Ontario MP’s anti-TFWP petition stirs concerns
Ontario Conservative MP Janil Jivani is petitioning to abolish the Temporary Foreign Worker Program (TFWP).
“For the sake of Canada’s agricultural industry, the fraction of TFWs classified as seasonal agricultural workers should be treated as a separate program,” stated the Bowmanville-Oshawa North MP’s petition. “Not lumped in with the broader TFWP that leads to the suppression of Canadian wages.”
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Why it Matters: The petition highlights growing concerns over youth unemployment, wage suppression, and the need to prioritize Canadian workers amid broader immigration and labour policy debates.
Toronto youth unemployment surged by 50 per cent over two years, and Jivani noted that the TFWP in youth-dominated sectors, such as retail and food services, has also increased significantly. The petition stated Ontario’s Tim Hortons hired 714 TFW in 2023, up from 58 in 2019, intensifying competition for entry-level jobs.
Jivani’s petition notes that Canada’s youth unemployment for those aged 15 to 24 rose to nine per cent in 2022 and to more than 14 per cent in 2024, “the highest level in more than a decade, excluding COVID-19.”
Jivani’s petition states that from January to October 2024, over 160,000 new TFWP work permits were issued.
The Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration’s (CIMM) Temporary Foreign Worker page clarified that those numbers included the 33,775 permits issued under the Seasonal Agricultural Worker Program (SAWP) and work permit extensions, excluded from the 2025 target.
According to The Canadian Press, an emailed statement from Employment Minister Patty Hajdu needled Jivani for not being named one of the Conservative caucus critics in the House of Commons.
“I know MP Jivani wasn’t included in Andrew Scheer’s shadow cabinet,” she wrote, referring to the Conservative MP who is leading the Official Opposition in the House of Commons, “but he may want to ask that the party resume briefing him because if they had, he’d know that in the last year alone, we considerably scaled back the TFW program to reflect local labour needs.”
CIMM’s TFWP statement, issued in November 2024, acknowledged that Jivani’s figures don’t reflect the tightened eligibility criteria implemented in September 2024. Further reductions were expected under the Levels Plan 2025-2027 target of 82,000 Canadian entries, “excluding seasonal workers, the vast majority of whom are in agriculture.”
Hajdu said the program is “vital” to the agricultural sector and tourism industry, and it “in no way” replaces Canadian talent; however, the government is consulting with labour and industry groups about future changes to the program.
Albertan MPs, Michelle Rempel Garner and Garnett Genuis, serve as the immigration and employment critics, respectively. In contrast, Jivani does not occupy a critic position and appears to be acting independently on the petition.
“The Liberals will say they’ve taken action on the immigration issue. Prime Minister Mark Carney just put out a mandate letter that said he wanted to reform immigration,” said Jivani. “But I think we need to hold them to a higher standard than just empty words.”
Prime Minister Carney’s recent mandate letter outlines two main immigration goals: to return overall immigration to sustainable levels and attract the world’s best talent to help build Canada’s economy.
Previously, the Liberal government proposed stabilizing permanent admissions at less than one per cent of the annual Canadian population beyond 2027. With a projected population of 41.5 million in 2025, the Levels Plan already falls below that threshold.
At the tail end of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s tenure, the previous Immigration Minister Marc Miller’s immigration policy measures included:
- Temporarily halting new low-wage Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) applications in metro areas with unemployment rates of six per cent or higher;
- Shifting federal economic immigration programs to prioritize candidates already in Canada;
- Restricting eligibility for Open Work Permits for Family members
- Eliminating employment points in the Comprehensive Ranking System for Express Entry candidates.
“The immigration system has some very serious flaws,” said Jivani. “I can think of no better way to anchor how we move forward than thinking about this from what is in the best interests of Canadian workers and Canadian families.”
Source: Farmtario.com