Toronto Public Library has Quiet study rooms, a meeting room, auditoriums and theatre facilities

PS. I hope this is being read & considered by the Marketing managers @ TPL, in order to advertise the quite, most-wanted corners.

You want to meet, and the only place you thought you can do this is a coffee shop. Right. But libraries are getting into this role of offering you a place where you can meet (if not simply eat). In doing so, TPL (Toronto Public Library) is following the best practices (see below: a glimpse of whatz up @ British Library, London).

Toronto Public Library, has newer facilities, a few in the news and more to come; but the bottomline is you need to Ask if you don't find on their site. Some of these are free (less publicized and you need to ask), others are for FEE. And much more for those in-need of a small space, see the following description:


Gladstone library's Bloor bliss-out
Gladstone Library makes you think you deserve elegant public spaces
By Ashley Botting

At the Bloor/Gladstone branch, there are quiet study rooms, a meeting room, group study areas and reading lounges for adults, children and teens. There are two restored fireplaces, a pulsing teen zone with a large flat-screen TV, a new learning centre, CD listening stations, 44 computers for public use and the enclosed outdoor reading garden I mentioned earlier.

See also on the same shelf:

The future of public libraries – local, connected, innovative Posted by: Fiona in public libraries, March 16th, 2010

Small meeting rooms for freelancers and small business. I really like the Business and IP Centre at the British Library, but it doesn’t really do meeting spaces very well if you don’t have a reader’s card (my BL card is just about to expire…). I frequently have to find meeting spaces in the city during business and after hours, and usually end up at a coffee shop, which is far from ideal – noisy, bad lighting, crowded etc. Not to mention, it’s a commercial space. Wouldn’t it be great if businesses and freelancers could stay local and rent out small meeting places now and then in the library, or even a casual coworking style setup? I’m sure some libraries are already doing this, but where are they? How would I find out when such information is so buried on their website?

Coffee Shops Are New Desi Offices, Rahul Mehta @ South Asian Generation Next, Toronto, 17 March 2010

Siddiqui: Our home and native - and adopted - land

By Haroon Siddiqui Editorial Page, Toronto Star Mar 14 2010

Extract:
"If you don't like non-whites, Statistics Canada has given you more reason to grumble. But if you are among the overwhelming majority of Canadians who have adjusted well to our demographic diversity, indeed see it as a defining feature of our nation, take a bow.

Statistics Canada's population projections to 2031, released Tuesday, showcase what is perhaps the most ambitious and successful experiment in heterogeneity in human history. The population of visible minorities is expected to rise from one in every five Canadians to to one in three – potentially 14.4 million. The largest group, as now, would be South Asians.

The Toronto CMA (census metropolitan area, Oshawa to Burlington) would be nearly two-thirds non-white – 5.6 million. Among them, South Asians would have tripled to 2.1 million. Chinese would be 1.1 million. Vancouver also would be almost two-thirds non-white. But, in a flip of Toronto, the largest group there, as now, would be the Chinese, followed by South Asians." continue reading

It's Time To Vote Now: Canada's Top 25 Immigrants!

A nationwide survey in three stages:

inviting nominations from across Canada for a list of people's favourite and most respected Canadian immigrants;

identifying 75 of them who received the highest number of votes from Canadians;

selecting those who were voted there from as Canada's Top 25 Immigrants!

It's now at the third stage, VOTE NOW. Click here to view / vote / details
See on the same shelf:

The painful truth about age discrimination in tech

By: Lisa Schmeiser,  18 Feb 2010, IT World Canada: InfoWorld
There are bold programmers, but no old programmers -- the reasons for this reality aren't simple. A closer look suggests that it's the nature of IT itself to push its elderly workers out.

There's a commercial airing on ESPN right now that features two hiring managers discussing the two job candidates sitting in the lobby. We see the backs of these candidates' heads; one is dark brown and lustrous, the other brittle and gray. The managers debate -- should they go with the experienced candidate? ("He won't have energy!" frets one manager) -- or the fresh young thing? And then -- surprise! -- the two candidates are the same person before and after a hair-dye job.

It's a nasty and effective commercial, and one that deftly plays on a pervasive fear of job hunters: Will my age be held against me? And in IT -- where the popular narrative favors kids launching companies in their dorm room or bringing down a corporate network as a way to blow off steam after finals -- that fear of age discrimination is especially pervasive. continue reading

On the same shelf:

• Five Pervasive Myths About Older Software Developers | Lessons of Failure

Toronto woman awarded $25,000 after boss used racial epithets

Linda Nguyen, Canwest News Service, February 17, 2010

TORONTO - A Toronto woman who was repeatedly called "Paki" and other racial slurs at work has been awarded $25,000 by the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal.

The ruling, handed out earlier this month, orders Cheryl Khan's former employer, Lynn Tompkins, the owner of Lynx Trucking Transportation in northwest Toronto, to pay the fine, in addition to $6,500 in lost wages. He has also been ordered to create an anti-harassment policy at his company and attend sensitivity training.

"It was horrible," said 36-year-old Khan on Wednesday. "I knew that if I stood back and let this gentleman walk all over me and not do anything about it, it makes it seem like it's OK." continue reading

On the same shelf:

Racist taunts cost boss $25,000, Moira Welsh, Staff Reporter, Toronto Star

The words were shocking and so unfamiliar that Cheryl Khan's friends could not believe her boss used them.

"Paki," he called her, according to Khan's testimony before the Ontario Human Rights Tribunal. "Half-nigger babies," he said of her two little boys. "That's what you get for sleeping with a nigger."

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.

'Ghost' consultants pose problem to Canadian immigration

South Asian Observer Digital version, 11 Feb 2010 09:30 hrs EST

Extract: "The depth of the problem can be gauged from the following advertisement that appeared in a Chandigarh newspaper recently:

“JOB VACANCY IN CANADIAN HOTEL CANADA: Ominicity Hotel Director wish to advertise through this medium that the Following Job Vacancy in our Hotel. We need both men and females workers to fill in different categories of job openings. Currently, if your interested in working with us you can contact us back E-mail Address: ottawahotelss_canada@yahoo.ca Our Hotel Director shall connect you with our Canadian immigration director during your visa processing, SIGN BY DIRECTOR MRS RESOLING ANNA.”

But inquiries revealed that there was no hotel by this name in Ottawa.  continue reading: 'Ghost' consultants pose problem to Canadian immigration. [Copyright Indo Asian News, Click here]

See also:

• Suckers Wanted: OMNICITY HOTEL OTTAWA CANADA (Impostors)
  
• Move to fight immigration fraud, By NICHOLAS KEUNG Special to South Asian Focus, Feb 11, 2010
  

Factors in success or failure of foreign-trained librarians in Canada

The thesis, here, is about what are major factors for the success or for the failure of foreign-trained librarians in Canada? As far as this writer could dig, there is no single study to answer this question about what-works and what-doesn't in moving between and beyond barriers. Hence, this may be considered as a call for a national study.



As with all Canadian immigrants, the story of arrival, survival and revival is very much same for the profession of librarians. Interestingly, there are immigrant stories, first about a few non-professionals getting opportunities to work in libraries (as semi-professionals), and second about foreign-trained-librarians not even getting an interview (let alone get an opportunity for part-time, temporary, voluntary, full-time work). There are no documentary evidences about this occurrence; a sad side of this age-of-information, right-to-information, and right-to-work--so clearly enshrined in the Charter and the legislation.

An important recap: A common requirement for all foreign-trained professionals is: (a) education (local equivalent), (b) training (locally compatible), (c) skills (hard, soft and transferable matching Canadian colors) and the LAST (d) Canadian Experience!!! So is true for Librarians, too.

What is uncommon for librarians is the fact that most come from countries where: (a) language or culture raises a barrier in integration / adaptability; or (b) where the education and training offered back-home is not accredited (national accreditation or national standardization to monitor quality and standards of library schools). South Asian librarians face problem with accreditation (not language or culture as major barrier in finding a professional job). And, a few South Asians, don't get jobs inspite of ALA accredited (master, doctoral and post-doc) degrees. Some may say this is a type of dehumanization, not just deprofessionalization and derecognition of practitioners.

The Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials (CICIC), says: Information on requirements to practise:

The occupation of librarian is not regulated. Therefore, employment is subject to demand, and qualification requirements are set by individual employers. However, a master's degree in library science or its equivalent from an institution accredited by the American Library Association (ALA) is usually required for employment. source

Costly Omissions: Employment barriers for skilled/experienced librarians, in particular, by Manjit Singh, Reference Librarian, Brantford PL; and Dr. Ganga B. Dakshinamurti, Librarian, Albert D. Cohen Management Library:
Foreign-trained librarians face many barriers when seeking employment in Canada with resultant cost to individuals and organizations. A state-of-the-art review of employment barriers illustrated by case studies for strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats that will be analyzed so all concerned can maximize benefits.

• Case Study. By Manjit Singh, Librarian, Brantford Public Library, Brantford, ON
  
• Case Study. By Muhammad Afzal, Librarian
  These case studies present interesting observations by two foreign trained librarians
  >>>>>>>>An Appeal to All Stakeholders:
  "Along with Tara Zarrin and Manjit Singh, I appeal to all stakeholders, including library associations and library schools in Canada:
  PLEASE take necessary actions to implement meaningful solutions to correct this costly omission of not utilizing fully our foreign-trained librarians, so that ALL Canadians can be gainfully employed for the betterment of Canada!"
  -Professor Ganga Dakshinamurti

Need for a study, factors to be studied may include: (a) role of Canadian institutions / government in accepting / recognizing these librarians (see a sample by Keren Dali and Juris Dilevkoa, 2009); (b) role of foreign-trained librarians in adapting to the Canadian mosaic (see the case studies, above); and (c) identify those who lost their battle (survival of the fittest) and were forced to: i) return to school (within the profession); or ii) re-train themselves out-side-the-box and re-invent the wheel; or iii) couldn't return home (see below: Why we cannot go home?), rather stayed in the land of opportunities accepted odd_jobs in order to make the ends meet (viz., finally work as store worker in grocery stores, visa card sales reps @ call centers, security guards, parking attendant, etc.) i.e, who could-not a find job even 'outside-the-box' (see the book, above, by G. Kim Dority, 2006). One may consider a fourth factor, as well: those who struggled and then left the country (for reasons of (i)lack of opportunities, (ii)repeated failures in finding an accommodation in the job market, (iii)lack of stamina to continue the tryst with destiny, (iv)greener pastures abroad, and so on..).
PS. If you are interested in this project, lets talk. Your comments and support will be highly appreciated. See on the same shelf

• The Countries You May Like to Go with your American / Canadian MLIS - A literature survey
•  Librarian jobs in Canada? Does university name matter?

• Are there lots of librarian jobs in Canada? Does what university I graduate from really matter when I apply for jobs?

• CLA Session Notes - "Systemic Barriers to Library Use: Libraries Engage the Socially Excluded"
  
• "The evaluation of international credentials and the hiring of internationally trained librarians in Canadian academic and public libraries, Keren Dali and Juris Dilevkoa, The International Information & Library Review Volume 41, Issue 3, September 2009, Pages 146-162
  

  "This study examines the way in which libraries in Canada approach the issue of the evaluation of international credentials (ICs) held by internationally trained librarians (ITLs) and the eventual short-listing and hiring of such individuals. In the United States and Canada, librarianship, a non-regulated profession, is to a large degree governed by the American Library Association (ALA), but the ALA's statements regarding ICs and ITLs are often ambiguous. It is therefore frequently left to individual libraries to decide how best to deal with ICs and ITLs"

• Smoothing the Transition: Retraining Centers in Canada for Immigrant Librarians from Eastern Europe and the Former Soviet Union, by Keren Dali a; Juris Dilevko, Slavic & East European Information Resources, Volume 8, Issue 1 July 2007 , pages 77 - 102
  
• Silviu's Diary: An immigrant librarian in Canada.
  
• Immigrant Librarians in Britain
  
• "Evolving Jamaican migrant identities: contrasts between Britain, Canada and the USA," Paul Thompson a; Elaine Bauer, Community, Work & Family, Volume 6, Issue 1 April 2003 , pages 89 - 102
  
• Migrant Settlement Literature Review
  
• How to kill a young librarian's love of librarianship (AKA. A Dispute Resolution Guide)
  
• Career Path of an "International Librarian"
  
• "Employment of Foreign Trained Librarians in the US and Canada: An Enquiry on Behalf of the LED Committee on Equivalencies and Reciprocity, in American Library Association Office for Library Education," (1970) [cited in Encyclopedia of library and information science, 1965. v. 57, p. 262]
  
• Surrey Public Library INFORMATION FOR FOREIGN-TRAINED LIBRARIANS AND LIBRARY TECHNICIANS
  
• Will tomorrow's libraries become more like museums of today -- A question for the coming decade
  
• Emerson's Conceptual Librarian, Professor of Books -- Library Education Revisited
  
• Unable to get jobs, immigrant couple sue Ottawa [Selladurai Premakumaran and Nesamalar Premakumaran (Appellants)] and the response @ Federal Courts Reports

Why we cannot go home?

Educated immigrants stuck in survival jobs By Travis Lupick

Success Stories: Matilda of Sierra Leone

'Vote by feet'

A land of promise or a land of dismay?

Not Canada Net: Tragedy of Canada for Immigrants

  Skilled immigrants wasting their talents in Canada calgaryherald.com

Why don't Americans care? Gutsy win, but media barely mentioned it

By JOE WARMINGTON | Columnists | Toronto Sun | 7th January 2010
"Really?"
-- a Natick, Mass., town clerk on learning U.S. overtime hero John Carlson is a native son.
Why don't they care?

The Boston Globe went with a picture of a murder suspect as its front-page picture.

The New York Post had a picture of socialite Casey Johnson, who died tragically. Its sports section's front was an image of football receiver Ochocinco with the headline Sex in the Cincy.

It seems, for Americans, this gutsy, overtime win against Canada in Canada by its junior hockey team won't be going down as a miracle on ice.

In fact, it was almost a miracle to find any mention of it at all. continue reading