Tourism and education officials are getting worried that a strike by diplomats and immigration officers abroad is slowing visas so much it could result in big costs to the economy.
The employees say it’s unfair that they paid less than their counterparts working in Canada. So, as part of escalating job action, diplomats at key visa application centres — including Beijing, Delhi, Sao Paolo and Mexico City — have withdrawn their services.
Summer is a time when many tourists like to come to Canada and when foreign students make arrangements to come to Canadian colleges and universities. The union representing foreign service officers says visa approvals in major centres abroad dropped 60 to 65 per cent in June and the overall issuance rate is down 25 per cent.
When asked about the problem on Tuesday, the immigration minister’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 it adds that staff, in some cases retirees who are being sent abroad, are not making up the shortfall caused by striking workers.
Economy could lose millions
The Tourism Industry Association of Canada is warning tourism could suffer a loss of a quarter of a billion dollars this year because of the labour dispute. Its president complained 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.”
The Association of Canadian Community College estimates that international education is worth $8.1 billion to the Canadian economy per year. Vice-president Paul Brennan said “The crunch is coming for September admissions. They will need their visas by early to mid-August. We’re quite worried that unless this is resolved or special measures are taken students will not get their visas in time.”
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