Cape Breton community rallies around Americans trying to stay in Canada

Two Americans who have been working in Cape Breton for the last 10 years are now being told they have to leave the country, but people in their adopted community are rallying to keep them there.

“If I was to mail-order an employee to work for my business, Leaf would probably be the one I would order,” says Marilyn MacDonald, who owns a garden centre in Whycocomagh, N.S.

Leaf Kraft, a temporary worker from the United States, had been working as MacDonald’s assistant manager until recently.

Kraft and her husband, Kurt Andresen, have been living in Inverness County for more than 10 years and own a farm in the Lake Ainslie area.

But now the couple is in Pennsylvania with family after their latest applications for work permit renewals were refused.

“They made a living here. They had a track record,” says MacDonald. “They are perfectly suited to this community. They are the kind of people we need in our rural communities.”

MacDonald says the pair having to leave the country isn’t only a big loss to them, but also to her business.

“I’d probably be looking at cutting my business by at least 20 to 30 per cent,” she says.

Citizenship and Immigration Canada says their employers must conduct a labour impact assessment form to ensure a Canadian couldn’t be hired to do the same job.

MacDonald says she already knows Kraft can’t be replaced without years of training someone else, and the assessment costs $1,000.

“Plus, I would have to cover her health insurance while she was working for me,” says MacDonald. “It’s impossible for a small businesswoman like myself.”

MacDonald has contacted her MP, who says he is discussing the file with the immigration minister’s office.

“We would hope that he gives it serious consideration and sees the opportunity that’s here, not just for the two individuals, but for the community,” says Liberal MP Rodger Cuzner.

MacDonald says a petition will circulate throughout the community starting next week in the hopes that Kraft and her husband can return home to Cape Breton.

With files from CTV Atlantic's Ryan MacDonald