Eby open to cancelling foreign worker program, Rustad says B.C. needs it

B.C. Premier David Eby is urging the federal government to either cancel or significantly reform the federal temporary foreign worker program.

Source: Facebook

B.C. Premier David Eby is urging the federal government to either cancel or significantly reform the federal temporary foreign worker program.

Meanwhile, BC Conservative leader John Rustad had an entirely different position, arguing that temporary foreign workers were needed in B.C. and eliminating the program would severely harm the tourism and agriculture sectors.

Rustad claimed in an interview with Global News that while the federal system is broken, maintaining some foreign worker program at a provincial level was needed, as tourism destinations such as Whistler are “in desperate need of TFWs.

“However, it is clear in my mind that the immigration system is broken and has been broken for a number of years by Ottawa,” he said. “We need a made-in-B.C. solution, which is why I’m advocating for taking control of our own immigration.”

At a Surrey, B.C., school, Eby said an “adult conversation” around immigration is needed as the province struggles with high unemployment, particularly youth unemployment, and overwhelmed social programs and housing markets.

”It’s time for a serious and adult conversation about addressing these immigration issues in our province and in the country. We can’t have an immigration system that fills up our homeless shelters and our food banks. We can’t have an immigration system that outpaces our ability to build schools and housing,” Eby said in Surrey Thursday. “We can’t have an immigration program that results in high youth unemployment.”

He noted B.C. has an “unacceptably high level of unemployment among young people,” which has been linked to both the international student visa program and the temporary foreign worker program.

B.C.’s youth unemployment for those aged 15 to 24 reached 12.1 per cent in July, according to Ycharts, an aggregate using Statistics Canada data. The national rate was 14.6 per cent in the same month, according to Statistics Canada.

According to Statistics Canada, youth employment fell by 34,000 jobs in July 2025, a 0.7% decline that brought the rate to 53.6%.

Eby said he would be “happy” to convene a table of the provinces to discuss with the federal government how to improve Canada’s immigration system and “be responsive to the threats and challenges” each province faces.

Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government has already issued 105,195 temporary foreign workers permit in the first six months of 2025, compared to the 109,310 the Liberal government issued in 2024. The Liberals capped TFWs at 82,000 for the entire year, a quota already exceeded by more than 20% with six months remaining.

“It is making sure that Canadians are protected and looked after, and in particular, that young people have a strong economic future in our country. The temporary foreign worker program is not working,” Eby said in response to a reporter’s question. “It should be canceled or significantly reformed.”

Eby noted fraudulent sales of Labour Market Impact Assessments and temporary foreign worker LMIAs occur particularly in Surrey, where he made the remarks.

Rustad was not immediately available for comment.

B.C. Conservative Leader John Rustad released a statement Thursday saying Eby’s pivot on the immigration file was a “desperate” political pivot to “distract” from his government’s record of failure. He said that Eby’s own government is to blame for overseeing “sky rocketing costs of living and a worsening jobs market.”

“This week’s jobs numbers show youth unemployment nearing 13 per cent. While the premier holds press conferences to pretend he’s a conservative, 16,000 more British Columbian families face unemployment. At the same time, small business owners are telling us they’re exhausted by vandalism, violence, and chaos in their communities,” Rustad said. “Families and job creators are paying the price for this government’s failures.”

Eby’s comments came after Prime Minister Mark Carney signalled that he had no intention of scrapping the TFW program following Conservative calls to abolish the program in it’s entirety on Wednesday.

During a press conference on Friday, Carney said his government will put in measures to make changes to the program.

Before answering a question on the TFW program, Carney reiterated his commitment to reducing the number of foreign workers in the country. He stated that foreign workers currently constitute about seven per cent of the labour force, and his government aims to decrease that figure to less than five per cent by 2027.

“That takes a comprehensive strategy. It’s adjustment. And we’re talking students, we’re talking asylum seekers, temporary foreign workers, all classes Provincial Nominee Program workers, all these classes of workers,” he said. “With respect to temporary foreign workers, they are less than 1% of the labor force.”

He mentioned that his government intends to “adjust” the number and types of workers. This year, his administration has imposed restrictions on lower-wage temporary foreign workers in Canada, leading to a 70 per cent reduction in immigrants from those categories.