BioTalent Canada: high newcomer unemployment rates despite skills shortage

BioTalent Canada report indicates scientific newcomers face high unemployment, and skills shortages exist in Canada's bio-economy read the complete report

Some newcomers are ruining the very programs meant to help them

PS. You think you know everything about newcomers, eh?  Not sure, then read the following stories to know the other side of the coin.

• How newcomers are ruining the very programs meant to help them, CanIndia News "Many immigrants have found loopholes in the system. ..." Continue reading, CanIndia News
• When immigrants exploit immigrants By Sabrina Almeida -- bottomline: "In the absence of ‘any’ solution, the perpetrators can continue to enslave immigrants in order to quickly fill their coffers, while ‘mainstream’ Canadian employers continue to drag their feet." continue reading, CanIndia News
• List of known scammers in Toronto
• Immigrants prioritized over 'white' Canadians for public housing ... 
• Bad jobs make you sick … just ask a newcomer | poss.ca
• Beware of top scams: newcomers vulnerable - Canadian Immigrant
• Money: Are You the Target of a Scam? - Canadian Newcomer ...
• Scammers target new immigrants | The Chronicle Herald

Immigrants the proudest Canadians, poll suggests

Environics Institute survey 1st to probe Canadians' views on citizenship
By Kazi Stastna, CBC News Feb 15, 2012; and Environics In The News Feb 15, 2012 , ERG

Extracts:
..."To be a good citizen, it means to contribute to the society, to obey the laws of the country, to help other citizens, to volunteer, and it's a rewarding feeling when you do all those things," said Sara Jhangiryan, an Armenian-born resident of Toronto who became a Canadian citizen last year.

...Usha George, dean of Ryerson University's Faculty of Community Services, says the survey's findings confirm a lot of what those working with new Canadians know already.

... "Canadians who were not born in Canada are more proud than naturally born Canadians simply because we had the choice of being Canadian," said Vikram Kewalramani, who immigrated to Canada in 2006 from India. "It wasn't something that, literally, was a birthright. We consider it a privilege."

... Tolerance of others who are different was among the top five behaviours survey respondents considered a "very important" part of being a good citizen.

... "I am equally proud of both citizenships," said Natasha Nikolovska-Angelova, 32, who became a Canadian citizen last April. "Macedonia is more like my mother … the country where I was raised, and Canada is the country I chose to live in. It's like the spouse you choose.… It's the country of my future."

On the same shelf:

Children of Immigrants: Their surprising perspectives revealed, CBC

14th National Metropolis conference, 2012 Feb 29-March 3, sessions on immigrant children, youth & families: immigrantchildren.ca

The 14th National Metropolis conference theme is Future Immigration Policies: Challenges and Opportunities for Canada. It will be held February 29 – March 3, 2012 at the Westin Harbour Castle, Toronto.

Immigrants still lagging in jobs mart, Peel Region Unveils Labour Market Survey Findings

ML Brampton Guardian, South Asian Focus » Thu, 11-Feb

Staff Report
Immigrants are still lagging their Canadian-born counterparts in the jobs market.
That’s the short answer of a Peel-centric report on how immigrants are faring in finding employment.

The report, The Peel Immigration Labour Market Survey, has just been released to Regional Council.

Peel is considered to house one of the highest concentrations of South Asians in the GTA. The survey is the first study ever conducted that provides local data on the labour market in Peel.

“This study is one of three key immigration initiatives led by the Region’s Human Services department in Peel,” said Janet Menard, Commissioner of Human Services. “The study findings reveal there is a significant gap in skill utilization, income and credential recognition of immigrants in the workplace. continue reading

See also:

Peel Region Unveils Labour Market Survey Findings - First Peel-specific report shows immigrants lagging behind in accessing the job market 

In the sample of 1,425 immigrants and Canadian-born Peel residents surveyed:

• Of the immigrant respondents who have international work experience, only about one-third were successful in obtaining their desired employment.
• Lack of Canadian work experience was reported as the barrier faced most often for immigrants and correspondingly, lack of work experience was reported most often by Canadian-born individuals.
• Networking was a serious barrier for both immigrants and Canadian-born individuals but more significant for immigrants.
• One in four immigrants accessed some government-funded employment services, and just under one-third obtained more education and credentials in Canada.
• Both immigrants and Canadian-born individuals report underutilization of their skills in their current job. Recent immigrant respondents are less likely to utilize their skills at work, but skill utilization improves with length of time in Canada, and through full recognition of credentials by employers.

Funded by the Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities, the study was done in collaboration with Ryerson’s Diversity Institute in Management and Technology. The final report was prepared by PinPoint Research. The complete report of survey findings will be available to the public to download on Feb. 22, 2010 at www.peelregion.ca/labourmarketsurvey.

Library Services for Newcomers to Canada: Embracing Cultural Diversity

by Kendra Bender (MLIS student, School of Library &
Information Studies, University of Alberta, CANADA), Information for Social Change Issue 26: Winter 2007- 2008.
Excerpt from the Canadian Library Association 2007 Students Article Contest
Press Release states: "The second runner-up is Kendra Bender for "Library Services for Newcomers to Canada: Embracing Cultural Diversity". Kendra is a student in the MLIS program at the School of Library and Information Studies at the University of Alberta. Comments on this entry were that it incorporates both personal experience and a professional research approach, it was well-written, timely and focuses on Canada. Kendra will also receive a cash prize courtesy of the Wosk Family and a choice of CLA publications." Read full press release.
Extract:
"...To help public libraries improve collections and services for Russian immigrants in Toronto, Dali (2004) conducted a study of the reading habits of this population. Unfortunately, the majority of respondents sampled in her survey were not satisfied with the collection of Russian-language books in their public libraries. However, the public library was characterized as a “place to spend time”, where English language materials about the history and customs of their new country could be accessed for free.[23] Accessing materials for free was a theme that reoccurred in Dali’s research. Improved income did not seem to reduce the respondents’ inclination to use the public library for acquiring desired Russian-language titles (if available), precisely because they were offered at no cost." continue reading
See also on the same shelf:

• Diversity Resources - Accommodation, Tolerance and Coexistence
• Religious Education of the Young - Multifaith Resource Series no.1
• Save the Time of the Godly: Information Mediators Role in Promoting Spiritual & Religious Accommodation

•  The Countries You May Like to Go with your American / Canadian MLIS - A literature survey
• Factors in success or failure of foreign-trained librarians in Canada

Kenney dubbed: Minister for curry in a hurry....

Ontario Tories urged to court new Canadians

MARIA BABBAGE
The Canadian Press
February 21, 2009: globeandmail.com

NIAGARA FALLS, Ont. — Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said he's been dubbed “minister for curry in a hurry” by some of his colleagues because he's spent so much time courting new Canadians, a move that he urged his Ontario cousins to follow.
In a speech Saturday to Ontario Progressive Conservatives, Mr. Kenney said he got the moniker after spending so many weekends meeting the “remarkable diversity” of new Canadians in the Toronto area.
“I've been nicknamed by some of my colleagues as the minister for curry in a hurry,” he said, drawing laughs from the crowd assembled in Niagara Falls, Ont., for a weekend convention. continue reading [see also: Kenney urges Ont. Tories to court immigrants]

New rules to fast-track skilled immigrants

The revised list (eligible skilled workers' category) is now reduced (for e.g, removed from this category are:  0631 Restaurant and Food Service Managers / 3131 Pharmacists ):

be a skilled worker who has had one year of continuous full-time or equivalent part-time paid work experience in at least one of the following eligible occupations within the last ten years:

• 0631 Restaurant and Food Service Managers (Cap reached)
• 0811 Primary Production Managers (Except Agriculture)
• 1122 Professional Occupations in Business Services to Management (Cap reached)
• 1233 Insurance Adjusters and Claims Examiners
• 2121 Biologists and Related Scientists
• 2151 Architects
• 3111 Specialist Physicians
• 3112 General Practitioners and Family Physicians
• 3113 Dentists
• 3131 Pharmacists (Cap reached)
• 3142 Physiotherapists
• 3152 Registered Nurses (Cap reached)
• 3215 Medical Radiation Technologists
• 3222 Dental Hygienists & Dental Therapists
• 3233 Licensed Practical Nurses
• 4151 Psychologists
• 4152 Social Workers
• 6241 Chefs
• 6242 Cooks
• 7215 Contractors and Supervisors, Carpentry Trades
• 7216 Contractors and Supervisors, Mechanic Trades
• 7241 Electricians (Except Industrial & Power System)
• 7242 Industrial Electricians
• 7251 Plumbers
• 7265 Welders & Related Machine Operators
• 7312 Heavy-Duty Equipment Mechanics
• 7371 Crane Operators
• 7372 Drillers & Blasters - Surface Mining, Quarrying & Construction
• 8222 Supervisors, Oil and Gas Drilling and Service

See also:

Dentists eligible for immigration to Canada under the Federal Skilled Worker program

38 job categories listed in bid to clear backlog; critics say the move offers'no solutions'
Nov 29, 2008 04:30 AM Toronto Star

If you're planning to move to Canada, you'll have to check the list first.
Thirty-eight in-demand occupations were unveiled by the Harper government yesterday, setting out a new selection criteria for skilled immigrants, allowing those with relevant skills to be fast-tracked into the country.
The occupations include jobs in the field of health, skilled trades and the finance sector. Details of the long-awaited "ministerial instructions" were posted on the Citizenship and Immigration Canada website (http://www.cic.gc.ca/), and come into effect immediately. continue reading @ Toronto Star

See also:

• Fast-Track Occupations List

Ethnics and immigrants vs. New Canadians (Change please!)

Books on politics list, by Andrew Steele

Andrew Steele, November 14, 2008 @ globeandmail.com

"This may seem a bit petty, but I dislike when people use “immigrant” and “ethnic” interchangeably.
Tom Flanagan, an academic I admire enough to put his book on game theory on my 10 books on politics list, is the latest to do this in print.
I agree with Flanagan's central tenet here: The Liberals are in deep trouble if they continue to take new Canadians for granted.
However, Flanagan does what I have seen a lot of conservatives who are courting new Canadians do: He labels them “immigrants” or “ethnics” and does it as if the terms are interchangeable.
No term is perfect. “Immigrant” includes only those who have themselves immigrated. “Ethnic” I have never really been comfortable employing because it implies a third-generation Chinese-Canadian engineering student at U of T and a first-generation Sikh-Canadian construction worker in Burnaby have some great bond because their ancestors aren't from Britain or France (or First Nations.)
I prefer to use “new Canadian” to mean those who are new to the country and perhaps their children, and then individual ethnicity groups (Chinese-Canadian, Indo-Canadian, etc.) to denote existing sets of voters with a shared and particular cultural community. " continue reading