How Temporary Foreign Workers Are Filling the Gaps in Canada’s Health Care System

Canada’s Health Care Crisis and the Rise of Temporary Foreign Workers

Canada’s health care system is facing a critical labor shortage, exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic. Hospitals, long-term care facilities, and home care providers are struggling to meet staffing demands, with high burnout rates and chronic understaffing worsening the crisis.

Enter temporary foreign workers (TFWs), who have become a vital solution to these staffing challenges. Over the past two decades, their presence in the health care sector has grown dramatically, addressing urgent needs in residential and home care settings.

The Growing Role of Temporary Foreign Workers in Healthcare

In 2000, only 3,200 TFWs worked in Canadian health care. By 2022, this number surged to 57,500—a 17-fold increase. The pandemic accelerated this growth, with TFWs in health care jumping by 50% between 2019 and 2020.

Today, TFWs make up nearly 5% of workers in nursing and residential care facilities and almost 8% in home health care services. Their contributions are most pronounced in nursing homes and home care, where they provide essential services to seniors and people with disabilities.

Why TFWs Are Key to Solving Labour Shortages

TFWs fill critical gaps in Canada’s health care workforce. Many positions remain vacant due to low wages, high burnout rates, and a lack of domestic applicants. Foreign workers help maintain basic service levels in understaffed institutions.

For many TFWs, working in health care is a pathway to permanent residency. The Canadian government has implemented programs to facilitate this transition, recognizing their essential contributions to the system.

Transition to Permanent Residency and Integration Challenges

For many TFWs, their role in Canada’s health care system serves as a pathway to permanent residency. The Canadian government has established specific pathways to facilitate this transition, recognizing the critical contributions of these workers. However, the process remains complex, and not all TFWs successfully achieve permanent resident status.

Integration and Retention Challenges

Despite their essential role, TFWs in the health care sector face significant integration and retention challenges. Access to health care for TFWs themselves is often inconsistent. While employers are required to provide health insurance until public coverage kicks in, many TFWs experience gaps in coverage or rely on private insurance that may only cover emergencies.

Additional barriers, such as language difficulties, transportation issues, and vulnerability to employer retaliation, further complicate access to health care for TFWs. These challenges highlight the need for improved support systems to ensure TFWs have equitable access to essential services.

Policy Changes and Ongoing Debates

The number of temporary foreign workers in Canada has reached record highs in 2025, despite government efforts to cap the number of temporary residents. Recent policy shifts have introduced new challenges for TFWs and their families. For instance, the tightening of open work permits now limits the eligibility of TFWs’ family members to stay and work in Canada. Spouses in specific occupations, such as health care, are now eligible, while dependent children are excluded.

Long-term Impact and Systemic Issues

While TFWs are vital for addressing immediate staffing deficits, experts and advocacy groups warn that systemic issues must be addressed to achieve sustainable improvements. Chronic problems such as inadequate working conditions, lack of integration for newcomers, and the risk of exploitation within the Temporary Foreign Worker Program must be tackled.

There have been documented cases of TFWs facing abuse or being denied access to adequate support and services. International reports have criticized parts of the program for fostering power imbalances and exploitation. These issues underscore the urgent need for systemic policy responses that balance immediate labor needs with long-term solutions.

In Conclusion

Temporary foreign workers have become an indispensable and rapidly growing part of Canada’s health care system, particularly in under-staffed and high-demand sectors. While they help fill critical labor gaps, TFWs face significant challenges related to work conditions, rights, and access to health care. Addressing these issues through systemic policy changes is essential to ensuring a sustainable and equitable health care workforce for the future.

Conclusion

Temporary foreign workers have become a cornerstone in addressing the labor shortages within Canada’s healthcare system, particularly in sectors struggling with understaffing. Their role has been pivotal, especially in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, where their numbers surged significantly. Despite their crucial contributions, TFWs face notable challenges, including integration difficulties, limited access to healthcare, and evolving policy changes. Addressing these issues through comprehensive policy reforms is essential to fostering a sustainable and equitable healthcare workforce for the future.

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