Your LMIA said 40 hours a week at a set wage. Your work permit says you can only work for this employer. Now the schedule shows 20 hours, or your hourly rate has quietly dropped. You cannot simply take a second job to make up the difference, and you worry that complaining will cost you your permit. Most search results on this topic are written for employers. This one is for the worker.
Quick Answer
Employers who hire through the Temporary Foreign Worker Program must give you wages and working conditions substantially the same as — and not less favourable than — those in your job offer. Cutting your hours or pay well below what the LMIA and your contract promised can be a violation of the employer’s conditions, and ESDC can penalize employers (over $10 million in penalties were issued in 2025–26). You can report it confidentially to ESDC’s tip line (1-866-602-9448) or online. If the treatment amounts to abuse, you may qualify for an open work permit for vulnerable workers, which frees you from that employer. Your provincial employment standards may also treat a major unilateral cut as a termination.
This guide explains general rules. It is not legal advice. Employers can sometimes justify changes. If you are considering quitting, reporting or claiming EI, speak to a community legal clinic, a settlement agency or a licensed professional first.
What Your Employer Promised — and Must Keep
Official rule: ESDC says employers must pay temporary foreign workers wages that are substantially the same as, but not less favourable than, those in the employment offer, and provide working conditions (including hours) that are substantially the same and not less favourable. Employers must keep records proving they met these conditions for six years.
What it means: your LMIA-supported job offer and your contract are the benchmark. A permanent cut from full-time to half-time, or a lower hourly wage, is a change in conditions the employer may have to justify to ESDC. Short, documented reductions for a legitimate reason may be treated differently — ESDC looks at the circumstances.
Your Options, From Least to Most Drastic
- Write it down. Keep your offer, contract, LMIA number (if you have it), schedules and pay stubs. Note the date the cut began.
- Ask in writing why your hours or pay changed and when they will return to the contracted level.
- Report to ESDC — confidentially, by the tip line (1-866-602-9448, 24/7, with live agents in more than 200 languages on weekdays) or the online form. You do not need your employer’s knowledge or permission.
- File a provincial employment standards complaint for unpaid wages or unpaid hours you were scheduled for.
- Apply for an open work permit for vulnerable workers if the situation involves abuse, threats about your permit, or withheld wages (evidence guide).
- Find a new employer and apply for a new permit; IRCC can authorize you to start the new job while it processes (changing employers).
Can I Get EI for Reduced Hours?
Usually not for a cut in hours alone. EI regular benefits generally need an interruption of earnings — typically seven consecutive days with no work and no pay from that employer. If your employer has an approved Work-Sharing agreement, reduced hours can be topped up by EI under that program. If you leave the job because of the cut, Service Canada will ask whether you had just cause (ROE code E explained).
Is a Big Cut in Hours a Termination?
In several provinces, a significant, unilateral change to your pay or hours can be treated as a constructive dismissal, which may entitle you to termination pay under employment standards. The tests differ by province, and a temporary reduction may instead be treated as a temporary layoff (temporary layoff rules by province). Get advice before resigning — quitting too early can make things worse.
Will Reporting Hurt My Status?
Reporting your employer does not cancel your permit, and employers are prohibited from reprisals such as threatening your immigration status. If your employer threatens you after you complain, that is itself evidence for a vulnerable-worker permit. Keep working within your permit’s conditions — do not take unauthorized work to make up the lost hours.
Your PR Plans
Fewer hours slow down CEC experience (check your hours). If you are a provincial nominee or AIP candidate, a change in hours or wages may need to be reported (PNP reporting rules).
FAQ
Can I take a second job to make up the hours?
Not on an employer-specific permit, unless you get authorization for that second employer.
Is it illegal for my employer to cut my hours?
Not automatically, but TFWP employers must keep wages and working conditions substantially the same as the job offer, and must be able to justify changes. ESDC decides whether the employer complied.
Can I report anonymously?
Yes. ESDC’s tip line and online form accept anonymous reports.
