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2 min read
New Brunswick's federal and provincial governments have added a new immigration program to the New Brunswick Provincial Nominee Program or PNP. The new stream is called the New Brunswick Critical Worker Pilot (NBCWP), and it's designed to attract skilled workers in specific, hard-to-fill occupations to New Brunswick to combat critical worker shortage in the provincial labour market.
Under this New Brunswick PNP pilot, immigrants to New Brunswick are guaranteed economic immigration and settlement services. These services include skills and language ability training to help newcomers settle in Canada efficiently and effectively.
Canada's federal minister for Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, Sean Fraser, says of the new immigration pilot:
"New Brunswick's Critical Worker Pilot is an innovative approach that will help employers across New Brunswick meet their specific labour market needs."
How does the NBCWP Work?
Currently, this New Brunswick immigration program extends to six significant employers:
- Cooke Aquaculture
- Groupe Savoie Inc.
- Groupe Westco
- Imperial Manufacturing
- J.D. Irving Ltd.
- McCain Foods
These major employers have been chosen due to several factors. They have shown a consistent commitment to the recruitment of immigrants, already have settlement practices in place and have demonstrated a willingness to train and educate international employees. To effectively participate in this New Brunswick immigration program, these companies will have to do the following:
- Create thorough settlement plans providing housing and transport support to help newcomers settle in Canada, promoting long-term retention.
- Ensure human resources have specific plans for hiring skilled foreign workers and on-the-job training for those workers.
- Support and guide workers who want to pursue secondary education or equivalency.
- Provide up to 200 hours of language proficiency training.
New Brunswick's Immigration minister, Arlene Dunn, has said how this New Brunswick Immigration program will affect the New Brunswick employer and international immigrants:
"Participating employers will greatly benefit from filling critical vacancies, and applicants will find meaningful work in a welcoming community."
What this Means for Applicants
As part of the New Brunswick PNP, the NBCWP gives foreign nationals a chance to settle in Canada via New Brunswick and gives them the support they need to function and assimilate into New Brunswick effectively. If foreign nationals plan to work for one of the designated companies and fulfill the eligibility criteria, they can be guaranteed permanent residence in Canada and take advantage of the hugely beneficial settlement support services once they arrive.
Moncef Lakouas, board president of the New Brunswick Multicultural Council (NBMC), has voiced his excitement for the possibilities for the new program:
"The Critical Worker Pilot Program is exciting and innovative in that it guarantees jobs to newcomers while also delivering vital settlement services such as language training and access to housing."
If you want to know if you're eligible for this pilot program or any immigration program under the New Brunswick PNP, here's a full breakdown of all the programs.
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