Freedom of Information Request and Employment and Social Development Canada

Employment and Social Development Canada: To hire a nanny or other caregiver from abroad, an employer needs a positive Labour Market Impact Assessment, a certificate that says there a shortage of labour to justify hiring a foreign worker. Employment and Social Development Canada issued only 92 positive LMIAs between last December and March, according to statistics provided under a freedom of information request, according to Metro News. While the federal government has attributed the sharp decrease to a decline in applications, advocates and recruiters said the low acceptance rate, compounded by a backlog in granting permanent residency to qualified caregivers, has essentially stifled a program Canadian families desperately need and Ottawa has approved fewer than 10 per cent of requests by potential employers to bring in foreign caregivers under a revised program introduced in December, latest data shows. Twenty-two of those were for childcare, 70 for people to provide care for clients with high medical needs. In 2014, prior to changes in the program, the government was issuing 700 to 1,000 per month. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.