Employment and Social Development Canada states that the number of people approved to work as temporary foreign workers in Canada has doubled compared to five years ago. So, today, we will discuss the growing demand for temporary foreign workers in Canada.

According to the publicly available data, in 2023, employers were cleared to hire less than 240,000 temporary foreign workers. Five years prior, this number was less than half of the 2023 figure – at 108,988 temporary foreign workers in 2018. 

Note: This data reflects only temporary foreign workers working in Canada on closed work permits, i.e., those who require a Labor Market Impact Assessment. The number of foreign nationals working and studying in Canada is still higher because of the higher number of open work permits. 

This demonstrates the continuation of an upward trend, i.e., save for 2020, due partly to the pandemic – that has persisted since at least 2016. That year, ESDC data indicated that employers were approved to recruit around 90,000 temporary foreign workers. 

However, it is important to note that the data presented here does not correlate to a higher number of temporary foreign workers in Canada. Although the number of temporary foreign approvals is rising, this does not account for employers who later change their minds and decide not to hire a temporary foreign worker.  

Instead, this data shows that an increasing number of employees are pursuing hiring these foreign workers to fill vacant jobs in their organizations. 

The Overall Growth Of Temporary Foreign Workers Approvals Across Canada

The growing demand for temporary foreign workers in Canada is shown below. Take a look!

  • 2016: 90,314
  • 2017: 98,146
  • 2018: 108,988
  • 2019: 130,457
  • 2020: 125,279
  • 2021: 133,196
  • 2022: 222,847
  • 2023: 239,646

The Growth In Temporary Foreign Workers Approvals By Industry 

The additional data below shows that the following ten industries have seen the highest percentage increases concerning the number of temporary foreign workers approvals between 2018 and 2023. 

1. Nurse Aides, Orderlies, And Patient Service Associates

NOC 2021 code: 33102

  • Number of approvals (2018): 16
  • Number of approvals (2023): 2,514

Percentage increase: 15,613%

2. Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers, And Related Support Occupations

NOC 2021 code: 65201

  • Number of approvals (2018): 170
  • Number of approvals (2023): 8,333

Percentage increase: 4,802%

3. Construction Trades Helpers And Laborers

NOC 2021 code: 75110

  • Number of approvals (2018): 132
  • Number of approvals (2023): 5,353

Percentage increase: 3,955%

4. Light Duty Cleaners

NOC 2021 code: 65310

  • Number of approvals (2018): 201
  • Number of approvals (2023): 3,043

Percentage increase: 1,414%

5. Administrative Assistants

NOC 2021 code: 13110

  • Number of approvals (2018): 287
  • Number of approvals (2023): 3,337

Percentage increase: 1,063%

6. Retail Sales Supervisors

NOC 2021 code: 62010

  • Number of approvals (2018): 570
  • Number of approvals (2023): 2,999

Percentage increase: 426%

7. Transport Truck Drivers

NOC 2021 code: 73300

  • Number of approvals (2018): 1,584
  • Number of approvals (2023): 7,297

Percentage increase: 361%

8. Food Service Supervisors

NOC 2021 code: 62020

  • Number of approvals (2018): 2,358
  • Number of approvals (2023): 10,409

Percentage increase: 341%

9. Cooks

NOC 2021 code: 63200

  • Number of approvals (2018): 3,162
  • Number of approvals (2023): 11,977

Percentage increase: 279%

10. Fish And Seafood Plant Workers

NOC 2021 code: 94142

  • Number of approvals (2018): 1,556
  • Number of approvals (2023): 4,529

Percentage increase: 191%

Why Is This Increase Taking Place? 

The growing demand for temporary foreign workers in Canada is taking place. IRCC data suggests that temporary residents made up around 6.2% of Canada’s Population – up to 2.5 million people in 2023.

For comparison, Statistics Canada data released last year stated that over 924,850 non-permanent residents were included in the 2021 census, making up 2.5% of Canada’s total enumerated population. 

Note: Of these 924,000+ NPRs, 40.1% had just a work permit, while an additional 14.2% had both a work permit and a 

permit simultaneously. 

This increase, both last year and over the last half-decade, can be attributed to temporary measures taken by the Canadian government to help ease labor market conditions, specifically during the pandemic. 

In other words, many Canadian employers, specifically those hiring for the low-wage positions that dominate the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, needed help filling vacant positions, and the government responded by increasing the number of temporary foreign workers given a permit to work in Canada. 

Other examples of Temporary Foreign Worker Permit changes introduced during the pandemic include: 

  • Exemptions that allowed temporary foreign workers to continue traveling to Canada 
  • Extended validity periods for some LMIAs 
  • Expediting the processing of certain Temporary Foreign Worker Permit applications 

Well, the Employment Minister stated that Canada has a different economic image, and the gap between unemployment and job vacancies is closing. Also, the government has decided that some of these measures are no longer required. 

Accordingly, in March this year, the nation declared a set of changes to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program designed to stabilize the total number of temporary foreign workers in Canada.  

The Immigration Minister, Marc Miller, stated that the government wants every new family and resident to be set up for success and have access to the services they require while ensuring a well-managed, sustainable immigration system based on needs. 

If you seek information on how to begin your Canada immigration application process, you can talk to our NavaImmigration experts at 1800-918-8490, or you can drop us an email at [email protected].