Opening Statement to the Standing Committee on Public Accounts

Selecting Foreign Workers Under the Immigration Program

(Chapter 2—2009 Fall Report of the Auditor General)

13 April 2010

Sheila Fraser, FCA
Auditor General of Canada

Mr. Chair, thank you for this opportunity to discuss our chapter on Selecting Foreign Workers under the Immigration Program. Joining me at the table are Richard Flageole, Assistant Auditor General, and Suzanne Therrien, Principal, who were responsible for the audit.

Canada has an ongoing need for permanent and temporary workers with various skills, and it must compete with other countries to attract them. It is critical that the government’s programs for facilitating the entry of these workers be designed and delivered to meet the needs of the Canadian labour market.

I should note that the work for this audit was completed in June 2009. We are consequently not in a position to comment on actions taken since then.

We found that Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) made a number of key decisions without first properly assessing the costs and benefits, risks, and potential impact of these decisions on its programs and delivery mechanisms. Some of these decisions have caused a significant shift in the types of workers being admitted to Canada. We saw little evidence that this shift was part of any well-defined strategy to best meet the needs of the Canadian labour market. CIC needs to evaluate the performance of its current programs and develop a clear vision of what each one of these is expected to contribute.

Our audit found that the inventory of applications in the federal skilled worker category had almost doubled since 2000. In December 2008, more than 620,000 people had been waiting an average of 63 months for a decision on whether they would be granted permanent residency or not. Measures introduced through ministerial instructions in 2008 to limit the number of new applications—for example, processing only those that meet new, more narrowly defined criteria—were not based on sufficient analysis of their potential effects. While it was too early to assess the full impact of these measures, trends in the number of new applications received between January and June 2009 indicated that the measures might not have the desired effect.

In addition, the Department’s ability to reduce the inventory of old applications received prior to the introduction of new ministerial instructions (the backlog) could be significantly impaired. At the time of our audit, CIC was unable to determine when this backlog would likely be eliminated or define what would be a reasonable time frame to do so. Their latest estimate in 2008 indicated that the backlog might not be eliminated for another 8 to 25 years. The Committee might want to ask the Department what the current situation is in that respect.

In June 2009, the overall inventory, which includes both old and new applications, still totalled approximately 594,000. This represented a decrease of only 6.5 percent in the overall inventory since the introduction of the ministerial instructions.

Our chapter also identified serious problems in the design and delivery of the Temporary Foreign Worker Program that is co-managed by CIC and Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC). For example, there was no systematic review to ensure that job offers are genuine. Work permits could therefore be issued for jobs or employers that do not exist.

Furthermore, we found that there was no systematic follow-up by either CIC or HRSDC to verify that employers in Canada are complying with the terms and conditions, such as wages and accommodations, under which work permits are issued. This creates risks to program integrity and could leave many foreign workers, such as live-in caregivers and lower-skilled temporary foreign workers, in a vulnerable position.

Despite a commitment to do so following our April 2000 report, CIC had not yet implemented a quality assurance framework to obtain assurance that decisions made by its visa officers are fair and consistent.

Finally, we noted that CIC and HRSDC implemented programs to facilitate the recognition of foreign credentials. At the end of our audit, the federal government was working with provinces and territories to develop a pan-Canadian framework for foreign qualification assessment and recognition.

Mr. Chair, we are pleased to report that CIC and HRSDC agreed with our recommendations. They have shared their action plans with us and we believe that they address the issues raised in our chapter. Your Committee may wish to have both departments report on their progress and results achieved in implementing them, in particular regarding

  • the completion by CIC of a visioning exercise, with provinces and territories, for foreign worker programs;
  • the management by CIC of the inventory of applications, both old and new, and of the related processing times; and
  • changes made or planned to the design and delivery of the temporary foreign worker program.

Mr. Chair, this concludes my opening remarks. We would be pleased to answer any questions. Thank you.