CANADA Law and Practice Contributed by: Christopher Pigott, Rachel Younan, Jacob Wagner and Felisha Jagiah, Fasken
4. Foreign Workers 4.1 Limitations on Foreign Workers
the Canadian labour market. This can be shown if the main source of pay for the work done in Canada origi - nates from outside Canada. Normally, a business visi - tor will be permitted to work in Canada for six months at a time. Public Registry for Employers of Foreign Workers As of December 2020, the government of British Columbia began a public registry of employers who are registered to hire foreign workers. The registry applies to most employers (including individuals) who hire foreign workers, such as those hired under the Seasonal Agriculture Worker Program, the Home Child Care Provider or Home Support Worker pilot, and oth - er programmes that require a Labour Market Impact Assessment. An employer does not need to register if they are an excluded employer – including those who currently employ foreign workers and do not intend to hire more workers – or if they only hire foreign workers under the Provincial Nominee Program or the Inter - national Mobility Program. In addition, employers hir - ing temporary foreign workers as domestic workers (eg, workers who provide services such as childcare, cooking and cleaning in a private home) are required to register the worker with the government of British Columbia within 30 days of hiring them. In Canada, employees do not have a right to work from home. However, employers are increasingly implementing remote work arrangements in their workplaces – whether fully remote or “hybrid” models. In Canadian jurisdictions where an employee’s home is considered an extension of the workplace, require - ments and duties set out in provincial occupational health and safety statutes apply. Furthermore, employ - ers are required to take reasonable steps to prevent workplace bullying and harassment and address such conduct where it occurs “virtually” under applicable human rights and occupational health and safety leg - islation. 5.2 Sabbaticals In Canada, employees do not have a legal right to sabbatical leave. However, Canadian employers may 5. New Work 5.1 Mobile Work
In Canada, only Canadian citizens and individuals who meet the immigration requirements for perma - nent residency may engage in employment as of right. Citizens of other countries must obtain a work permit to work in Canada. Under Canadian law, if an employee is working with - out a valid permit or other government authorisation, the employer is deemed to have knowledge that the employee is not permitted to work in Canada. Employ - ers can face fines as well as imprisonment for employ - ing such employees. 4.2 Registration Requirements for Foreign Workers Obtaining a Work Permit To obtain a work permit in Canada, a person must have their job offer “confirmed” by a government agency (Employment and Social Development Cana - da) in the area in which the employer conducts busi - ness. Through this process, the employer must dem - onstrate that it has made reasonable efforts to hire a Canadian, that there were no Canadians available who were qualified to perform the job, and that the effect of allowing the foreign worker to work in Canada will enhance employment opportunities in the country or – at least – will not detract from employment oppor - tunities. Thereafter, an immigration officer may issue a work permit for a specific period of time. Exemptions There are a number of exemptions to the requirement for a work permit and special rules applicable to cer - tain industries (eg, agriculture) or particular work posi - tions (eg, live-in care-givers). Exemptions or expedit - ed processes for professionals, senior employees of multinational companies, intercorporate transferees, traders and salespersons are also available. In many circumstances, the Canada–United States–Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) provides for special rules appli - cable as between Canada, Mexico and the USA. Others may work in Canada as business visitors if they can demonstrate that their business activities are international in scope and that they are not entering
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