The unprecedented boom of Alberta has presented a new avenue of opportunities for thousands of Filipinos from home willing to fill the labor shortfall the province is currently experiencing.

Since the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Monte Solberg announced the creation of the Temporary Worker Unit in Calgary in July 2006, a steady number of hiring and recruitment agencies aiming to recruit Filipino workers directly from the Philippines is steadily gaining popularity. Still, some observers believe there remain some unresolved issues and hitches that need ironing out.

"Thousands of jobs needs to be filled and there's nobody available in Canada to do the job. Filipinos are regarded as strong and solid, trustworthy, highly motivated, educated and acclimatized overseas workforce, says Leo Casuga of Exultant Human Resources of Canada, adding: "Importing workers from the Philippines will answer the void left open by the voracious demands on the human resource market."

Some local employers, however, still maintain an apprehensive attitude towards hiring Filipinos for various reasons, including their 'inadequate' physical build and stature for the jobs that are available. This is untoward stereotyping and unconstructive feedback. "There are obviously a lot of other marketable traits of Filipino workers and zooming in on a few negative aspects should not deter us from convincing the prospective employers," points out Alma Mingo of Filipino Manpower Brokers.

On his part, Felix Guerrero, the Filipino honorary consul general in Calgary, stressed that "we are trying to bridge contact with everyone involve in this program so that there will be a better chance that these jobs will be offered to our countrymen in the Philippines. The plan, he says, involves an almost hassle free process for the would-be employee from the Philippines. Rather than charging them an upfront placement fee, the employee pays the same only once they start working here in Canada, which is normally equivalent to a month's salary.

However, with the influx of these opportunities it is advised that prospective applicants must be wary and cautious about falling prey to bogus and unscrupulous recruiters.

Although some agencies don't charge upfront fees, others still take the usual approach, notes Bong Gamayo, speaking on behalf of SkyWorld Business. It is up to the applicants to figure out legitimate fees before embarking on a contract," he further says.

The temporary work visa legally carries a one-year contract duration with a required return trip ticket. However, the employer has the option to retain, sponsor and renew the employee's work permit in cases he sees fit. Some sectors are working to extend the regular one-year work visa to a minimum of two years, arguing that a one-year contract isn't really worth the effort of processing and expenses in the first place.

Calgary's housing boom has also put a dent in this effort. Human Resources Canada expects employers to assist with settling the temporary foreign workers into the community and, likewise, confirm the availability of affordable and suitable housing and accommodations. With the current cost of housing and living expenses, a foreign worker might not be able to survive on a minimum wage.

An alternative option has to be considered and taken so that workers can be provided with adequate assistance to prevent them from existing on the poverty line. This particular regulation is straining the fast-tracking attempt to bring workers in due time. Likewise, the sluggish results of approval can also be trace to backlogs and understaffed manpower on the embassy of the country of origin.

The goal, says Ramon Pegalan of Skills Trade Recruiting, is to bring in more than 3,000 Filipinos under this program. With the present set-up however, it is somewhat unrealistic to predict that this will happen unless some positive changes occur in the near future. But, meanwhile, we will do whatever possible there is we can do to help, he adds.

The Temporary Foreign Worker initiative is lauded as a great effort to aggressively address the labor market shortage threatening to hold up the continued economic growth of the province. Some Canadians, however, have differing opinions. "The laxity and haste to bring as many temporary workers in the province is not the all-encompassing solutions to our labor woes.

There should be a stronger need to protect, train and retain the existing labor force and manpower both in equity and the threats and fears of having their job going to a temporary worker, who, for a lot of reasons are willing to accept minimum wage for the same position," writes a blogger who obviously opposes the plan of importing foreign temporary workers.

"The government should encourage the populace even the retirees to go back and join the workforce," states Dr. David Foot, a well-known Canadian economist and author of Boom, Bust and Echo.We should be more creative in addressing the labor shortage problem by looking at our own backyard and coming up with a Made-in-Canada Solution, he says.

But in cities like Calgary, where the population is exploding in great proportions and the employment rate is at all-time high, recruiting for, among others, police personnel has become a major issue. The Chief City Police contemplates to hire and recruit police personnel from China as he considers the need to source out additional force to keep up with the growing metropolis. Along with the problem on policing, another major area that need attention is the shortage of professionals in health related services.

And in recent news, Immigration and Citizenship Canada has raised their 2007 immigration target by 5.2 percent translating between 240,000 to 265,000 new immigrants in 2007 with the hope of easing the pain of labor shortage.

The writer, now a resident of Alberta, Calgary in Canada, is a native of Bago City. He studied at Bacolod Tay Tung High School and later at the University of Negros Occidental-Recoletos where he earned his MBA degree. He migrated to Canada in 1997, where he did odd jobs until he made a career change. He has now his therapeutic massage business while also working with a sport physiotherapy clinic. He is married to a Bacoleña, Debbie, a CPA and MBA degree holder.

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