed to fix the program for temporary foreign workers was to have the government “recommit itself to bringing permanent immigrants here who have a path to citizenship.”

Express entry, according to the federal government, will do what the program for temporary foreign workers can’t: it will ensure that skilled immigrants are able to settle in Canada permanently to help meet the country’s labour needs.

“Canadian employers will be able to consider express entry candidates when they are unable to find Canadians or permanent residents to fill job vacancies,” said Alexis Pavlich, a spokeswoman for Immigration Minister Chris Alexander, in an email to CBC News.

Under express entry, prospective immigrants would see their skills matched with labour needs identified by the provinces and territories, as well as employers.

Jobs offered to qualified immigrants would be subject to Labour Market Opinions (LMOs), which are required to prove the need to hire a foreign worker over a Canadian.

Only the highest-ranking candidates would receive an invitation to apply for permanent residency. Once that invitation is received, the government promises to process it within six months or less.

Red full article at http://www.cbc.ca/