Amid high unemployment, particularly among youth, 44% of Canadians favor ending the temporary foreign worker program, according to a new poll.

In response to July's 14.6% youth unemployment rate, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre proposed eliminating the program.

An online Abacus Data poll indicates that younger age groups show stronger support for ending the program, with over 50% of 30- to 44-year-olds and 48% of 18- to 29-year-olds in favor. Less than two in five (37%) respondents aged 60 and over hold similar views.

Support for ending the program is highest in the Prairie regions and lowest in Quebec and Atlantic Canada. While most Conservatives agree with Poilievre's plan, Liberals are divided, with 36% in favour and 39% opposed.

Abacus Data CEO David Coletto views this as a "perfect wedge issue" for the Conservatives, similar to the carbon tax, that could put Liberals in a difficult spot.

"I think the lesson of the carbon tax is [the Liberals are] going to have to … explain why the status quo works for people, it works for the economy and it works for individuals."

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Prime Minister Mark Carney, who backs the program, said it would be discussed in the upcoming Immigration Levels Plan. Canada aims to cut temporary residents to 5% of its population; as of April 1, they were 7.1%.

Poilievre, on the other hand, criticized the Liberals and "liberal corporate elites" for exploiting temporary foreign workers (TFW), warning that current permit rates will set a new record. 

“The principle is very simple,” Poilievre said. “Canadian jobs for Canadian workers. Canada first, Canada always.”

Carney reacts to Poilievre's call to end the Temporary Foreign Worker Program: "When I talk to businesses around the country ... their number one issue is tariffs and their number two issue is access to temporary foreign workers." pic.twitter.com/UQMMOVYShR

— Rebel News (@RebelNewsOnline) September 3, 2025

Immigration critic Michelle Rempel Garner shares daily Job Watch Canada postings on X, tracking job postings with pending temporary foreign worker applications on the Canada Job Bank, including several jobs with fast food chains.

Tyrel Chambers, 33, of Peterborough, Ontario, created the website as a hobby. He told the Canadian Press that the current job market is tough, even for recent university graduates.

“It just doesn't make sense that there are so many companies that claim they can't find a Canadian worker," he said, citing Tim Hortons among others.

A prior Rebel News query mentioned a TFW restaurant manager role at Tim Hortons in Singhampton, Ontario, advertised at $36/hour. A similar job posting for Gravenhurst, Ontario, is advertised at $25.10/hour.

Since May, 11 low-wage job postings for the company have been added to the government's public job bank, among hundreds more for other employers.

“It's absolutely egregious that these companies expect that they can just maximize corporate profits on the backs of and at the expense of Canadian youth,” said MP Rempel Garner. “It's a practice that has to end.”

Coletto attributed young people's job market anxiety to AI, Trump, global uncertainty, and domestic macroeconomic issues, suggesting temporary foreign workers might be a scapegoat for their struggles.

Economists, however, advocate ending the low-wage stream, arguing that Canada's reliance on it hinders technology investment, productivity, and wage growth, while youth struggle.

Canada lost over 41,000 jobs in July, with youth employment (15-24) at 53.6%, the lowest since November 1998. Another 66,000 jobs were lost last month, with little change in employment among youth aged 15 to 24.

Between 2019 and 2023, approved TFWs in food and retail rose 211%, according to a Bloomberg News analysis of government data. These entry-level roles were previously filled by young Canadians entering the workforce, as a 'foot in the door.'

Industry groups like Restaurants Canada claim ending the program would harm hospitality and tourism.