Long application processing times with a tight labour market, certain employers favoured over others and the potential for abuse are perceived to be some of the issues with two Yukon immigration programs that are under audit by Canada's auditor general's office.
Seemingly identical applications treated differently, a lack of support for both employers and employees during and after the application process, nominees appearing overqualified for the positions they are filling and the significant influence handed to some employees of the Yukon Economic Development department’s immigration unit are listed as other problems related to the Yukon Nominee Program and Yukon Business Nominee Program.
Despite a hold on the performance audit because of an ongoing RCMP investigation, Canada’s auditor general’s office has made four suggestions directed to the Yukon Department of Economic Development.
The Yukon Nominee Program is part of the police investigation related to RCMP executing a search warrant for information held at the Yukon government’s Economic Development department offices.
The recent suggestions from the auditor general’s office are intended to improve the long-term benefits of the programs and increase stakeholders’ confidence in them.
That is according to a Jan. 14 letter from Mathieu Lequain, the principal responsible for the audit, to deputy minister Samantha Paterson.
In order to come up with the suggestions, the auditor’s office requested and consulted documents from the Department of Economic Development and Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada, met with stakeholders and received correspondence from people with “lived experience” of both programs. Interviewees offered anecdotes and documents to identify the issues mentioned above.
The four suggestions for the department are:
- determine if resources allocated to these programs match their size and importance in relation to the Yukon economy
- find ways to restore confidence in the administration of the programs
- create a better balance of power between employers and employees supported by the Yukon Nominee Program to avoid exploitative relationships
- reconsider if the program is the best tool to meet labour market needs
The territorial department has accepted all four suggestions, according to a letter, dated Feb. 3, from Ranj Pillai, who is premier and Economic Development minister, to Yukon Party MLA Geraldine Van Bibber, the Official Opposition’s Economic Development critic.
The department’s next steps are being deliberated. The department has started evaluating resources and workloads, given that the federal government has reduced Yukon Nominee Program allocations by half, down to 215. Ways to bolster compliance monitoring and oversight for approval processes are being looked at.
A policy review has begun, with the goal of addressing the findings in the letter and improving procedural fairness.
Contact Dana Hatherly at dana.hatherly@yukon-news.com
