Canada will set stricter rules for the country’s temporary foreign worker program in September, returning to pre-pandemic hiring policies.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced that starting September 26, his government will refuse applications for low-wage temporary foreign workers in Canada based on the unemployment rates of each region.

Specifically, applications will be denied for any area where the unemployment rate is six per cent or higher.

According to a StatsCan report from July, Niagara Region’s unemployment rate is at 5.2 per cent – with an exception at St. Catharines with 8.2 per cent, and Hamilton has a 7.3 per cent unemployment rate.

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The average unemployment rate for Ontario was 6.7 per cent in July and the country overall saw an unemployment rate of 6.4 per cent.

Employers will be allowed to hire up to ten per cent of their workforce from the temporary worker program, a drop from the previous limit of 20 per cent.

Workers hired through the low-wage stream will be able to work a maximum of one year, instead of two years.

The Prime Minister made the announcement Monday morning in Halifax where the federal cabinet gathered for its three-day annual end-of-summer retreat.

Trudeau also made a post on X just before noon saying, “now is the time for our businesses to invest in Canadian workers and youth.”

We’re reducing the number of low-wage, temporary foreign workers in Canada.

The labour market has changed. Now is the time for our businesses to invest in Canadian workers and youth.

— Justin Trudeau (@JustinTrudeau) August 26, 2024

With files from The Canadian Press