Making the Case
As a business owner or senior executive in the trucking industry today, are you are often challenged to find effective ways to ensure your business’ success?
One of the most important ways to ensure success is to invest in your human resources. Having the right people is paramount. With the shrinking labour pool in Atlantic Canada, however, “the right people” are getting harder and harder to find. Traditional hiring practices will no longer provide the numbers needed for carriers in Atlantic Canada to survive, let alone thrive moving forward. As a result, many trucking companies in Atlantic Canada are expanding their labour search and making a concerted effort to diversify their recruitment strategy to include new labour sources such as immigration.
One of the challenges in doing this is dispelling the myths surrounding an immigration recruitment strategy and getting the people around you, whether in the boardroom or in the field, to understand the benefits for the employees as well as the company.
Benefits of an Immigration Hiring Strategy
There are many compelling reasons why carriers in Atlantic Canada should consider developing a human resource strategy that includes the hiring and retaining of a diverse workforce, including permanent residents (landed immigrants), foreign students and foreign workers. These include:
To increase an already shrinking labour force;
To ensure economic sustainability and even growth.
To increase productivity and competitive advantage;
To ensure the demographics within your company are representative of the communities in which you live and work;
Need to present the benefits of your immigration hiring strategy to the executive team in your business? Looking for information you can use to inform your employees about immigration hiring to ensure your company is ready to embrace the benefits of a diverse culture? Check out these brief power point presentations and Dispelling the Myths pdfs that you can use or modify to suit your needs.
Did you know...
Atlantic Provinces Economic Council. (2009, September) Hiring International Workers in Atlantic Canada: An Employer’s Guide. Retrieved from https://www.apec-econ.ca/publications/view/?do-load=1&publication.id=170&site.page.id=51006
Census Shows Immigration Accounted for Two-Thirds of Canada’s Population Growth Since 2011 (FEBRUARY 8, 2017) CIC News. Retrieved from http://www.cicnews.com/2017/02/census-immigration-accounted-two-thirds-canada-population-growth-since-2011-028878.html
Canada Needs Immigration to Balance Aging Population. CIC News. Retrieved from http://www.cicnews.com/2016/10/canada-needs-immigration-to-balance-aging-population-108568.html
Dispelling the Myths
There are two main issues surrounding implementing an immigration hiring strategy for carriers in Atlantic Canada. On the one hand, the process may seem overwhelming to employers as they try and understand what is involved, the various decisions they have to make, and the hurdles they may face. On the other hand, employers must deal with negative perceptions of immigration that may exist among employees, customers, vendors and the communities in which they operate.
Below are some myth busters for employers as they consider an immigration hiring strategy and for employers to share with their employees and possibly other stakeholders in their businesses.
Myth Busters for Employers
As a small/medium sized business owner, I do not have the tools or resources to recruit immigrants.
There are many free tools and resources in Atlantic Canada to assist all employers, large or small, to develop and implement an immigrant recruitment strategy inclusive of permanent residents, foreign workers or international students. Employers can recruit immigrants who are permanent residents by contacting their local settlement agencies who have access to a number of job seekers already residing in Canada. There are no extra processes for recruiting permanent residents residing in Canada.
If recruiting outside of Canada, employers can use the services of a third party representative or recruiter; however, this will be at an extra cost to you. If you decide to do this yourself, you can avail of the services provided by government-sponsored organizations and websites that can promote job openings to foreign workers.
To learn more about how to recruit immigrants, the cost of application, and a comprehensive list of resources visit Recruitment and Selection on the THRSC Atlantic’s Human Resources Immigration Strategy: A Toolkit for Employers.
My company has no way to evaluate foreign credentials.
There is no doubt that foreign credential checking is a leading concern for many employers in Canada trying to determine whether the foreign applicant’s work experience and training is equivalent to that required in Canada. If you are hiring for a regulated profession such as those under the Red Seal program like the Truck Trailer Technician or Heavy Duty Mechanic, credential checking can be requested from a Canadian assessment agency and completed for a fee. Also, if you use a third party representative or recruiter, they will be able to help you confirm the credentials you need.
If you are hiring for other professions such as Dispatcher or Truck Driver and you are not using a third party recruiter, you may need to do a little research regarding the requirements found for this profession in the applicant’s country to discover its equivalency.
For example, if you are hiring a professional truck driver from a country in the European Union you can check out information on that profession by visiting: https://ec.europa.eu/transport/road_safety/users/professional-drivers_en
In Canada, we require a driver to have a class 1 license to drive semi trailer trucks with air brakes. If you are recruiting foreign drivers you may ask specifically for training and experience related to vehicle size, weight, number of axles and braking systems. This will help as you try to compare his/her relevant training and experience. These questions can be asked during the interview and when reference checking. You may also want to engage in further testing as further clarification of equivalent education and relevant experience such as TOWES Testing offered by the THRSC Atlantic.
For more information on this process visit Recruitment & Selection on the THRSC Atlantic’s Human Resources Immigration Strategy: A Toolkit for Employers and click on Selection.
Too much cultural diversity will cause conflict among my workforce.
Despite the fact that you may currently have only Canadian born citizens at your workplace does not mean you do not already have cultural diversity. Culture is defined as a set of values, practices, traditions or beliefs a group shares, due to such things as age, religion or gender, race or ethnicity. Today’s workplaces in Atlantic Canada already have diversity and it is a widely held belief that it is this very diversity that contributes to a company’s success.The key to ensuring that diversity contributes to the companies overall success is to ensure that your work culture is well defined and that all are treated with fairness and respect.
To learn more about how to get your company ready and ensure a respectful workplace for all visit Getting Ready on the THRSC Atlantic’s Human Resources Immigration Strategy: A Toolkit for Employers.
Myth Busters for Employees
Immigrants are stealing jobs from Canadians.
It is a fact that there are more professional truck driver positions then there are professional truck drivers in Canada to fill the positions. For specific data, please see Trucking in Canada under Making the Case on the THRSC Atlantic’s Human Resources Immigration Strategy: A Toolkit for Employers.
It is also a fact that many of the professional truck driving positions temporary foreign workers are hired to fill are positions that are difficult to fill in Atlantic Canada including certain types of hauling as well as specific service lanes. Temporary Foreign Workers are brought in to fill these positions in the short-term with the understanding that the employer will attempt to transition to a Canadian workforce in time.
Immigrant workers are keeping our wages lower because they are willing to work for less.
This is certainly not true. Immigrant workers expect the same wages as their Canadian counterparts for the same jobs performed. Government agencies who are involved in the Temporary Foreign Worker Program hold employer’s accountable to provide wages to these workers equal to what is paid to their Canadian counterparts. Periodical audits on all pay records are performed on these employers to verify their commitment to equal pay for equal work.Immigrants do not pay taxes.
Temporary foreign workers and permanent residents are subject to the same tax deductions and pay the same taxes as their Canadian-born counter-parts but cannot access many of the same services based on their status.Atlantic Canada & Trucking: Current Situation
Trucking in Canada
If your business is experiencing a skills shortage that is negatively impacting your bottom line, you are not alone. GE Capital surveyed leaders in mid-size trucking firms throughout Canada in 2014 (with revenues between 10 million and 1 billion dollars) and it was noted that next to the cost of doing business; the need for a qualified workforce is a top concern of business leaders in the trucking industry.
Canada’s transportation industry is forecasted to see a 31% increase in labour demand between 2010 and 2030. The Canadian truck transportation sector alone is projected to employ 369,000 people by 2021. To meet this demand the sector will require at least 153,000 additional workers, an average of 14,100 per year. At the current rate of vacancies and the retirement projections of an aging workforce, labour shortages are expected to amount to over 26,000 full year jobs by 2030.
People employed by 2021
Additional workers required
Labour shortage by 2030
Although a lack of a qualified workforce is threatening many occupations in trucking such as managerial roles and truck mechanic, the shortage of qualified truck drivers remain one of the most acute issues as it impacts over two thirds of the entire trucking industry workforce
Sources:
- GE Capital (3Q 2014) Canadian Mid-Size Trucking Industry Outlook.
Retrieved from http://www.gecapital.ca/GECA_Document/Industry_Summary_Trucking.pdf- Understanding the Truck Driver Supply and Demand Gap and its Implications for the Canadian Economy. (Feb 2013) Conference Board of Canada.
Retrieved from http://www.conferenceboard.ca/e-library/abstract.aspx?did=5345- Beyond the Wheel. Final Report for Industry.
Retrieved from Canadian Trucking Human Resource Council. (2012) http://www.truckinghr.com/sites/default/files/documents/Final%20Report%20for%20Industry%20-%202012.12-029.en.pdf
A Shrinking Labour Force in Atlantic Canada
Although the qualified labour shortages in the Canadian Trucking Industry is well documented, (see the section on Trucking in Canada), the situation is Atlantic Canada is compounded with the demographic projections that point to an overall decrease in the labour force for the region. There are several factors that contribute to this overall decline including low birth rates, the continual outmigration of young people, and the increase of the number of people in the workforce (baby boomers) reaching retirement age.
Both governments and businesses have developed strategies to respond to this projected labour force decline. Many carriers are taking active steps to increase retention and providing career development programs to employees who want to advance.
They are also reaching out to under-represented groups within the trucking industry and working with local schools to attract younger workers. They are getting involved with programs designed to increase the competency of under qualified workers. Finally, they are continuously examining wages and benefits to try and meet the needs of their labour force. Both Federal and Provincial Governments are supporting these businesses with funding and services such as the Canada Job Grant and Apprenticeship Grants just to name a few.
Despite all these efforts to help Canadians enter the trucking industry, the reality is that there is still a gap between what is needed and what will be available. Besides trying to reduce the labour force needed with increased investment in new technology, many carriers are diversifying their recruitment strategies by including immigration as a way to sustain their business and even support growth initiatives.
Immigration Laws
In this section we will review specific laws that apply to hiring:
When making the decision to develop an immigration hiring strategy for your company, it is important that you understand your rights and responsibilities under the Canadian laws that govern this process. The Government of Canada supports an employer’s need to meet their labour demands with the recruitment of foreign workers when Canadians and permanent residents are not available. Despite some accusations of fraudulent activity there are very specific laws and policies governing the recruitment of foreign workers that are designed to guide and support all involved.
Permanent Residents Residing in Canada
Hiring a landed immigrant who currently resides in Canada is the same as hiring a Canadian-born citizen. There are no additional laws that need to be followed. Employers do not have to make application to ESDC/Service Canada when hiring and the landed immigrant does not require additional work permits. See https://www.canada.ca/en/immigration-refugees-citizenship/services/new-immigrants/pr-card/understand-pr-status.html for more information about permanent residents or landed immigrants residing in Canada. Also check out Recruitment & Selection for ideas on how and where to attract and recruit landed immigrants.
Interesting facts:
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Immigration and Ethnocultural Diversity in Canada. Statistics Canada.
Retrieved from http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/nhs-enm/2011/as-sa/99-010-x/99-010-x2011001-eng.cfm
According to the Employment Equity Act, Federally-regulated employers are required to make a concerted effort to increase the representation of the visible minorities within their companies as this group is considered underrepresented in the Canadian workforce. According to statistics, the majority of visible minorities in Canada entered as immigrants. By including landed immigrants in your recruitment strategy, you can also increase your labour pool to include more persons of visible minority, thus fulfilling your obligations under the Employment Equity Act.
The Employment Equity Act defines visible minorities as ‘persons, other than Aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour.’
When you apply for a Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) to qualify to hire a Temporary Foreign Worker you may be required to complete an Employer Transition Plan. This transition plan is mandatory for employers to show that they are making every effort to transition to a Canadian workforce. Being able to report your efforts on the recruitment of permanent residents or immigrants already residing in Canada is a great way to show your efforts.
Foreign Workers Outside of Canada
When Canadians and permanent residents are not available to fill vacant positions within your company, the Government of Canada supports the employer’s need to recruit foreign workers to fill this labour shortage either on a temporary or more permanent basis. Two specific Canadian laws govern this type of recruitment and hiring:
Within the Atlantic Provinces, Nova Scotia has additional legislation that an employer in Nova Scotia must also adhere to when hiring Temporary Foreign workers:
These laws are designed to promote accountability and transparency of Canada’s immigration program for all stakeholders. When an employer makes application to hire a Foreign Worker, it is the employer’s responsibility to prove that they are a compliant employer with Labour Standards and will follow the program as required. These checks and balances are there to protect not only all employees but the employer as well.
There are several government agencies that are involved in the administration of Foreign Worker Program. They include:
To find out more about hiring Foreign Workers and the steps you must take as an employer, please see Recruitment in this toolkit.
