Employers in Atlantic Canada need migrant workers at all skill levels; are happy to pay more

Employers in Atlantic Canada need migrant workers at all skill levels and are happy to pay more said the Atlantic Provinces Economic Council President Finn Poschmann. APEC is a Halifax based independent think-tank.

Employers in Atlantic Canada need migrant workers at all skill levels and this includes Tech firms, Sales and financial services, and Seafood sector. They are ready and happy to pay more salaries but are not getting enough applications, added Poschmann.

Four provinces in Atlantic - P.E.I, Newfoundland and Labrador, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia are intending to attract more migrant workers. They are planning to achieve high immigration levels on the East Coast. This is aimed to be achieved through a new pilot program the Atlantic Immigration Pilot. It offers customized plan for settlement and fast-track immigration pathway, as quoted by the Star.

The Atlantic Provinces are targeting to increase their population growth that has become stagnant. This is a result of high migration flow amongst provinces, low birth rates, and low immigration levels.

People above 65 years account for almost 20% of the population of Atlantic Provinces. This was revealed by the Statistics Canada. It is an increase from 14.6 % ten years ago. On the other hand, this percentage is 12% for Alberta and 16.9% for overall Canada.

Poschmann explained that immigrants tend to move to provinces that already have migrants. Thus the Atlantic Provinces have to build the critical mass. This will help them to attract more immigrants and retain them, added the APEC President.

The Atlantic Immigration Pilot program was launched by Canada in March 2017. It permits recruitment of overseas graduates and workers by these 4 provinces. For this, they are not required to undergo LMIA needed to demonstrate the shortage of skills. Employers are required to coordinate with the local agencies and develop a plan for settlement for the newly arrived immigrants.

The program is capped for an intake of 2000 immigrant workers intake in 2018. It will double the intake level to 4,000 by 2020. Applications are processed within 6 months through a fast-track process.

As of now, more than 650 employers in Atlantic Provinces are designated to participate in the pilot program. This was revealed by Immigration Canada. They have recommended recruitment of more than 750 workers to fill job vacancies. 122 PR applications have been submitted so far.

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