Manitoba trucking companies increasingly turning to foreign help, but some accused of misusing program

Manitoba's trucking sector is usingtemporary foreign workers to fill the ranks ofdrivers at thehighest rate in years, butsome of those companies are being accused of taking advantage of newcomerswho hope to live in Canada.

Ananalysis of federal data shows Manitoba businesses in the trades, transport, equipment operators and related occupations sector were cleared to hire 1,467 temporary foreign workers in 2023 an increase of 1,283per cent from the106 employees permitted in 2018,according to figures published by Employment and Social Development Canada.

The demand for temporary foreign workers has swelled across the country and in arange of professions.

But inManitoba whereemployers were approved to hire 3,200 more temporary foreign workers in 2023 than five years priorthe increaseis attributed in large part to the transportation sector.

For example, nearly 900 of the workers Manitoba businesses were approved to hirein 2023were transport truck drivers. The federal program only granted permission for 40 drivers to be hired in 2018.

Aaron Dolyniuk, executive director of the Manitoba Trucking Association, said companies increasingly have no choice but to look beyond the province'sborders.

"We have an aging workforce," he said."Half of the amount of people we are looking to recruit includes people that are retiring out of our workforce."

Struggling to hire, retain

Provincial labour market data from 2023suggests Manitoba must train and retain around 3,485 more driversin the nextfive years to meet demand.

Driving truck can payfairly well, said a lawyer who works as immigration counsel for some truckingcompanies,but the lifestyle of long hours and prolonged periodsaway from home no longer appeals to many.

"We're not seeing the same uptake fromdomestic workers, so we have to make up the shortfall somehow," said Kenneth Zaifman.

CBC News analyzed federaltemporary foreign worker databased onpositivelabour market impact assessments, or LMIAsa document proving there are no Canadians available to take a job.

An increase in positive LMIA positions doesn't necessarily mean there are moretemporary foreign workers in the countryfor example, an approved employer might change their mind beforehiring one but it at least points toemployers' rising interest in the program.

While Manitoba'slabour shortage iswell-documented, Zaifman said it's particularly pronounced in the trucking sector, because the province has becomea transportation hub with anumber of large and growing companies.

Some trucking companies usethe temporary foreign worker program because they'veexhausted theprovincial nominee program, which brings a limited number of skilled workers to the province annually tofill labour gaps.

But thespike in interest in temporary foreign workers in the trucking industry is likely also influenced by the employersand international recruiters who are illegally charging newcomers afee in the tens of thousands of dollars for awork permit, said Zaifman.

Anecdotally, he's alsoheard of cases in which workersaren't getting promised hours and are being paid lessthan expected.

That behaviour is "morecommon than we think," he said.

Zaifmansaid he can attest that manytrucking companies handletemporary worker recruitmentthe right way. His office applies for work permits. He saidnew workers sign a letteracknowledgingthey haven't paid a fee, directly or indirectly, for the job.

But his office has also helped some workers, including truckers, escape abusive situations by supporting their applicationsfor an open work permitspecifically for vulnerable workers.

Many other workersstay silent out of fears speaking out wouldjeopardize their chancesat permanent residency, he said.

"The ultimate problem is that those individuals who come [under the temporary foreign worker program] may not get the objectivewhichthey seek, which is a job that pays them," he said.

"It creates a lot of human hardship."

Last year, aWinnipegcompany known as 10047179 Manitoba Ltd. was sanctioned for breaking laws around the hiring and recruiting of temporary foreign workers. It was fined$258,000 and banned from using the program for five years.

The Manitoba Trucking Association'sDolyniuksaid the numbered company wasn't registered as a trucking entity in the province, yet "somehow [was]given permission to recruit truck drivers to work in Manitoba."

Trucking association asking for help

The association has heard other complaints of foreign workers being exploited withinadequate pay, benefits and protections.It hasreferred accusations to enforcement agencies and asked the provincial government to establish a working group to examine the issues.

The trucking association wants to root out anymisuse of the program, saidDolyniuk.

"It hurts our reputation," he said.

"There's a lot of great employers out there that have fantastic processes, settlement programs for people that are coming to work here, support systems in place, training."

Manitoba's NDP government established the working group in January to "get a handle" onexploitation in the trucking industry, said Transportation Minister Lisa Naylor.

The group willhave conversations with the federal government and law enforcement to determine ways to move forward, she said.

Diwa Marcelino, who advocates for migrant workers as an organizer with thegroupMigrante Manitoba, said he's personally heard in the last year from five truckers, most of whom were of South Asian descent, whopaid to get work.

He says stronger enforcement of the laws is needed to protect migrant workers, in the trucking industry and beyond.

"The laws are useless if workers don't have the agency to complain, if they're fearful of being deported, if workersare fearfulfor their lives or the lives of their family members back home," said Marcelino,a brother to Manitoba Labour MinisterMalaya Marcelino.

The RCMPsaid they aren'tcurrentlyinvestigating any complaints in Manitoba around temporary work permits. TheCanadaBorder Services Agency said it couldn't provide comment by deadline.

More than a dozen trucking companies reached by CBC News declined comment or said nobody could speak this week to theiruse of temporary work permits.

Greater scrutiny urged as Manitoba trucking firms increasingly look outside Canada for drivers

3 months ago

Duration 2:06

Manitoba's trucking sector is usingtemporary foreign workers to find drivers at its highest rate in years, butsome of those companies are accused of taking advantage of newcomers' hopes of living in Canada.