Three-year work permit doesn't mean three-year job, tribunal rules
A British Columbia tribunal has drawn a hard line on temporary foreign worker files: a multi-year immigration document does not mean an employer owes a worker that same length of employment.
In a decision dated July 8, 2026, tribunal member Warren Insell dismissed a finishing carpenter's appeal against First Class Finishing (FCF), upholding an October 2025 determination that the company owed him $33,471 in unpaid wages and interest, $2,820 for misrepresenting a condition of employment under the Temporary Foreign Worker Protection Act, and $3,500 in administrative penalties.
The worker appealed on two grounds: that the director erred in law, and that new evidence had emerged. He submitted 149 pages, including hour-tracking spreadsheets and Labour Market Impact Assessment (LMIA) pages, arguing the director used the wrong start date.
Insell rejected the evidence outright, since the worker never explained why it could not have surfaced earlier, as the tribunal's four-part test for fresh evidence requires.
Insell also found the record inconsistent. A text exchange showed the worker telling the FCF owner he was sick on Dec. 29, 2022, then reporting he had worked under eight hours daily that week and none on Dec. 29 or the weekend, for 27 hours total. His timesheets for the same week showed eight hours daily, including Dec. 29, plus Saturday hours, for 46 hours.
Because the start date is a...
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