The job action by Canada's foreign service officers is causing a slowdown in visa applications, which could result in big costs to the economy.
The federal government and the union representing diplomats and immigration officers abroad have been locked in a contract negotiation battle for months. As part of escalating job action measures, diplomats at key visa application centres — including Beijing, Delhi, Sao Paolo and Mexico City — have withdrawn their services.
"The applications are just piling up," said Tim Edwards, head of the the Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers. The number of visas issued from offices in major centres abroad dropped 60 to 65 per cent in June, he said, and overall, the issuance rate is down 25 per cent.
Across the board, the backlog is growing five per cent per week, and in the bigger centres, it's 10 to 20 per cent per week, said Edwards. At more than half of the 51 foreign visa application centres, the processing times are exceeding the immigration department's 14-day target.
Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney's office says all visa offices remain open and are providing services and that the department is "closely monitoring the situation."
Kenney was asked about the visa situation on Tuesday while making an announcement about passports.
'The crunch is coming for September admissions, [foreign students] will need their visas by early to mid-August'
—Paul Brennan, Association of Canadian Community Colleges
"In the last federal budget, the government dedicated an additional $22 million a year to improving visa processing, so while we are seeing some short-term slowdowns as a result of the strike, we hope to see mid- to long-term recovery because of the investments that we are making," he said.
The slowdown has the tourism and education sectors worried. People who need a visa to come to Canada, including tourists from big markets such as China, Mexico and India, are being warned to apply as far in advance as possible and to apply online to cut down wait times.
Kenney's office said every visa office has core staff that have been deemed "essential" and are not participating in the job action, and there are other staff who are not part of the union because they are "locally engaged" hires.
But those staff members don't have the authority to approve or decline a visa application, according to the union, and adding that staff, in some cases retirees who are being sent abroad, is not making up the shortfall caused by striking workers.
Summer is the peak season for travel, and the Tourism Industry Association of Canada is warning of huge losses because of the labour dispute. The group's president, David Goldstein, said in a statement last week that travellers are abandoning their plans to visit Canada because they were told about visa delays and that the visa system is "being held hostage."
"No matter what side of this labour dispute you find yourself on, there is clearly one loser — the Canadian tourism industry that stands to lose over a quarter of a billion dollars of business this year," he said.
Goldstein pegged the potential price tag at $280 million for 2013, but said the cost to Canada's reputation will be much higher, "as there are plenty of other more accessible countries happy to welcome their business."
The federal government and the union representing diplomats and immigration officers abroad have been locked in a contract negotiation battle for months. As part of escalating job action measures, diplomats at key visa application centres — including Beijing, Delhi, Sao Paolo and Mexico City — have withdrawn their services.
"The applications are just piling up," said Tim Edwards, head of the the Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers. The number of visas issued from offices in major centres abroad dropped 60 to 65 per cent in June, he said, and overall, the issuance rate is down 25 per cent.
Across the board, the backlog is growing five per cent per week, and in the bigger centres, it's 10 to 20 per cent per week, said Edwards. At more than half of the 51 foreign visa application centres, the processing times are exceeding the immigration department's 14-day target.
Citizenship and Immigration Minister Jason Kenney's office says all visa offices remain open and are providing services and that the department is "closely monitoring the situation."
Kenney was asked about the visa situation on Tuesday while making an announcement about passports.
'The crunch is coming for September admissions, [foreign students] will need their visas by early to mid-August'
—Paul Brennan, Association of Canadian Community Colleges
"In the last federal budget, the government dedicated an additional $22 million a year to improving visa processing, so while we are seeing some short-term slowdowns as a result of the strike, we hope to see mid- to long-term recovery because of the investments that we are making," he said.
The slowdown has the tourism and education sectors worried. People who need a visa to come to Canada, including tourists from big markets such as China, Mexico and India, are being warned to apply as far in advance as possible and to apply online to cut down wait times.
Kenney's office said every visa office has core staff that have been deemed "essential" and are not participating in the job action, and there are other staff who are not part of the union because they are "locally engaged" hires.
But those staff members don't have the authority to approve or decline a visa application, according to the union, and adding that staff, in some cases retirees who are being sent abroad, is not making up the shortfall caused by striking workers.
Summer is the peak season for travel, and the Tourism Industry Association of Canada is warning of huge losses because of the labour dispute. The group's president, David Goldstein, said in a statement last week that travellers are abandoning their plans to visit Canada because they were told about visa delays and that the visa system is "being held hostage."
"No matter what side of this labour dispute you find yourself on, there is clearly one loser — the Canadian tourism industry that stands to lose over a quarter of a billion dollars of business this year," he said.
Goldstein pegged the potential price tag at $280 million for 2013, but said the cost to Canada's reputation will be much higher, "as there are plenty of other more accessible countries happy to welcome their business."
