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With Employment and Social Development Canada reviewing the Temporary Foreign Worker Program as it relates to the employment of lower-skilled foreign workers in Canada, many employers find themselves scrambling to develop long-term plans to retain current employees or hire new ones. On April 26, 2014, Citizenship and Immigration Canada announced the introduction of a new category for permanent residence in Canada that may answer the calls of some Canadian businesses for another option.
The Federal Skilled Trades Class (FST Class) will be available as of May 1, 2014 to applicants who are experienced in one of the 90 eligible skilled trade occupations, including those categorized as:
- Industrial, electrical and construction trades;
- Maintenance and equipment operations trades;
- Supervisors and technical occupations in natural resources, agriculture and related production;
- Processing, manufacturing and utilities supervisors and central control operators;
- Chefs and cooks; and
- Butchers and bakers.
Under the current instructions, a maximum of 5,000 new applications will be accepted under the FST Class between May 1, 2014 and April 30, 2015. Within the 5,000 cap, a maximum of 100 applications from each of the eligible occupations will be processed. Unlike the Federal Skilled Worker Program, there is no exemption from these caps for those who have pre-arranged employment in Canada.
In order to be eligible to apply under this category, applicants must demonstrate that they have at least 24 months of full-time (or equivalent part-time) experience in the five year period preceding their application. Applicants must also demonstrate language proficiency in either English or French.
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