OTTAWA – The Canadian Chamber of Commerce says the entire temporary foreign worker program needs a “meticulous review” in the face of growing calls for its termination.
In a letter sent to the federal employment and immigration ministers last week, the chamber says the data indicates the link between high youth unemployment and temporary workers is “generally weak.”
Diana Palmerin-Velasco, senior director of the chamber’s future of work department, says that people aged 15 to 24 typically aren’t applying for the jobs that tend to be occupied by temporary workers.
The Conservatives have been calling on the government to end the temporary worker program due to high youth unemployment.
The government said last year that it will refuse to issue a labour market impact assessment — the permit needed to hire someone through the temporary foreign worker program — in a jurisdiction where the local unemployment rate is above six per cent.
The chamber’s letter says the government should gather better data on the International Mobility Program, adding there are few ways to identify how and where people are working under this program.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 22, 2025.
