Employment and Social Development Minister Jason Kenney recently announced that some occupations in the food services industry would no longer be eligible for Labour Market Opinions (LMOs). Receiving an LMO is an important first step for securing many temporary work permit applications.
Today, an official list of ineligible occupations was announced. No new LMO applications will be received for occupations in this list. In addition, LMO applications that have yet to receive a decision will be cancelled. Employers will receive full refunds of processing fees.
Any unused positions on positive LMOs that have been issued to employers for these sectors will be suspended, and therefore will may no longer be used to obtain an additional work permit. Minister Kenney has not specifically stated if and when the moratorium will end, although he mentioned that the government was investigating abuses of the temporary foreign worker program in the food services sector.
Below is the list of ineligible occupations:
6641 | Food Counter Attendants, Kitchen Helpers and Related Occupations |
0631 | Restaurant and Food Service Managers |
6212 | Food Service Supervisors |
6453 | Food and Beverage Servers |
6611 | Cashiers |
6241 | Chefs |
6242 | Cooks |
6252 | Bakers |
0611 | Sales, Marketing and Advertising Managers |
0621 | Retail Trade Manager |
0632 | Accommodation Service Managers |
0651 | Other Services Managers |
6211 | Retail Trade Supervisors |
6213 | Executive Housekeepers |
6214 | Dry Cleaning and Laundry Supervisors |
6215 | Cleaning Supervisors |
6216 | Other Service Supervisors |
6221 | Technical Sales Specialists - Wholesale Trade |
6251 | Butchers, Meat Cutters and Fishmongers - Retail and Wholesale |
6411 | Sales Representatives - Wholesale Trade (Non-Technical) |
6421 | Retail Salespersons and Sales Clerks |
6451 | Maîtres d'hôtel and Hosts/Hostesses |
6452 | Bartenders |
6484 | Other Personal Service Occupations |
6622 | Grocery Clerks and Store Shelf Stockers |
6623 | Other Elemental Sales Occupations |
6651 | Security Guards and Related Occupations |
6661 | Light Duty Cleaners |
6662 | Specialized Cleaners |
6663 | Janitors, Caretakers and Building Superintendents |
6681 | Dry Cleaning and Laundry Occupations |
6682 | Ironing, Pressing and Finishing Occupations |
6683 | Other Elemental Service Occupations |