Records showed Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault's department provided inaccurate information regarding inspection claims under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.Out of the 2,139 reported 'inspections' on migrant labour in 2022, fewer than a tenth were random, in-person checks at the workplace, according to Blacklock’s Reporter.“Eighty percent were completed remotely,” the department wrote in an Inquiry of Ministry tabled in the Commons. “In the current fiscal year, the department has assumed a more balanced approach to conducting active inspections.”In 2017, the department promised to increase the number of spot inspections following a federal audit that the department failed.In a report on the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, auditors criticized managers for infrequently conducting surprise visits to worksites and for inaccurately calling paperwork reviews as inspections.The department acknowledged that it did not conduct surprise visits on employers who had applied for migrant labour permits.“We will be moving forward very imminently on unannounced inspections, which will help to ensure employers are taking their responsibilities seriously,” then-Labour Minister Patricia Hajdu said in an interview at the time. “We are working right now on a program.”In its 2018 budget Equality Growth, the cabinet committed to providing $194.1 million in five-year funding to “support unannounced inspections” on migrant workers.However, the Inquiry revealed that out of 2,139 inspections conducted last year, only 423 were conducted in person.Out of the 423 inspections conducted, a total of 153, approximately 7%, involved unannounced, in-person visits by federal inspectors.Most of these inspections involved communication through emails with employers or scheduled on-site inspections by appointment.The figures were disclosed at the request of New Democrat MP Jenny Kwan (Vancouver East, BC), who asked “With regard to compliance inspections undertaken by the department of employment related to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, how many inspections were conducted in person?”Michael MacPhee, assistant deputy employment minister responsible for the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, admitted the department had few inspectors.Managers were optimistic about improvements through an additional $48 million in spending, as testified by MacPhee during the Senate National Finance committee proceedings.“Are there more inspectors?” asked Senator Clément Gignac (QC). “We do have inspectors across the country numbering anywhere between about 180 and 200,” replied Assistant Deputy MacPhee. “At pre-pandemic levels, there were less than 100 in place.”“Where are we at now?” asked Gignac. “We have made concerted efforts to focus on establishing a more rigid regime,” replied MacPhee.“It’s not just the inspections themselves that we’re focused on,” said MacPhee. “We are building awareness within the worker community so they actually understand their rights. We have further funded a tip line that allows them to engage with us 24 hours a day in over 200 different languages.”
Records showed Employment Minister Randy Boissonnault's department provided inaccurate information regarding inspection claims under the Temporary Foreign Worker Program.Out of the 2,139 reported 'inspections' on migrant labour in 2022, fewer than a tenth were random, in-person checks at the workplace, according to Blacklock’s Reporter.“Eighty percent were completed remotely,” the department wrote in an Inquiry of Ministry tabled in the Commons. “In the current fiscal year, the department has assumed a more balanced approach to conducting active inspections.”In 2017, the department promised to increase the number of spot inspections following a federal audit that the department failed.In a report on the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, auditors criticized managers for infrequently conducting surprise visits to worksites and for inaccurately calling paperwork reviews as inspections.The department acknowledged that it did not conduct surprise visits on employers who had applied for migrant labour permits.“We will be moving forward very imminently on unannounced inspections, which will help to ensure employers are taking their responsibilities seriously,” then-Labour Minister Patricia Hajdu said in an interview at the time. “We are working right now on a program.”In its 2018 budget Equality Growth, the cabinet committed to providing $194.1 million in five-year funding to “support unannounced inspections” on migrant workers.However, the Inquiry revealed that out of 2,139 inspections conducted last year, only 423 were conducted in person.Out of the 423 inspections conducted, a total of 153, approximately 7%, involved unannounced, in-person visits by federal inspectors.Most of these inspections involved communication through emails with employers or scheduled on-site inspections by appointment.The figures were disclosed at the request of New Democrat MP Jenny Kwan (Vancouver East, BC), who asked “With regard to compliance inspections undertaken by the department of employment related to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, how many inspections were conducted in person?”Michael MacPhee, assistant deputy employment minister responsible for the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, admitted the department had few inspectors.Managers were optimistic about improvements through an additional $48 million in spending, as testified by MacPhee during the Senate National Finance committee proceedings.“Are there more inspectors?” asked Senator Clément Gignac (QC). “We do have inspectors across the country numbering anywhere between about 180 and 200,” replied Assistant Deputy MacPhee. “At pre-pandemic levels, there were less than 100 in place.”“Where are we at now?” asked Gignac. “We have made concerted efforts to focus on establishing a more rigid regime,” replied MacPhee.“It’s not just the inspections themselves that we’re focused on,” said MacPhee. “We are building awareness within the worker community so they actually understand their rights. We have further funded a tip line that allows them to engage with us 24 hours a day in over 200 different languages.”
