I have a hard time getting my head around the position of the party to which you've referred. They criticize the temporary foreign worker program, supposedly as displacing Canadian workers, yet they want all of those people to stay in the Canadian labour market permanently. It seems to me that the alleged displacement effect would be even greater. It seems to be rather obvious. I just can't get my head around that.
For example, I was at the heritage committee where members of the official opposition were demanding that we accelerate access for video game manufacturers to temporary foreign workers in that industry. I think they were basically asking that we make it LMO-exempt. They were criticizing us for the checks and balances that exist in the system as it applies to that particular industry. When I pointed out that the people coming into that occupation, because it's high-skilled, would probably be able to access permanent residency as a result of our reforms—like the introduction of the Canadian experience class—they criticized me, saying it would displace Canadian workers. I think their position is to be against whatever the government proposes, regardless of the policy.
We estimate that about 40,000 people who come here under work permits ultimately obtain permanent residency, or PR. That would include essentially all of the qualified live-in caregivers under the current program. It would include many higher-skilled people who come here on work permits, and now if they do 12 months of skilled work they can obtain PR through the Canadian experience class. But it would most significantly include people who get PR through the provincial nominee programs, typically at mid to high-skill levels.
In the western provinces, one of the reasons you've seen a very substantial increase in immigration levels is that people typically come in on work permits initially and then are offered permanent employment, and indeed permanent residency, by their provinces. There are many pathways.
I think there's a number of misconceptions here. For example, the two largest cohorts in the program are the youth mobility programs. This is the working holiday program, which has about 60,000 visas issued a year. These are open work permits for young people from the ages of 18 to 35 years, for 12 or in some cases 24 months, coming from one of the 16 countries with which we have bilateral reciprocal arrangements.
These are developed countries. These people typically are not contemplating staying here permanently. A young Aussie or Kiwi, or a young French man or woman who comes here on their working holiday visa are coming to experience Canada, perhaps learn a different language, and to work for a few months, typically in the service sector, while they're traveling across Canada. If they get a skilled job for 12 months and they want to stay permanently, they can, in principle, now do so through the CEC. To suggest that all of these people are somehow vulnerable temporary workers who are exploited and working under the thumb of these terrible employers, and all desperately want to stay permanently, is ridiculous.
Similarly, the other largest element of the program is the seasonal agricultural worker program. This represents 34% of the entrants under the labour market opinion streams for the TFW program. There are about 24,000 visas issued a year.
Let's be clear. If we were to shut down the seasonal agricultural worker program—I don't know, but I think that's the policy of the opposition to shut down the program—we would be shutting down huge elements of the Canadian agricultural industry. If you're interested, I would invite you to call as witnesses, representatives of the grape growers in Ontario, the orchard farmers in the Okanagan, the greenhouse operators in Quebec, or the Christmas tree operators in the Annapolis Valley. They will tell you that they find it virtually impossible to hire Canadians to do this work but that the seasonal agricultural worker program works extremely well.
Again, it operates on the basis of bilateral agreements that Canada has with a number of countries, typically in Central America and the Caribbean. They pre-qualify workers. They help to train them. They make them aware of their rights. Those foreign governments ensure the integrity of the program.
They then come here for a few months and make substantially more here than they could back in their home countries. They save up and then go back home for the winter with enormous savings that can help them build houses and start small businesses. Many of the participants are so pleased with the seasonal agricultural worker program that they do it year after year. These are not people who are applying for permanent residency or come here with the expectation of it, but without them our agriculture industry would receive a body blow.
It's all well and good to demagogue this program, but when we actually unpack it and begin to look at the different elements of it.... Yes, there are problems that need to be resolved but we should also recognize that many elements of the program are essential to the Canadian economy, and those people are not seeking PR.