Saskatchewan Cracks Down on Foreign Worker Exploitation

Saskatchewan is intensifying its efforts to combat the exploitation of foreign workers, with the province securing its first conviction under the Foreign Worker Recruitment and Immigration Services Act (FWRISA). Dhyan Jeny Enterprises Ltd. pleaded guilty in Moose Jaw Provincial Court on August 11 to charging a foreign worker for employment. This marks a significant step in enforcing protections for individuals seeking work in the province.

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There is a significant number right now of you know, where people are inappropriately using our immigration program or committing fraud anywhere where there’s money available people bad actors get involved.

The company was ordered to pay $12,000 in restitution to the victim and a $5,000 fine, along with a $2,000 victim fine surcharge. This case is seen by some experts as an example of a larger pattern where employers abuse foreign worker programs. "There is a significant number right now of you know, where people are inappropriately using our immigration program or committing fraud anywhere where there’s money available people bad actors get involved," stated Greg Tuer, Saskatchewan's Deputy Minister of Immigration and Career Training.

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People come here from all over the world and the law and the customs here in Canada and Saskatchewan are different from where they came from. When they’re working for a bad actor who’s either not fully paying them for the job they’re doing or withholding their documents or making them pay for the job, I think that’s a tough position for someone to be in.

In Swift Current, another employer, Husky Travel Centre / Husky Energy, is facing multiple charges for allegedly imposing employment fees on two foreign nationals and exploiting one individual's lack of knowledge of FWRISA. Tuer noted that legislative changes in 2024, which broadened enforcement capabilities and expanded the compliance team, have allowed more charges to be laid. This year alone, the ministry has canceled over 10 business certificates of registration for employing foreign workers.

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With the change to that act, our enforcement capabilities were broadened. We actually built a larger compliance team here. And with that, more capacity to do investigations.

Immigration lawyer Oluwadamilola Asuni expressed concern that such exploitation erodes confidence in the Canadian immigration system. "It is seriously eroding the confidence people have in the Canadian immigration system when they now have to pay to get a job. It confers undue advantage on those people who have paid in the competitive immigration process," Asuni said, adding that these incidents are more frequent than the few convictions suggest. The issue extends beyond company-worker relationships, with other cases of employer misconduct also being heard in court.

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It is seriously eroding the confidence people have in the Canadian immigration system when they now have to pay to get a job. It confers undue advantage on those people who have paid in the competitive immigration process.