Jim Metcalfe – Pace Immigration: A recent news article describes how migrants heading for Canada, but who are stuck at the Mexican/US border, are being solicited to apply for bogus Canadian jobs – for a fee:

A Mexican migration researcher says there are now an estimated 30,000 Haitian migrants trapped at the U.S.-Mexico border, and a group — likely a smuggling ring — is targeting them with the promise of fake jobs in Canada…

Estevez says a flyer at the women’s shelter caught her eye. It has the logo of a company called “Clearport” and shows photos of people waving Canadian flags, with the headline: “If you speak French, we have an option for you.”

“If you want to find a job in Canada, give us a call or send your CV,” the flyer goes on. “Travel costs are paid by the company.”

Estevez looked into the company and says it does not appear to actually exist. She says some people in the shelter were convinced the company is affiliated with the Canadian government, but the Canadian Embassy in Mexico City confirms it is not.

There is an old saying: “If it sounds too good to be true, it is.”

Fake Jobs

Even if the jobs in this case did exist, Canadian recruiters are not allowed to charge you a fee to get you a job; any fee must be paid by the employer. If you are asked to pay a fee for a job, I suggest you turn your back on the offer and run away as quickly as you can.

These are not the first scammers I’ve come across. Last year, I had several enquiries from India about a similar scheme. Each potential immigrant had been offered a job as hospitality staff in a Canadian hotel or restaurant. One was asked to pay a fee for a $60,000/year job at the “Air Canada Hotel at Toronto Airport.” The offer looked legitimate to the prospective employee. Alas, there is no “Air Canada Hotel” at Toronto’s Pearson Airport. Besides, an offer of $60K per year was way out of whack for a food server’s job in Toronto.

Another scam I saw firsthand involved copies of letters from a bogus headhunter in Montreal. The letters included copies of correspondence from Service Canada and Quebec Immigration. It probably looked very legitimate to someone who wasn’t familiar with the fact that Quebec is a French-speaking province and all of the correspondence was in English. Oops.

Do Your Homework

There’s a quote attributed to P.T. Barnum that says, “You can fool some of the people some of the time but you cannot fool all of the people all of the time.” Sometimes I wonder if you can. I have a feeling the 3 enquiries I received are the tip of the iceberg and many people are being swindled out of their hard-earned money by crooks.

If you are offered a job by a Canadian employer, one for which you are asked to pay fee, think twice. Do a Google search of the company. If you have friends or family in Canada, ask them to call the company to check them out, or call them yourself. And remember, if it sounds too good to be true…