The B.C. government says it is taking a short-term approach to address labour shortages in rural communities by allowing eligible employers outside major urban centres to retain temporary foreign workers for an additional year, while continuing to push for longer-term workforce solutions.

The province says the measure is intended to provide immediate stability for employers facing recruitment challenges, particularly in rural and remote areas, while broader efforts continue to focus on domestic training and workforce development.

“The Temporary Foreign Worker Program policy changes are intended as a short-term response to immediate labour pressures,” said Jessie Sunner, Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills. “B.C. is calling on the federal immigration minister to focus on long-term workforce solutions, not stopgaps, that reflect provincial needs and help communities, especially in rural and remote areas, recruit and retain skilled workers for the long term.”

Under the policy, employers located outside census metropolitan areas may retain existing temporary foreign workers for an additional year, provided they meet all other federal program requirements.

However, the province says it will not participate in a second federal policy change that would raise the low-wage cap to 15 per cent, which would allow employers to hire a higher number of new temporary foreign workers.

Instead, B.C. says it will focus on connecting residents to available jobs and investing in employment and skills training programs, including initiatives aimed at reducing youth unemployment.

“While we are advocating for more permanent solutions that benefit workers, employers and communities in the long term, opting in to this section of the federal policy will help provide immediate help and short-term stability in rural areas like the Sunshine Coast and communities across the province,” said Randene Neill, MLA for Powell River–Sunshine Coast.

The province says about 585 employers in B.C. located outside census metropolitan areas are estimated to exceed the current 10 per cent cap on low-wage temporary foreign workers, according to federal estimates.

B.C.’s census metropolitan areas include Vancouver, Abbotsford-Mission, Chilliwack, Victoria, Nanaimo, Kelowna and Kamloops.

The province says it will continue working with the federal government on long-term workforce strategies aimed at strengthening skills development, reducing reliance on temporary labour and improving local hiring outcomes.