Observation (CEACR) - adopted 2025, published 114th ILC session (2026)

Canada

Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29) (Ratification: 2011)
Protocol of 2014 to the Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (Ratification: 2019)

The Committee takes note of the observations of the Canadian Labour Congress (CLC) sent by the Government together with its report. It also takes note of the observations of the Quebec Interprofessional Health Federation (FIQ) received on 14 February 2025 as well as the Government’s reply.

Articles 1(1) and 2(1) of the Convention and Article 2(c) and (d) and Article 3 of the Protocol. Protecting temporary foreign workers (TFWs) from abusive and fraudulent practices, strengthening labour inspection services and protection of victims. The Committee notes the Government’s indication that, in September 2022, the Government introduced further regulatory amendments to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Regulations to strengthen the Temporary Foreign Worker Program’s employer compliance regime, including: (1) requiring employers to provide TFWs with information on their rights; (2) amending the definition of “abuse” to include “reprisal” against TFWs; and (3) prohibiting employers from charging or recovering recruitment fees and holding employers accountable for the actions of recruiters in that regard. The Government also provides information on the measures it continues to take to protect TFWs, including awareness-raising measures and the launch of the Migrant Worker Support (MWS) programme in 2022. The Programme provides funding to over 120 community organizations across Canada which grant in community and on-arrival services to support migrant workers to learn about and exercise their rights, as well as networking opportunities and training, and support to victims of trafficking in persons.

The Government indicates that the Department of Employment and Social Development also operates a confidential tip line and online reporting tool, where TFWs and other parties can anonymously report situations of potential wrongdoing and/or misuse. If criminal activity is suspected, the information is forwarded to law enforcement agencies. The Committee notes the Government’s information that, between April and December 2023, the Department of Employment and Social Development identified 168 suspected forced labour cases within the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, an increase from 150 suspected cases referred between April and November 2022. Moreover, the Department of Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada, which conducts administrative investigations of potential trafficking in persons cases among immigration and refugee cases, conducted 21 new large-scale investigations involving allegations of trafficking in persons in 2023. The Committee also takes note of the measures taken by the Governments of Quebec and Ontario, such as Quebec’s strategic plan in 2021, in the framework of which monitoring interventions are undertaken annually, and Ontario’s monitoring initiatives focusing on TFWs in the farming and agriculture sectors.

The Committee notes that, in its observations, the CLC singles out employer-specific work permit regimes, including the Temporary Foreign Worker Program, that make migrant workers vulnerable to contemporary forms of slavery, as they cannot report abuses without fear of deportation. The CLC indicates that it has, for years, urged the federal government to abandon closed work permits in exchange for open permits and permanent residency.

The Committee also observes that, in her July 2024 report, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Contemporary Forms of Slavery highlights several issues and challenges faced by TFWs, including: (1) the fact that Government does not seem to proactively and effectively inform these workers about their rights, and defers a significant portion of this responsibility to employers, and some employers of them reportedly do not provide relevant information; (2) the fear felt by TFWs of losing their jobs and being deported, being compounded by debt bondage, with many workers going into debt to cover the costs associated with participating in the Temporary Foreign Workers Program; (3) insufficient access to justice and remedies for TFWs, with the Special Rapporteur having received reports of underpayment and wage theft, physical, emotional and verbal abuse, excessive work hours, limited breaks, extracontractual work, uncompensated managerial duties, lack of personal protective equipment, including in hazardous conditions, confiscation of documents and arbitrary reductions of working hours, and women reporting sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse; (4) despite some progress, complaint mechanisms remain difficult for workers to navigate without external assistance; and (5) inspections of workplaces are not systematically undertaken, being largely complaint-driven, and some abusive workplaces may escape scrutiny (A/HRC/57/46/Add.1).

While it welcomes the Government’s efforts to raise awareness among TFWs about their rights, investigate their working conditions and provide them with support, the Committee observes that challenges remain as regards their protection from abusive conditions of work. The Committee requests the Government to further strengthen these measures to prevent TFWs from being victims of exploitative practices that amount to forced labour, identify such practices where they exist and prosecute the perpetrators.The Committee strongly encourages the Government to take comprehensive action to inform TFWs of their rights, including access to grievance mechanisms,without thereby releasing employers from their responsibility. It also requests the Government to regularly monitor the working conditions of TFWs, to ensure that all TFWs are able to assert their rights and seek redress in cases of exploitation and abuse that amount to forced labour, and in such cases, allowing them to transfer employers.

The Committee requests the Government to provide information on the measures implemented, including the outcomes of inspections of TFW employers and employment agencies, as well as information on violations identified that could relate to practices that may amount to forced labour and on the penalties imposed.

Article 2(e) of the Protocol. Supporting due diligence by both the public and private sectors. The Committee notes that, in January 2024, the Government of Canada adopted Bill S-211 on the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act. This Act requires government agencies and certain businesses to report annually on measures taken to prevent forced labour and child labour in their supply chains to the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness through a publicly accessible electronic registry. The Government further indicates that it intends to introduce new legislation which would introduce due diligence obligations requiring entities not only to report on the use of forced labour in their supply chains, but also to take action to prevent and address forced labour. The Government also indicates that it remains committed to strengthening Canada’s import prohibition on goods produced using forced labour. Other measures taken include the inclusion of comprehensive and enforceable provisions on forced labour in free trade agreements, and a strengthened federal procurement contracting regime that establishes expectations for suppliers on upholding human rights.

The Committee takes note of the CLC’s observations that the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act does not require companies to actually examine their supply chains or stop using forced labour and states that this legislation is potentially damaging as there is a risk of the obligations under the Act to become a box ticking exercise whereby companies simply submit the same statement every year. Due to a lack of monitoring mechanism, companies could conceal or omit relevant information. The CLC has urged the Government to adopt a mandatory human rights and environmental due diligence law based on a model provided by the Canadian Network on Corporate Accountability. The CLC also called on the Government to empower the Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Enterprise (CORE) with the powers to investigate and seek remedy for alleged human rights abuses, including forced labour, by Canadian companies in their overseas operations. Moreover, while the importation of “goods mined, manufactured or produced wholly or in part by forced labour” has been prohibited under Canadian law since July 2020, the CLC points to weaknesses in Canada’s enforcement of this ban.

The Committee requests the Government to continue its efforts to promote and support due diligence practices across both the public and private sectors. In this regard, it requests the Government to provide information on the adoption of the proposed legislation that would establish due diligence obligations requiring entities to take action to prevent and address instances of forced labour, as well as on the implementation of the import ban on goods produced through forced labour.

The Committee is raising other matters in a request addressed directly to the Government.