Henceforth, all employers will have to provide temporary foreign workers all the information pertaining to their rights in Canada. This is part of the amendments made to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations pertaining to the Temporary Foreign Workers.
It is pertinent to mention here that temporary foreign workers or TFWs have the same rights as the citizens of Canada or the permanent residents of the country. Therefore, as per law, their employers must provide them a safe working environment devoid of harassment or retaliation.
There are about 12 more amendments as reported by CIC News. Amongst other things, employers are prohibited from retaliating if employees approach them with complaints or grievances. Employers are not allowed to charge recruitment fee from workers.
Employers are required to train the workers, and also ensure that provisions are in place for them to flag any instances of abuse or non-compliance of rules in confidentiality.
These amendments were announced by Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) and Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC)
Additionally, employers will be responsible for providing access to healthcare services for their employees. They must also offer private health insurance to the members of their workforce, as per requirement.
These amendments will also enable inspection of workplaces, better enforcement of rules and strict action in case of non-compliance.
If employers are found to be flouting rules, the processing of new Labour Market Impact Assessments (LMIAs) will be suspended. The LMIA document is required to be submitted by employers to the ESDC to prove that hiring of foreign workers by an employer will not have any adverse effect on the Canadian economy or the country’s workforce.
TFWs have the Additionally, it is against the law for an employer to refuse to pay an employee for their work as stated in an employment agreement, including overtime. Employees should make sure to have a signed copy of this agreement before the first day of work.
