Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 3129 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ASSOCIATION OF CANADA ASSOCIATION CANADIENNE DE LA TECHNOLOGIE DE L’INFORMATION ITAC on Talent | Page 4 THE VOICE OF THE INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATIONS TECHNOLOGY (ICT) SECTOR IN CANADA | www.itac.ca 15 See Scaling Success: Tackling the Management Gap in Canada’s Technology Sector, Lazardis Institute, Wilfred Laurier University, March 2016, page 17-20. 16 See http://theesa.ca/2016/10/25/attracting-foron-post-canada/ 17 http://www.cbc.ca/beta/news/politics/bains-immigration-economic-boost-1.3801708 18 http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/canada-immigration-levels-mccallum-1.3829496 19 http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/ottawa-to-make-it- easier-for-some-businesses-to-import-foreign-talent/article32622768/ 20 The Economic and Fiscal Consequences of Immigration (2016) Francine D. Blau and Christopher Mackie, Editors; Panel on the Economic and Fiscal Consequences of Immigration; Committee on National Statistics; Division of Behavioral and Social Sciences and Education; National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine 21 http://www.parl.gc.ca/Content/HOC/Committee/421/HUMA/Reports/ RP8374415/421_HUMA_Rpt04_PDF/421_HUMA_Rpt04-e.pdf 22 Committee, page 28 squad”—an elite group of specialists who are brought in to complete special projects. TFWs are also very important for two other reasons: • Scaling Canadian businesses: Many government and media reports have noted the challenge Canada has when it comes to scaling up our companies. One such obstacle, as noted by the Lazardis Institute, is the lack of management and executive domestic talent who have experience running a global company.15 Canada has very few technology companies who have successfully gone global; if a company wants to conquer a new market or go public, they likely need to bring in outside talent with this kind of experience. TFWs can bridge this important gap using the expertise Canadian companies need to grow, scale and compete globally. • Export experience: Canada suffers from an acute shortage of executives with export experience. TFWs have the ability to fill that gap, inspire others and lead a team. Experienced foreign workers can help impart their knowledge to younger workers and drive innovation.16 Unfortunately, misunderstandings around TFWs are making it politically difficult for the Government to make necessary program reforms. Minister Navdeep Bains spoke to this recently, acknowledging that while Canada needs to open the door to more highly skilled immigrants, he needed help convincing Parliamentary colleagues as well as Canadians.17 Minister McCallum’s recent announcement that he would be increasing the number of high skilled workers and international students who are permitted to come to Canada is welcome news but more work needs to be done to educate the public and facilitate inclusive growth within Canada.18 Minister Morneau’s recent announcement that Canada will establish a 2 week turn around standard for approving visas and work permits for select applicants is also welcome news.19 Many people often group low- and high-skilled TFWs together, when there is actually a vast difference between these two types of workers. Common arguments against TFWs include that they take jobs away from Canadians, are subjected to unfair treatment by employers, and depress wages. But where high-skilled TFWs are concerned, research suggests otherwise. For example, a report from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine found that an inflow of skilled immigrants could have positive wage effects for some subgroups of native-born workers, as well as other benefits to the economy on a broader level.20 In other words, instead of adopting a mindset of protectionism or fear, Canadians should view foreign workers as a way to boost our domestic economy and create new jobs. Improving the TFW program The Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities released its report on foreign high skilled technology workers in September 2016.21 The report is the culmination of consultations and briefings that took place in summer 2016, during which ITAC CEO Robert Watson provided recommendations on behalf of ITAC. As the Government now looks to respond to this report and consider new legislative changes, ITAC would like to restate its recommendations, and acknowledge where they appear to have been included. 1. Monitor labour patterns To help educational institutions tailor programs that meet demand, Employment and Social Development Canada (ESDC) and Statistics Canada should work together to collect granular data about labour patterns in the ICT sector. 2. Restore sectoral exemption and/or create a “trusted employer” program Restoring the pre-existing sectoral exemption—which previously exempted technology workers from needing a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) before entering Canada—would help the industry to grow. If such exemptions are not feasible, then a “trusted employer” program could be created, in which a company could be exempted by proving itself through a government set of criteria. The Committee’s third recommendation suggests that the Government may be willing to consider this.22 3. Revamp National Occupation Codes (NOCs) NOCs provide key data about employment within the ICT industry. However, they are outdated for the technology sector—making it difficult for Canada to pinpoint vacancies within the workforce where programs should be developed, and leading to increased rejections when companies apply for TFWs. Updating these codes would have a dual benefit of helping to train domestic workers, while also facilitating the short-term solution of accessing