In late 2011, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney announced that over 14,000 open work permits would be issued to live-in caregivers who had been waiting upwards of 18 months after applying for their Permanent Residence.  At first, he was applauded by nannies who were appreciative of the ability to exit their live-in jobs to work on a live-out basis.  Unfortunately, this has resulted in an over saturation of the live-out market which is very sparse of jobs to begin with.  At our agency, we see anywhere from 20 to 30 live out nannies at our office each week and unfortunately turn 95% of them away due to the fact that, without a drivers license, there is absolutely no market for them.  Many are turning back to the live-in market which is making employers happy but delays caregivers’ independence.

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It’s been a few months since our last posting – what can we say, life gets busy sometimes – but we wanted to post this article that was originally published in the Toronto Star.

TorontoLiveInCare.com’s Sharon Taylor was interviewed for the article which explores “nanny poaching” that is occurring in Toronto.  Unfortunately, 3 months after the article has been posted, we are still hearing the same stories as the market of locally available live-in caregivers continues to dwindle.

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By Tobi Cohen, Postmedia News, November 10, 2011

OTTAWA — Immigrants admitted through the government’s foreign live-in caregiver stream say they’ve been duped by the immigration minister, who touted the program’s success and certain growth prior to the May election, only to claw back on the number targeted for permanent residency next year.

Although the government maintains 98 per cent of live-in caregivers eventually become permanent residents, last week Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said fewer people were qualifying for the program, adding that it was one of two streams poised to take a hit in 2012 as the government freezes overall immigration while boosting certain economic streams.

It’s a far different tune than the one Kenney was singing last year.

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Globe & Mail editorial – Published November 7, 2011

Immigration Minister Jason Kenney’s plan to accept 10,000 more skilled workers into Canada next year is a sound one, and so is the government’s overall target of 255,000 newcomers. Some other changes make less sense, and may be motivated by politics, more than economics.

Mr. Kenney acknowledged that the seven-year backlog to sponsor grandparents and parents has become unmanageable, and announced a two-year moratorium on applications. In the meantime, however, he will increase the quota by 10,000 over two years, to 25,000, and introduce a two-year multiple-entry visitor’s visa for these family members.

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To those in the industry, the confirmation that there are less people entering the Live-In Caregiver program is not a surprise, but Immigration Minister Jason Kenney disclosed this information in an article recently posted here on Canada.com.

The government also is expecting a decline in the number of people who come to Canada as part of the live-in caregiver program “because fewer people are qualifying,” he said.

The overall point of the article is to stress the positive moves the Conservative government is making to shape the type of immigrants that Canada welcomes.  However, we are still seeing a vital, urgent and necessary need for child care solutions in Canada ignored.

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So you have finished your 24 months, waited through the terribly long processing times for your open permits or Permanent Residence and you’re looking for a live-out job.  Alternatively, you may be a newcomer live-in caregiver or nearing the end of your program looking ahead to working on a live-out basis.  What can you do to prepare yourself to secure the best possible live-out caregiver position? Check out our top five transitional steps to take before moving to this market.

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Before the last election, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney proposed significant changes to the live in caregiver program and caregiver groups were in overwhelming support. Promises of no second medical, over-time accruement towards faster completion, no recruitment fees, flights paid, health insurance, and most importantly of all, faster Permanent Residence processing times. In the following video at Caregivers One Special Day, Kenney reiterates many of those promises:

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UPDATE AUGUST 23:  A report coming from a caregiver online suggests that this procedure may not be as easy as initially thought.  Apparently a caregiver with implied status has to wait till their OHIP expires, apply to renew, wait for the rejection and then file an appeal.  More hoops to go through in order to take advantage of health care they are entitled to as a temporary foreign workers.

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Yesterday, Toronto immigration lawyer Rafael Fabregas tipped us off, via his Twitter @rafael_fabregas, that not only can foreign caregivers in Toronto maintain OHIP while on implied status when their work permit has expired, but it is not exactly new, just not commonly known.

For the last few years, and especially since the ballooning of caregiver Permanent Residence processing times, we have met no less than one caregiver per day at our office who has no OHIP coverage due to being denied renewal as their permit is expired.  However, these caregivers have implied status with their last employer on record and are just caught in the waiting period for the open permits.

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This is a truly unfortunate story regarding a lady who came to Canada as a Live-In Caregiver.  Finally, after six years, she was reunited with her son, now 20 years old.  The question has been brought up of whether or not the mental anguish of a child apart from his mother for so many years may have contributed to his state.

Our thoughts go out to the caregiver’s family.

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The following article, originally from Filipino news blog Atinitonews.com, sums up the further struggles of Live-In Caregivers in Canada despite Immigration Minister Jason Kenney’s promise of widespread change for them.  Canadian employers are paying exponentially more than just a few years ago to hire these caregivers from abroad and this was supposed to ensure that Live-In Caregivers were to enjoy better employment protection, faster processing and less hassle in general.  Unfortunately, processing times have doubled, the Conservative government is silent on the issue and – as we discussed in a previous article – caregivers are actually being seriously and negatively affected by these increases as their OHIP is running out before they can even get their open permit.

Is this the end for the LCP, or are we just in the midst of a change?  Seems like these changes have been going on for ever though, and I don’t think anyone is really sure how it’s going to end up.

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