Immigration department halts skilled refugee jobs program, leaving employers in limbo

Another example of the impact of the changes, resulting from previous efforts to ramp up numbers:

…November’s immigration levels plan set out the number of permanent and temporary residents the government plans to accept over the next three years. The plan included specific targets for economic immigration pilots, including the EMPP and another for caregivers. 

The government aims to offer 8,175 permanent-residence places through such economic pilots in 2026, and 8,775 in each of the following two years.

Dana Wagner, co-founder of TalentLift, a non-profit international recruitment company that links displaced people with businesses, said being told about the imminent pausing of the program in a letter two days before Christmas was “very disappointing.” 

“The program has been working extremely well. But this is a signal that the EMPP is not being treated like a serious economic program or a vehicle for talent attraction. You shouldn’t leave employers such little runway to plan and pivot,” she said. 

“Sending a letter right before Christmas when the government signs off for the holiday is an awful way to communicate such a major change at the 11th hour.” 

Several employers that have already offered jobs to displaced people abroad were planning to submit their paperwork to IRCC in January, Ms. Wagner said.

She said those employers include an auto body collision repair company in British Columbia. It has offered a job to an experienced technician from Venezuela living as a refugee in Ecuador, to fill a local shortage.

IRCC delays in processing applications have been “ballooning” and now can take up to 17 months, Ms. Wagner said. Many employers are still waiting for skilled refugees they have hired to arrive in Canada. …

Source: Immigration department halts skilled refugee jobs program, leaving employers in limbo