It has been well known for some time that Canada’s young people are having challenges finding entry level summer or part-time jobs. Some of the reasons for this are a sluggish economy, the impact of technologies that replace people with machines, economic uncertainty in a turbulent world and bad government policies that are punitive to small- and medium-sized businesses, as it is that sector that typically gives a young person their first job. This is true for any economy. But a key reason this problem is plaguing Canada’s youth is our out-of-control immigration system. The data clearly show that the number of migrants, temporary workers, asylum seekers, refugees, those on student visas and others trying to gain access to Canada has skyrocketed over the past few years.
Canada’s immigration system used to be emulated by other countries as it worked so well. Prior to the Trudeau Liberal government, our immigration policy had a significant focus on bringing people who had skills that were needed in Canada into the country. This has changed dramatically, with many current immigrants seeking the low-wage, entry level jobs that used to go to young Canadians. The federal government, with responsibility for immigration policy, has promised to cut down on the number of immigrants accepted into Canada. Yet even the government’s own documentation shows that immigration targets are still historically very high.
In addition, many economists have warned that the government’s undercounting of temporary migrants makes their targets unreliable. As of the beginning of this year, there were over three million non-permanent residents in Canada, about 7.3 per cent of the total population. It is also estimated that about five million visas will expire sometime in 2025, with no government plan to ensure these people leave the country. Despite claims to be cutting back on immigrants last year, the Liberals issued a massive 500,000 foreign study permits in 2024.
Conflicting stories from different parts of the Liberal government indicate that the federal Liberals have no plan to deal with this major issue, and it doesn’t seem to be on Prime Minister Mark Carney’s radar screen as a priority despite its far-reaching negative impacts on Canadians. The fact that Carney hired as an advisor Mark Wiseman, co-founder of the so-called Century Initiative which supports a Canadian population of 100,000,000 by 2100, raises suspicions that Carney isn’t really bothered by the disruption that record-high immigration is creating.
With all of this information in hand, Ontario Premier Doug Ford has inexplicably decided to issue work permits from the province to migrant workers instead of waiting for the federal government to do so. He may be exasperated about the flood of people entering the province, many of whom end up on expensive social assistance, but how he thinks this will improve the situation is anyone’s guess. With the widespread expectation of a continued sluggish economy or even a full-blown recession in the near future, adding more workers to the mix will hardly help unemployment among young Canadians and others.
The laws of supply and demand also appear to elude Ford, as issuing these permits will merely attract even more migrants to the province. With an unemployment rate of 7.8 per cent in Ontario – almost a full percentage point above the national rate of 6.9 per cent – the province doesn’t need more entry level workers.
Ford’s announcement is an abrupt change from his recent love-in with Carney, whom he has mostly flattered and cozied up to at recent federal-provincial meetings. Ford complains that the federal government is not issuing work permits sufficiently quickly for his taste, stating that it takes two years for the federal government to issue a permit while the federal government claims the real number is 45 days. What neither government has admitted is that far too many people in recent years have been allowed to claim asylum without being legitimate asylum-seekers that are truly at risk of harm if they return to their home countries. It is also a discordant note for Ford to sound after months of saying things like he was going to “take care of our own” as a priority.
Canada’s immigration system has been a mess for years, with the blame resting solely on the federal government up until now. Ford seems to want to make the system even worse, which is the last thing Canada needs. The system needs to be fixed, not jerry-rigged so that we are compounding new problems on top of the existing disaster. The sensible thing for Canada to do is to cut back immigration numbers to historical norms, impose more sensible limits on who is permitted to claim asylum and return to a more economically-based system where immigrants’ skills match with existing labour force requirements. This is not only fair to Canadians, but to the potential immigrants themselves who are also being poorly treated by the existing fiasco. Sadly, it seems logical solutions that are clear to most Canadians are the ones most avoided by our politicians.
She has published numerous articles in journals, magazines & other media on issues such as free trade, finance, entrepreneurship & women business owners. Ms. Swift is a past President of the Empire Club of Canada, a former Director of the CD Howe Institute, the Canadian Youth Business Foundation, SOS Children’s Villages, past President of the International Small Business Congress and current Director of the Fraser Institute. She was cited in 2003 & 2012 as one of the most powerful women in Canada by the Women’s Executive Network & is a recipient of the Queen’s Silver & Gold Jubilee medals.
