VANCOUVER - Employers in British Columbia and Alberta can expect speedier approval for hiring foreign workers, and in a greater number of qualifying fields, when there are no Canadian citizens or permanent residents available to fill the positions.

Human Resources and Social Development Canada Monday announced the expansion of the Expedited Labour Market Opinion pilot project (E-LMO), which began in September 2007, from 12 to 33 occupations. "Our government is committed to help businesses who face pressures from labour shortages, which is why we're adding 21 new occupations to the Temporary Foreign Worker Program pilot project," said Minister of Human Resources and Social Development Monte Solberg in a written statement.

The 33 occupations now included in the pilot represent half the total volume of labour market applications from employers in B.C. and Alberta, Solberg said.

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The 12 high-demand occupations that qualified under the prior E-LMO announcement are: carpenters, crane operators, construction labourers, hotel front desk clerks, food and beverage servers, food counter attendants, food service supervisors, registered nurses, dental technicians, pharmacists, snowboard and ski instructors, retail salespersons and sales clerks.

Monday's announcement adds the following occupations to the list: steamfitters and pipefitters, ironworkers, heavy-duty equipment mechanics, machinists, roofers, industrial electricians, welders, surveyor helpers, commercial janitors and caretakers, specialized cleaners, mechanical engineers, civil engineers, electrical and electronics engineers, petroleum engineers, mechanical engineering technologists, hotel and hospitality room attendants, industrial meat cutters, courier drivers, residential cleaning and support workers, manufacturing and processing labourers, tour and travel guides.

Also, the application waiting period for an employer will drop from the maximum of five months to just five days.

The project will continue to run in B.C. and Alberta until September.

"We anticipate needing to attract 30,000 workers with specific skills to British Columbia each year to help meet our labour and skills shortage challenges," said Colin Hansen, B.C.'s Minister of Economic Development.

"By expanding the number of occupations included in this pilot project, more employers will now benefit from having better and faster access to the temporary foreign workers they need."

© The Edmonton Journal 2008