Toronto – Concerns over the growing corruption related to the Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) process in Canada continue to be raised, with Satpaul Singh Johal once again reaching out to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to address the issue. Johal, a renowned journalist and vice chair of Peel District School Board who has been communicating his concerns since 2021 and initially raised the issue with Ministers and Members of Parliament in 2016, emphasizes that despite widespread acknowledgment of the problem, little progress has been made.
Johal notes that while officials from the Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC) and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) have admitted the existence of illegal LMIA practices, effective measures to curb the corruption have yet to be implemented. According to Johal, corruption within the LMIA process has continued to flourish, with officials’ sporadic attempts to address the issue proving insufficient.
“Eight years have passed, and we are nowhere near seeing a light at the end of the tunnel,” Johal states, pointing to ongoing systemic loopholes that have allowed the illegal trade in LMIAs to persist.
Johal criticizes the recent response from HRSDC, arguing that it demonstrates a lack of understanding of the problem’s depth. He calls for independent national surveys, particularly focusing on Canada’s diverse and international student communities, to fully grasp the extent of LMIA-related corruption. He also suggests that including visitor visa holders in such surveys could reveal further issues.
Highlighting the market for job offer letters, sale-purchase, and fake payrolls designed to deceive the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and IRCC, Johal asserts that these practices will continue as long as they remain connected with IRCC’s permanent immigration and work permit programs. To address these issues, Johal advocates for the creation of a national pool of potential international workers by the HRSDC, similar to IRCC’s Express Entry system, to relieve employers from the recruiting process.
Johal concludes by expressing hope that an 8-year-long advocacy effort will lead to significant reforms before the next general election, ultimately resulting in a cleaner and more transparent system.
Rashpal Atwal says
Revenue Canada should audit the payroll of these companies make sure they paid all the deduction to the government. If any company issue LMIA must be responsible for 2years employment