HRSDC Assessment Criteria for Job Offers in Occupations that Require a High School Diploma or Job-Specific Training

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To assist you in the application process for foreign workers in occupations that usually require at most a high school diploma or job-specific training (NOC C and D), below is a description of the factors that HRSDC takes into consideration when reviewing your job offer. Submitting a complete application and providing information on these factors can result in faster decisions by HRSDC and CIC officers and reduce delays in the recruitment of your foreign workers.

When assessing a job offer, HRSDC considers primarily :

• the occupation that the foreign worker will be employed in;
• the wages and working conditions offered;
• the employer's advertisement and recruitment efforts;
• the labour market benefits related to the entry of the foreign worker;
• consultations, if any, with the appropriate union; and
• and whether the entry of the foreign worker is likely to affect the settlement of a labour dispute.

You should also be aware of other requirements related to housing, transportation of the workers, employer-employee contracts, and health and workplace safety for the workers.

Occupation

HRSDC and CIC use the National Occupational Classification (NOC) system to categorize the job you are filling based on the majority of duties you identify. HRSDC also uses the NOC to identify wages and labour market trends when assessing the job offer.

The NOC can help you as an employer more accurately describe the duties and identify the occupation that the foreign worker is expected to perform.

• Find out more about NOC job descriptions .
• Learn more about the NOC .

Wages and Working Conditions

HRSDC reviews the wages that you are offering to the Foreign Worker, and compares them to wages paid to Canadians in the same occupation based on labour market information from Statistics Canada, HRSDC, provincial ministries, and other reliable sources. Please be aware that if you are offering wages below rates paid to Canadians in the same occupation, especially in NOC C and D occupations, HRSDC will not confirm the hiring of the foreign worker.

HRSDC also expects that you are providing working conditions that are consistent with federal and/or provincial standards for the occupation and workplace.

• Learn more information about federal and provincial labour standards in Canada.

Advertisement and Recruitment

HRSDC generally requires evidence of recruitment efforts to find qualified Canadians before applying to hire foreign workers, particularly in NOC C and D occupations.

You will be asked to provide copies of advertisement in local and national newspapers, recognized INTERNET job banks, job-specific and professional publications, along with receipts to show how long the advertisements were published. The advertisements must clearly show the job duties, position requirements, wages and working conditions.

In some situations, evidence of recruitment of Canadians through other means such as job fairs, co-operative education programs, and apprenticeships may be acceptable. Given the high levels of unemployment among Canadians in NOC C and D occupations, showing active recruitment of Canadians is critical for your application

• Learn more about HRSDC supports for employers on human resources planning and recruitment .

Union Consultation

If the position being filled by the Foreign Worker is part of a bargaining unit, the following factors, although not determinative, will support a positive HRSDC decision and will reduce delays in the recruitment of the Foreign Worker especially in NOC C and D occupations:

• Conduct union consultations before applying to hire the Foreign Worker(s).
• Actively work with union officials to recruit unemployed Canadians.
• Confirm that the conditions of the collective agreement (e.g. wages, working conditions) will apply to the Foreign Worker.

Please note that HRSDC reserves the right to contact union representatives when reviewing your application.

Labour Disputes

Please be aware that if you are making an offer to a Foreign Worker for a position that affects current or foreseeable labour disputes at your workplace, or affects the employment of any Canadian worker involved in such disputes, HRSDC and CIC will not confirm the hiring, or issue a work permit to the Foreign Worker.

Housing

When applying to hire foreign workers in NOC C and D occupations, HRSDC will expect you to show that you, the employer, are providing affordable housing to the foreign workers, or to show (e.g. through newspaper clippings) that affordable housing is available where the Foreign Worker is expected to work.

Please note that the average social services benchmarks in Canada outline that affordable housing should take no more than 30-35% of the worker's gross monthly income.

Transportation

When hiring Foreign Workers in NOC C and D occupations, you must be prepared to pay for 2-way transportation for the foreign worker, noting that you cannot recover these costs from the worker.

Employer-Employee Contract

When you apply to hire foreign workers, HRSDC expects you to submit a copy of an employer-employee contract signed by you, the employer, in addition to the HRSDC Confirmation application.

Also, before CIC allows the entry of a foreign worker in a NOC C and D occupation into Canada, CIC expects that the foreign worker will present a copy of an employer-employee contract signed by you and the foreign worker. In the event differences arise between the employer and the foreign worker, the contract will guide the resolution of disputes. In cases of demonstrable breaches of the employer-employee contract, where no reparations have been made, HRSDC reserves the right to discontinue service to an employer for the hiring of foreign workers.

Please be aware that in addition to the employer-employee contract, foreign workers, like Canadians, are also covered by provincial labour and workplace safety legislation.

Health and Workplace Safety

As outlined in the employer-employee contract, you, the employer, must ensure that all foreign workers are covered by private or provincial health insurance at all times. If private health insurance must be provided, you, the employer, must pay for the insurance and these costs cannot be recovered from the workers.

Under the employer-employee contract, you must also register all foreign workers under the appropriate provincial Workers' Safety and Compensation Board.