While the B.C. unemployment rate is still a far cry from the record-breaking 4.3% of five years ago, there is a shift happening in the labour market that invokes memories of 2007 all over again. A number of industry associations in B.C. have returned to their pre-downturn rhetoric and are warning that another labour shortage is just around the corner.
The BC Technology Industry Association (BCTIA) cautioned in its recently published TechTalent–BC Labour Demand Study that another talent crunch is emerging. The mining industry is already experiencing severe shortages, and with over 300 exploration projects currently underway in B.C., the labour shortage is about to get even more significant.
In order to meet the need for more qualified workers, groups such as the BCTIA have long urged the Canadian government to implement better immigration policies that expedite the entry of highly skilled foreign nationals. The hospitality industry has voiced similar concerns with the current immigration system and is asking the federal government to strengthen B.C.’s position in this process by raising the application limits under the provincial nominee program.
Last December, Premier Christy Clark called for the creation of a B.C. immigration task force, projecting that B.C.’s economy will be growing by one million employees over the next 10 years, with one-third of those jobs requiring immigrants.
The task force currently evaluates the immigration system and is expected to recommend stronger provincial influence over immigration decisions. In the meantime, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney has been promoting his own vision for what he calls “transformational change” to the immigration system. Not only is he hoping to eliminate the enormous backlog of pending applications, he is also looking to learn from other countries’ best practices.
Kenney has repeatedly referred to New Zealand’s “expression of interest” system which would allow Canada to generate a pool of skilled workers who meet basic education and language requirements and have expressed interest in working in Canada.
Candidates selected from this pool by a Canadian employer would see their application fast-tracked. There is only one caveat: B.C. employers have been doing this for a long time. Talent is already being identified at a global scale – the real issue is an inefficient immigration system that simply doesn’t bring selected candidates into the country fast enough.
Industry representatives and the provincial and federal governments agree that the immigration system needs to be improved, drastically. They disagree, however, on who should have authority over the immigration system. Kenney does not intend to give any further power to the provinces and is not planning to expand the popular provincial nominee program. Clark is demanding that more authority go to B.C., envying Quebec’s unique immigration authority.
Industry groups, meanwhile, are requesting a stronger role in pushing pre-qualified would-be immigrants straight to the final security immigration background checks. Canadian companies are competing for talent globally, and industries such as IT & Technology, mining and construction know all too well that they have to look for talent globally in order to stay competitive.
When employers get to the point of making actual job offers, they have already checked and approved candidates educational background as well as their technical and language skills. In those cases, the immigration system should focus on security-related background checks only, allowing for a much faster turnaround in processing times.
Just as much as Canadian companies are competing for talent globally, Canada’s immigration system is directly competing with that of other countries. A highly effective, painless and fast immigration process will be the key for B.C.’s economy to attract the talent we need. •
