A small town northwest of Thunder Bay, Ontario, has become the unlikely home for hundreds of foreign workers, but many may have to leave the community they have adopted after the end of a federal program established to fill the gaps in the Canadian labor market.
Since 2019, foreign workers have come to Sioux Lookout through the Federal Rural Immigration Pilot Program (RNIP). He connected qualified workers with employers in small rural communities who need labor while offering a path to permanent residence.
But RNIP ended in August, leaving many workers and employers incorporated on what comes next because the program that replaces it does not include Sioux Lookout.
Palak Gulati is a customer service supervisor in Grocery Store Fresh Market, where he has been working on an open visa.
Gulati chose Sioux Lookout, 350 kilometers from Thunder Bay, after studying in Toronto with the intention of continuing with the RNIP program and eventually requesting a permanent residence.
Gulati never imagined that he would end in a place like Sioux lookout. But now, she doesn’t want to leave.
“I was never a girl who wanted to stay in a small town,” he said. “I always wanted to be in Toronto or Calgary.” But the small remote community is “peaceful” and has allowed him to take advantage of a “quieter” side of herself, he said.
After Rnip finished in August, he stayed in Sioux Lookout. He liked the city and his work, and there was an expectation of Sioux Lookout would be included in the new program ready to replace RNIP.
Why Sioux Lookout is not in a new federal program
The rural community immigration pilot (RCIP) was announced as an extension of the RNIP.
Similar to RNIP, RCIP was designed to bring foreign workers to parts of the country who were less populated and needed qualified workers. But the limits of the new program changed, so Sioux Lookout was out of the cold.
When asked why Sioux Lookout was not included in the RCIP, immigration, refugees and citizenship of Canada (IRCC) said in a statement that all communities had the opportunity to request to be part of RICP and communicate with “contact Thunder Bay for more information.”
RCIP is administered by community -based economic organizations, through the financing and supervision of IRCC. Only organizations with a successful history in the implementation of projects of several years qualify. Sioux Lookout does not have an organization that is eligible to administer RCIP on your own.
Fresh air10:22Sioux Lookout Network of the Immigration Program, leaving workers and companies in Limbo
The presenter Ismaila Alfa explores the impact of the recent federal immigration changes in Sioux Lookout, a vital center for northern Ontario. The city has been based on a program that brought to foreign workers to fill crucial jobs, but with its elimination of the program, companies and workers now face an uncertain future. Shyloe Fagan de CBC reports from the only grocery store in the community to listen first hand how cuts affect daily life.
The Community Economic Development Commission of Thunder Bay (CEDC) had been managing RNIP in Sioux Lookout along with almost the entire district of Rainy River District, Dryden and Thunder Bay. But when Rcip appeared, Thunder Bay decided that it was an area of capture too large to include in his responsibility.
The CEDC of Thunder Bay must ensure that employers who hire foreign workers through RCIP meet the requirements and standards of the program.
Jamie Taylor, CEO of CEDC of Thunder Bay, said that “it is very challenging for us in Thunder Bay to validate an employer in a community like Sioux Look because they have no links with companies or community, and if they make mistakes, you could put the program at risk of their own service area.”
That means that after Gulati’s visa expires, for example, he would have to go to one of the communities included in RCIP To pursue permanent residence.
In its workplace, Fresh Market, the only independent grocery store in Sioux Lookout, immigration has been an essential part of how its business has grown.
The store owner, Todd Nadon said that foreign workers represent almost half of his staff of more than 200 people. They have helped him take business from a place where they were struggling to keep the shelves full as far as they are today, with butchers, bakers and internal cakes, Nadon said.
Aimad Elhani is another foreign workers who have helped Nadon grow their business while creating a life for themselves in Sioux Lookout. Elhani began as a baker after 10 years as a pastry chef in Dubai.
Elhani could also become a permanent resident, but has friends who will be affected by immigration changes. They are frustrated that Sioux Lookout was not included in RCIP and are considering moving to Thunder Bay, he said.
Nadon said that the reduction of immigration to Canada could put some of his store’s services at risk. In addition to serving the city of Sioux Lookout, Fresh Market works with 28 flying nations, sending Food North, a task that would be more difficult to do with less personnel.
‘I don’t know what to do’
Nadon added that taking personnel to the community is difficult.
“Sioux Lookout can be a bit shock,” he said.
The remoteness and isolation can lead to loneliness, a challenge when it comes to recruiting workers. Another concern is housing. But to address these barriers, Fresh Market provides new apartments for the staff.
The house is offered to the workers of Canada and abroad at a reduced rate, to help to settle in Sioux Lookout and keep them invested in the community, Nadon said.
Satveer Kaur Sandhu, a customer service supervisor in Fresh Market who came to Sioux Lookout through RNIP, is another worried worker who has to move and about the perspectives of permanent residence.
Sandhu said that changes in immigration programs have been shocked and insecure about his future.
“I don’t know what to do,” Sandhu said.
She wants people to understand how changes “affect people at soil” both mentally and physically.
Nadon said the most difficult part is losing people who have helped contribute to make their business excellent.
Efforts to reduce barriers to foreign workers
There are other government options available for foreign workers who want to come to Sioux Lookout.
For example, the Federal Express Program is competitive and classifies applicants based on their age, education and mastery of the language. Immigrate ontarium nominees of the program (OINP) payroll workers for permanent residence that have skills that the province’s economy needs, but there are limited points available.
The municipality of Sioux Lookout is collaborating with regional partners to advocate more OINP spaces and reduce barriers to bring foreign workers to the community.
