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Wednesday, November 11, 2009Current trends in the Canadian labour market
Beginning in October 2008, Canada's unemployment rate was on the rise. However, the first month in which there was a decrease in this rate was September 2009 where the figure stood at 8.4% (as compared to 8.7% in August 2009). In October 2009, the unemployment rate subsequently increased slightly and currently sits at 8.6%.
Overall, employment has fallen by 1.9% since October 2008, and the unemployment rate has increased by 50%, but the bulk of these labour market developments occurred from October 2008 to March 2009. The number of people employed in September 2009 was almost the same as that in March 2009, so things appear to be levelling off.
Since October 2008, employment has fallen in several industries which are important to the Canadian economy; manufacturing (down 11%), natural resources (down 11%), construction (down 5.8%) and finally transportation and warehousing (down 5.8%). Despite these notable decreases, some sectors have seen an increase in the employment rate, such as information, culture and recreation (up 4.8%) as well as finance, insurance, real estate and leasing (up 4.4%).
Spotlight on selected provinces
As each province differs substantially in terms of the structure of its economy, it is important not only to consider the national unemployment trends, but also the provincial ones.
Ontario appears to be the hardest hit by the economic downturn. Since the employment peak in October 2008, the employment rate has declined by 3.1%, with most of this decline occurring between October 2008 and May 2009. Since October 2008, half of the province's total employment losses have been in the manufacturing sector.
Alberta suffered notable employment losses in October 2009, its unemployment rate increasing to 7.5% from 7.1% in September. Since October 2008, Alberta's unemployment rate has fallen by 3.3%, which constitutes the steepest rate of decline among all provinces.
Although British Columbia appeared to be faring well in September 2009 with its unemployment rate experiencing steady decreases since March 2009 (it reached 7.4% in September), the unemployment rate appeared to take a turn for the worst in October 2009 shooting up to 8.3%. It is important to bear in mind, however, that since October 2008, the unemployment rate has decreased by 2.2%.
In terms of recent trends in Quebec, this province has been experiencing a slower rate of decline in the employment rate than the national average (1.6% drop compared to a 2.3% drop).
Employment quality
Although these figures can provide a general idea of national and provincial trends, it is necessary to take a closer look in order to gauge concrete implications for people already working in Canada and for those living abroad hoping to find employment in Canada.
Not only is it important to consider quantity, but it is also important to consider the quality of employment. When the employment figures are split into full-time and part-time jobs, it appears that the full-time employment rate has declined at a considerably faster rate (2.7% decline) than the part-time employment rate (0.7% decline) since October 2008. This means that people are finding it increasingly difficult to secure a full-time or permanent job and may find themselves obligated to jump from one part-time job to another.
The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) has created an index in order to measure the quality of employment. The index, which uses figures released by Statistics Canada, is based on indicators such as part-time vs. full-time jobs, self-employment vs. paid work and the pay levels of jobs in more than one hundred industry groups. Recent figures indicate that despite the increase in employment over the past year, the quality of jobs has declined. The index has nosedived since March 2009, seeing a decrease of 3.8%. The number of high-paying jobs has decreased by 3% in the past 6 months. According to Benjamin Tal, "any benefits from a stabilizing employment level are being offset [...] by lower employment quality."
It thus remains to be seen how Canada's unemployment rate will evolve over the coming months but if the last six months are any indication, it appears that Canada has proven to be relatively resilient and will likely show signs of sustained improvement through the first quarter of 2010.
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Show All » Canada Immigration » Permanent Residence
Thursday, September 17, 2009The Immigrant Investor Program and the Budget Deficit
Canada’s decade-long run of surpluses has recently vaporized into a $55 Million budget deficit. The Harper government now faces the prospect of a motion of no-confidence which could lead Canadians into a second election in a year - its fourth since 2004. Finance minister Jim Flaherty should confer with an unlikely ally – Immigration Minister Jason Kenny to improve the government’s finances. He has the power to bring upwards of $400 Million of new income each year into federal coffers from the immigrant investor program. This could help pay for of the interest charges on the current budget deficit. Here is how.
Under the immigrant investor program Canada offers the most established and most widely used investment immigration programs in the world. With the stated intention of attracting business acumen and investment to Canada, the immigrant investor program offers permanent residence to qualified business applicants and their immediate families who commit $400,000 into government guaranteed investments for five years which pay no interest.
However, the immigrant investor program operates under an oligopoly in Canada between the federal program and the more popular Quebec program. Quebec promotes its own $400,000 immigrant investor program under the authority of the Canada-Quebec Accord, 1991 and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, 2002.
The Quebec program is far more popular than the federal program because Quebec processes applications much faster (6-9 months) and brokers are able to pay 12.5% commission fees immediately following Quebec approval, which often takes place long before the investor completes mandatory health and security requirements and actually comes to Canada.
Of the approximately 2500 immigrant investor applicants admitted to Canada each year, 70% are destined to Quebec. Yet statistics show that only about 30% of investor immigrants destined to Quebec actually settle there, as immigrants avail themselves of their Charter based mobility rights to settle elsewhere in Canada. Quebec benefits where it counts the most and this translates into a substantial financial loss for the Federal government.
Last year, the Harper government passed a controversial immigration bill that now provides the federal immigration minister with unprecedented flexible ministerial powers allowing him to unilaterally decide who gets into Canada and when. Under current law, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney could issue instructions to visa offices to fast track immigrant investor applications. Processing missions in source countries which produce the bulk of Canada’s immigrant investor applications (China, Taiwan, Korea, Pakistan, Syria, United Kingdom and United States) could be staffed with personnel who are knowledgeable in assessing documentation to support investors’ applications. This would enable faster processing times.
Additionally, modifications to current legislation could adopt a more liberal definition of investor’s management experience and provide for investments to occur following a selection decision rather than at visa issuance, in line with the Quebec program.
The benefit to the Canadian economy would be immediate and substantial. The bulk of Canada’s immigrant investors who state an intention to reside in Quebec but do not actually settle there would be more inclined to participate in the federal program. Quebec would receive its true share of investors who actually intend to settle in that province which translates into 30% of a $1Billion market (and growing) and the federal government would become the dominant player reaping a net gain of some $400 Million each year from current levels. As Canada tries to chart its course out of a recession, a financial gain of this magnitude from within existing federal programs, must be pursued with vigour.
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Show All » Canada Immigration » Permanent Residence
Tuesday, May 20, 2008Immigration quotas cause the backlog
By Colin R. Singer
(The following opinion was written by Colin R. Singer and appears in the May 21st, 2008 edition of the National Post - Financial Post Commentary section
Immigration Minister Diane Finley argues that the Harper government is promoting its new immigration bill because of a commitment to reducing the backlog of some 900,000 applicants for Canadian permanent residence and reduce wait times.
She also claimed in a recent letter to FP (May 16, 2008) that Canada welcomed 429,000 “newcomers” last year, the highest number in history. This is incorrect. Newcomers, even in the government's own literature, are comprised of only permanent resident visa holders. The number 429,649 includes approximately 195,000 temporary permit holders, including study visas and work visas.
Current immigration levels, moreover, are actually lower than they were in the early 1990s as a percent of population. Ms. Finley is the first to lump all three categories into one statistical measure. Why would she do this?
More important, the immigration backlog she refers to is grossly exaggerated and highly misunderstood. Here is why. The 900,000 backlog is largely derived from countries where the government intentionally allocates insufficient resources. Each year, the immigration department informally establishes quotas and staffs government offices so that its missions cannot process more visas than its established quota.
For example, the overall annual quota, expressed by the government as “target numbers” of visas, for the Buffalo, N.Y., office is about 24,500. The Buffalo mission currently has an inventory of approximately 45,000 applicants. On the other hand, the Canadian mission in New Delhi, India, has an annual quota of only 10,500 against a pending inventory of approximately 135,000 cases.
At missions in India, China, the Philippines, Pakistan and Syria, processing delays of 4 to 8 years exist. These are clearly the "under performing" missions. They are under performing because their resources are strategically allocated by Ottawa to ensure underperformance.
Aside from the underperforming missions, most visa offices process applications in about 18-24 months. Most applicants outside the underperforming offices do not complain of long processing delays. Applicants who are highly motivated can come to Canada sooner by making use of the Provincial Nominee Program and the federal Temporary Foreign Worker program if they are being sponsored by a Canadian employer.
Current immigration legislation also provides ample authority for the government to establish limits on the number of applications that may be processed or approved in a year, the number of visas that may be issued in a year, and the measures to be taken when that number is exceeded. There is therefore no valid reason to provide the minister with highly discretionary power to select immigrants.
Furthermore, the rule changes cannot possibly address the backlog of skilled workers because the new law will only take effect from February 28, 2008, onwards.
The system needs fixing. But Canadians should be concerned with the federal government's claim that it aims to reduce the backlog. The credibility of this department is highly dubious.
In 2003, in the leading federal court decision of its time, the department's most senior bureaucrat was admonished for misinforming Parliament on the effects of new legislation. The following year, a former immigration minister came under fire over her office's decision to approve a Canadian permanent residence application ahead of the queue to a Romanian stripper who volunteered on her re-election campaign.
Last week, the majority (Liberal, Bloc and NDP) members of the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration proposed that implementation of the new immigration rules be delayed pending further study “with a view to finding a consensus on preferred alternative means on addressing identified challenges”.
Canadians should be asking: Why is this government trying so hard to convince us that it must pass such a controversial law without any meaningful study of its purposes and possible effects?
In law, when the government exercises a discretionary authority legally delegated to it by Parliament, no one can question the rationale for its decision making. Who knows what thinking will influence policy makers in the future? I have no evidence for this, but such authority could give a party in power a valuable tool at the grass roots level. Party organizers could approach ethnic groups in Canada's largest immigrant communities and hold out the promise that the federal immigration minister will be able to quickly bring their family and friends to Canada, ahead of others in the queue at the under performing missions.
Logic and reason dictates that further meaningful study must be conducted before an important legislative initiative of this magnitude takes hold--especially since the stated objectives will not be achieved through these reforms.
Colin R. Singer is immigration counsel for www.immigration.ca.
Posted By: Colin Singer @ 9:15:44 AMTop
Show All » Canada Immigration » Permanent Residence
Tuesday, May 06, 2008The New Immigration Law: A dangerous piece of work
By Colin R. Singer
The Harper government is taking fire for introducing a controversial immigration bill that will drastically modify the process under which immigrants are selected to Canada each year.
Introduced in the March, 2008, federal budget bill and waiting a third and final reading before Parliament later this month, the proposed changes will provide Immigration Minister Diane Finley with unprecedented flexible ministerial powers to unilaterally decide who gets into Canada. She claims she needs this power in order to fix the backlog of some 900,000 (and growing) pending applicants for Canadian permanent residence.
The critics should aim their fire at the federal Liberal party, which refuses to vote against this legislation, as well as at the province of Alberta, where the demand for immigrants is among the highest in Canada. Alberta, a chronic underperformer compared with its provincial neighbors, continues to be plagued by unreasonably long processing delays.
Immigration is a matter of joint responsibility between the federal government and the provinces and has been since Confederation, under the Constitution Act 1867. Every province has implemented its own provincial immigration program, in order to obtain immigration policies suited to a particular province’s particular needs. Qualified employers nominate a prospective worker under an expedited process that, once approved by the province, enables an application for permanent residence to completely bypass the lengthy federal immigration selection process. In this way, applicants who are badly needed by businesses can receive timely approval under a more responsive provincial program.
At the initial stages, qualified employer-sponsored applicants can receive temporary, renewable work permits, processed at missions outside Canada, or in certain cases at ports of entry, while their applications for permanent admission are processed by the provincial authorities and thereafter by the federal authorities for medical and security screening. In many instances, applicants can conclude these formalities without ever having to actually return to their former place of habitual residence.
The proposed changes under Bill C-50 seek to implement a federal selection system based on fast-tracking categories of skilled workers applying for entry to Canada as permanent residents, to be identified under provincial/occupational demand lists. However, a system based on occupational demand lists was a hallmark of the federal skilled worker selection process under the former Immigration Act during the period of 1993-2001. It was abolished in 2002 because stakeholders agreed that the decision of who gets into Canada quickly should be left to the provinces.
Additionally, current immigration legislation introduced by the Liberals under the most comprehensive legislative overhaul since 1976 already provides ample authority for the government to establish limits on the number of applications that may be processed or approved in a year, the number of visas that may be issued in a year and the measures to be taken when that number is exceeded.
According to the Citizenship Department’s latest proposals, the new changes will only be implemented to address applications submitted after Feb. 28, 2008, and will not even address the refugee stream or the family class stream, two areas that the Immigration Minister continues to ignore. At best, the current backlog of skilled workers will take many years to process, whether or not the system undergoes any change.
The current immigration system needs fixing. The future of Canada’s immigration program is at stake. But the proposed changes centralizing selection of immigrants with one individual is unprecedented and dangerous. It will deprive Canadians of the necessary checks and balances that currently exist to ensure that decision-makers are held accountable to a process. At worst, the proposed changes will give the appearance of a system that promotes pork-barrel politics at the federal level by rewarding favoured interest groups and hand-selecting candidates ahead of the line at visa offices abroad.
The need for foreign workers has never been greater in Canada. Federal policymakers along with their provincial counterparts must co-operatively identify transparent processing and procedural solutions and allocate the resources necessary to offer fast and efficient entry to provincial nominees, as well as to federally selected workers.
Financial Post
(The following editorial was written by Colin R. Singer and appears in the May 8th, 2008 edition of the National Post - Financial Post Commentary section)
http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/fpcomment/archive/2008/05/07/a-dangerous-piece-of-work.aspx
Colin R. Singer is immigration counsel for www.immigration.ca
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Saturday, February 16, 2008The Canadian Experience Class: Canada’s new employer-driven program receives official endorsement
The Federal Skilled Worker Program currently remains the single most important stream of immigration to
CIC, though, still processes these applications. But once approved many who qualify and are approved for admission to
Immigration policy makers have been trying for years to address this problem. And it seems that they have finally come up with a viable solution, albeit not the solution that pending overseas’ applicants have been anticipating. A new category will soon be created that will provide persons working or studying in
A look at the graph below shows how the proposed numbers under the Canadian Experience class could look in relation to the overall numbers of the planned annual admissions to
|
Immigrant Category |
2008 Ranges | |
|
|
Low |
High |
|
Federal Skilled Workers |
67,000 |
70,000 |
|
Quebec Selected Skilled Workers |
25,000 |
28,000 |
|
Federal/Quebec Business |
11,000 |
13,000 |
|
Live-in Caregiver |
6,000 |
9,000 |
|
Provincial/Territorial Nominees |
20,000 |
22,000 |
|
Canadian Experience Class |
10,000 |
12,000 |
With the creation of the Canadian Experience Class, the total number of permanent residents admitted to
Processing applications in-land has many advantages. For one, every application processed to conclusion will represent a new permanent resident already living in
And if the potential of this new program is properly addressed, it will also remove the ongoing requirement to apply for visa extensions for students or workers on temporary status or the need to comply with the labour market opinion renewal process, which is also experiencing impractical and increasing processing delays throughout
Many in the immigration industry believe that targeting a growing pool of temporary permit holders is a policy that CIC is likely to vigorously pursue in the future. According to the Minister’s own statement, the program represents a key element to Canada’s long term immigration plan.
And it makes perfect sense as the numbers of temporary work permit holders living in Canada has steadily increased during the past five years fuelled by the economic boom, labour market growth and 35-year lows in the Canadian unemployment rate. Additionally, the number of student permit holders has also steadily increased during the same period.
Specific details of the CEC program have been slow in coming. Although it was announced in the 2008 budget for CIC, the Immigration Department has yet to make available any concrete directives regarding the program or even provided any formal announcement about the program. Initially the program was to launch in January 2008. Now it seems the date has been tentatively set back to September 2008.
Preliminary information informally released can be summarized as follows:
-
The program will be limited to those who have legally entered
-
It will be limited to those candidates with work experience defined by the National Occupational Classification NOC Levels of
-
The selection criteria will be based on an assessment of an applicant’s successful labour market integration. Criteria will likely include a mix of Canadian educational credentials, work experience in
-
valid status in Canada will be required at the time of an application
-
at least a moderate language proficiency in one of Canada’s two official languages documented by IELTS and/or TEF, will be required
-
no proof of funds will be required
-
for recent graduates at Canadian post-secondary institutions, they must have completed at least 2 years of post-secondary study program at the institution qualifying for post-graduate work permit and at least 12 months of work experience in Canada acquired after graduation (but within 2 years prior to CEC application) and exclusively in NOC Skill Levels
-
for work permit holders - at least secondary school diploma, trade certificate or apprenticeship required plus 2 years of full time work experience in Canada in skills level
Many of the proposed elements of the new CEC class are subject to change. From a preliminary assessment, it seems that this new class could provide a strategic solution to the long processing delays that currently plague the Economic Class of immigration to
Unfortunately this is not comforting news for the majority of persons awaiting processing at some of Canada’s busiest and most backlogged visa offices, who cannot secure early employment in Canada during the processing of their permanent residence applications and who will be kept waiting for many years before their applications are ever approved.
Posted By: Colin Singer @ 1:01:41 PMTop
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Thursday, May 31, 2007Les actions du Ministère de la citoyenneté et de l’immigration face au problème de perte de citoyenneté
Afin d'obtenir leur citoyenneté canadienne, les résidents permanents doivent se conformer à de multiples conditions. À titre d'exemple, un adulte (18 ans ou plus) désirant obtenir la citoyenneté canadienne doit avoir vécu au Canada pendant au moins trois des quatre années précédant la présentation de la demande. Par ailleurs, il doit pouvoir communiquer en anglais ou en français et démontrer une certaine connaissance du Canada et des droits et responsabilités associés à la citoyenneté. De plus, il est impossible de répondre aux exigences en matière de résidence sans être un résident permanent depuis au moins deux ans. Dans certaines situations, certains résidents permanents ne sont pas admissibles. Par exemple, c’est le cas des personnes qui ont un casier judiciaire, qui sont sous le coup d’accusations criminelles ou qui font l’objet d’une mesure d’exécution de la loi en matière d’immigration. L’obtention de la citoyenneté canadienne nécessite beaucoup de temps et d’argent. De plus, elle peut représenter une grande source de stress pour les gens espérant l’obtenir. Malheureusement pour certains citoyens, les efforts ont été inutiles et ils doivent recommencer tout le processus. Récemment, l’adoption de l’initiative des États-Unis relative aux voyages dans l’hémisphère occidental a accru l’attention portée à la question de la citoyenneté et certains citoyens ont réalisé, à ce moment, qu’ils avaient perdu leur citoyenneté. En effet, tel qu’il a été énoncé dans les médias, de nombreuses personnes ont été touchées par la perte de la citoyenneté canadienne. Ces personnes demeurent inquiètes et doivent faire face à un important problème. La ministre de la Citoyenneté et de l’Immigration, Diane Finley a répertorié un peu plus de 450 cas qui sont dans cette situation. La ministre Finley avoue qu’en dépit de l’intérêt que suscite le problème, ce chiffre n’a pas beaucoup augmenté, mais il évoluera.
La ministre de la Citoyenneté et de l’Immigration, Diane Finley, devant le Comité permanent de la Chambre de la citoyenneté et de l’immigration, a tenté de se faire rassurante le 19 février 2007. Sans dénier l’ampleur du problème, elle a reproché le fait que les médias ont accordé une attention particulière aux gens qui ont perdu leur citoyenneté. Pourtant, elle a affirmé que plusieurs personnes qui ont vécu au Canada presque toute leur vie ne possèdent pas la citoyenneté et elle a affirmé que les fonctionnaires de son ministère ont repéré un petit nombre de personnes qui entrent dans cette catégorie et elle a décidé de leur accorder priorité.
Bien que ces cas se verront priorisés, d’autres seront peut être réglés. Effectivement, certains autres se verront peut être contentés par une décision de la ministre Finley puisque cette dernière est prête à envisager l’adoption de modifications appropriées à la Loi sur la citoyenneté afin de répondre aux demandes de membres du Comité et autres intéressés qui souhaitent voir la question des anomalies de la citoyenneté réglée par le truchement de modifications à la Loi sur la citoyenneté. Afin d’arriver à cet objectif, elle a invité les membres du comité à participer à l’examen approfondi de la nature et de la portée du problème. Ainsi, ils pourront aider la ministre à définir et à évaluer un certain nombre d’options. Afin d’être encore plus rassurante, la ministre Finley a affirmé que l’unanimité est avantageuse et elle désire trouver une solution durable à la satisfaction de tous.
Toutefois, nous pouvons rester sceptiques étant donné le temps requis pour modifier des dispositions législatives. La ministre s’est vue prudente et a évité une partie des critiques en abordant ce point. Elle a avoué que l’adoption de modifications législatives est un processus qui peut se révéler assez long et que les personnes touchées ne devraient pas avoir à attendre indéfiniment que la Loi sur la citoyenneté soit modifiée et adoptée. Elle attend donc avec impatience de prendre connaissance des recommandations du Comité et d’entendre les divers témoins qui se présenteront au cours des prochaines semaines.
Selon la ministre, parmi ces demandes de nombreuses émanent de Canadiens qui ont simplement perdu leurs documents. Elle rappelle que ces Canadiens n’ont pas « perdu » leur citoyenneté, ils ont perdu leur « preuve » de citoyenneté et doivent en obtenir une autre. La ministre justifie l’attente en mentionnant que dans cette ère de préoccupations accrues en matière de sécurité, il importe de prendre les mesures nécessaires pour confirmer l’identité des demandeurs et éviter les fraudes.
Présentement, l’attention du ministère de la Citoyenneté et de l’Immigration se porte sur les 450 dossiers. Ces cas comprennent des dossiers visant des personnes qui, selon la loi, devaient entreprendre des démarches pour conserver leur citoyenneté, mais qui ne l’ont pas fait; d’autres sont des cas de personnes qui n’ont jamais été des citoyennes canadiennes ou de personnes qui auraient pu se faire enregistrer comme citoyennes, mais qui ne l’ont pas. Par ailleurs, la ministre use des pouvoirs que lui confère la Loi sur la citoyenneté pour résoudre les cas le plus rapidement possible. Ainsi, elle a récemment obtenu l’autorisation du gouverneur en conseil pour l’octroi exceptionnel de la citoyenneté à 33 personnes. Ce groupe comprend des personnes qui ne répondent pas aux conditions établies dans la loi actuelle pour l’attribution ordinaire de la citoyenneté, mais dont la situation personnelle justifie un examen particulier.
Afin de régler la situation, d’autres mesures ont été mises en place. La ministre Finley a affecté davantage de personnel au traitement de ces cas et a affecté une unité spéciale au télécentre du ministère de la Citoyenneté et de l’Immigration. De plus, s’il s’agit d’un cas de perte de la citoyenneté, le cas est confié à un agent de programme. Par ailleurs, avec ses partenaires, le ministère de la Citoyenneté et de l’Immigration s’assure que, le temps que ces cas soient réglés, personne ne fasse l’objet d’une mesure de renvoi ni ne cesse de recevoir des prestations, par exemple des soins de santé ou des prestations de la Sécurité de la vieillesse. Le Ministère de la Citoyenneté et de l’Immigration collabore aussi avec le Bureau des passeports afin qu’il dirige les gens vers le télécentre, où ils peuvent s’adresser directement à des agents de la citoyenneté. Enfin, le ministère de la Citoyenneté et de l’Immigration accélère le processus pour les personnes qui n’ont pas perdu leur citoyenneté, mais leur preuve de citoyenneté, et qui doivent présenter une demande pour en obtenir une nouvelle. Espérons que ces mesures rassureront les gens concernés et que les problèmes seront réglés le plus rapidement possible.
Posted By: Colin Singer @ 9:34:49 AMTop
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Monday, May 07, 2007What Citizenship and Immigration Canada owes Canadians
In the shadows of the 2006 Statistics Canada census data came the release of the 2007–2008 Report on Plans and Priorities for Citizenship and Immigration Canada. The census and the report unanimously reflected one clear message: Canada is and will continue to be dependent upon immigration to fuel its population and to fill its labour shortages.
Not unlike previous years, a main concern in 2007 for our immigration policy makers remains the economic and cultural incorporation of its immigrants. Current waves of immigrants are taking longer and not faring as well economically as previous waves. Over the past twenty years there has been an overall deterioration in the initial earnings of new immigrants relative to average Canadian earnings. This statistic does not bode well for a country that wishes to attract and maintain more skilled immigrants. Nor do the stories of highly skilled immigrant professionals working extensively at lower skilled occupations because their qualifications are not recognized in Canada compliment our immigration program. The issue of prolonged underemployment by members of the skilled immigrant class not only devalues the work and educational history of an individual, but it is also a poor reflection of what the federal Skilled Workers program was expected to achieve on the behalf of all Canadians, new or established.
Will 2007 be the year Citizenship and Immigration Canada resolves the problem of underemployment by addressing the problem of credential recognition? The Plans and Priorities did reiterate our government’s commitment to working with Human Resources and Social Development Canada (HRSDC), the provinces and territories, and professional associations towards the creation of the Foreign Credentials Referral Office. Yet nothing of this project has been produced since its announcement in March 2006. Immigration Ministers have been referring to its essential role in the immigration process for over two years now. Delays in the production of an agency are not only an contributing factor to the underemployment amongst skilled immigrants across Canada, but are also contributing to the difficulties rural and smaller urban areas are experiencing in attracting and retaining immigrants who would help meet their labour market and population requirements.
Newcomers are unevenly distributed across Canada, as more than 80 percent are settling in Canada's largest cities. The metropolises of Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver are great gateways for newcomers mainly because they offer settlement services, an established network of family and friends and more importantly they offer a greater number of low skilled economic opportunities. Studies have shown that immigrants who settle in larger cities experience labour market advantages over those who settle in smaller cities, earning upwards of several thousand dollars more annually.
Immigrants are choosing to settle in the larger communities because without the proper credential recognition they remain ineligible to work in their field, and smaller cities do not offer the same number of economic opportunities and networks that can be found in larger areas.
Canada’s immigration authorities cannot hope to tackle the discrepancies in settlement patterns until they have tackled the problem of credential recognition an area of shared jurisdiction with the provinces. Immigrants may be more willing to settle in remote places if they will be able to be employed in the field they are trained in; otherwise, remaining in the urban areas where low skilled work is available “to keep food on the table” remains a better economic alternative.
It is imperative, for the sake of Canada’s future economic standing, to ensure that our immigration programs move beyond what the Skilled Workers program has offered thus far. The federal government cannot afford to limit its role in the immigration process by solely providing provinces with a steady supply of highly educated and skilled immigrants without ensuring that the provinces have the tools and resources necessary to facilitate successful incorporation. Plans and Priorities is challenging the traditional process of how a country interacts with its immigrant population with innovative approaches aimed at facilitating the incorporation of immigrants into the Canadians market and society. CIC has set forth an ambitious agenda, but it is not unreasonable. It is attainable, and its achievement will be essential to Canada’s future.
Posted By: Colin Singer @ 6:11:29 PMTop
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Monday, April 30, 2007Le racisme contre le sexisme
L’immigration a été l’avènement de plusieurs événements positifs. Au Québec, cette immigration a réglé plusieurs problèmes démographiques. De plus, la cohabitation de différents peuples a entraîné plusieurs conséquences positives telles que l’ouverture d’esprit, les nouvelles connaissances, l’acceptation des autres et de leurs différences, la tolérance, etc.. Toutefois, cette cohabitation a aussi amené plusieurs conséquences négatives telles que la confrontation, la guerre, la haine, la violence, le racisme. Effectivement, l’immigration a été la source de plusieurs problèmes conflictuels entre la société d’accueil et les nouveaux arrivés.
Bien que les exemples de réussite d’intégration à la société d’accueil sont nombreux, il reste que dans certains cas, l’intégration d’un individu à sa société d’accueil est parfois très difficile compte tenu des dissemblances importantes de croyances et de comportements. Il semble que le Québec fait, en ce moment, face à certaines difficultés quant à sa capacité à bien intégrer certaines minorités culturelles au sein de la société québécoise. Il semble aussi que ces dissemblances culturelles sont amenées sur la place publique plus fréquemment qu’avant. Les médias sont devenus alarmistes. Ils crient de plus en plus fort lorsqu’il y a un conflit entre deux individus qui résulte de leurs différences culturelles.
Au cours des derniers mois, les médias du Québec ont particulièrement traité de la question du racisme. Est-ce là, la dénonciation d’un malaise d’une société d’accueil face aux minorités culturelles qui l’intègrent ? Est-ce là le détournement d’une pensée commune que personne n’ose avouer de peur de se faire traiter de «raciste» ? Il semble aussi que le Québec ait de la difficulté à bien limiter l’exercice de certains droits fondamentaux de tous et chacun puisqu’il ne veut pas offenser certaines minorités. Il semble que tous aient peur de se faire traiter de racistes s’ils osent critiquer les actions d’un groupe culturel particulier. Mais qu’est-ce que le racisme ? Et comment faire pour conjuguer avec le fait que certaines minorités culturelles adoptent des comportements qui vont à l’encontre des droits fondamentaux adoptés par la majorité des Québécois ?
Dans son article 1, la Convention pour l’élimination du racisme et de la discrimination raciale (CERD) se limite à définir la seule discrimination raciale, qu’elle fonde sur « la race, la couleur, l’ascendance ou l’origine nationale ou ethnique ». Cette interprétation large reconnaît que le racisme a « pour but ou pour effet de détruire ou de compromettre la reconnaissance, la jouissance ou l’exercice, dans des conditions d’égalité, des droits de l’homme et des libertés fondamentales dans les domaines politique, économique, social et culturel ou dans tout autre domaine de la vie publique ». «Le racisme a d'abord une fonction de légitimation par stigmatisation. Le groupe exploité, conquis, dominé, ciblé, est catégorisé, traité comme inférieur et assigné à une position sociale subordonnée...Le racisme a aussi une fonction de déplacement. Ainsi, en période de crise économique, politique ou culturelle, on désigne l'Autochtone, le minoritaire, l’immigrant, l’Arabe, le musulman, le Juif, comme bouc émissaire responsable de l'insécurité engendrée par cette crise.
Enfin, le racisme a une fonction de division entre le citoyens d’origines diverses et retarde, voire affaiblit, la mobilisation et l’organisation syndicale, politique, etc.
Si on s’en remet à la définition de la Convention pour l’élimination du racisme et de la discrimination raciale (CERD), on peut probablement parler de racisme si l’individu critique le fait qu’un autre individu de par ses croyances privilégie des comportements qui délogent l’égalité entre l’homme et la femme. En effet, dans cette situation particulière, on peut conclure que celui qui juge les comportements de l’autre compromet la jouissance, dans des conditions d’égalité, des droits de l’homme et des libertés fondamentale dans les domaines social et culturel. Dans cette situation bien particulière nous faisons face à un affrontement entre deux croyances bien distinctes, mais qui sont au cœur d’un litige. L’acceptation des croyances d’un individu qui adopte des comportements sexistes dans une société d’accueil qui s’efforce à abolir des comportements sexistes depuis des années.
La conduite de celui qui adopte des comportements qui compromettent l’égalité entre l’homme et la femme est aussi dérangeante que celui qui a un comportement raciste puisqu’elle détruit, elle aussi, la jouissance, dans des conditions d’égalité, des droits de l’homme et des libertés fondamentale dans les domaines social et culturel. Dans cette société d’accueil, si nous faisons face à un individu qui est considéré comme raciste et l’autre sexiste, nous semblons faire face à deux comportements qui ne peuvent cohabiter…Dans ce cas, lequel doit-on sanctionner ? Doit-on en sanctionner un ou pouvons-nous continuer à cohabiter à vitam æternam sans interdire un des ces comportements ? N’est-ce pas là une pensée utopique ? Allons nous continuer à faire face à ce malaise profond sans agir? La seule solution n’est-elle pas d’affirmer quel sera le droit fondamental qui sera privilégié au Québec, l’égalité entre l’homme et les femmes ou l’acceptation de toutes les religions avec leurs croyances et leurs règles propres ? À moins que quelqu’un puisse trouver une solution qui vise à concilier le sexisme avec la croyance que la femme ne doit pas être traitée de façon égalitaire ? Ainsi, pourrons nous une bonne fois pour toute instaurer les changements adéquats à la Charte canadienne des droits et libertés et éliminer le malaise profond de la société québécoise face à ses minorités culturelles.
Posted By: Colin Singer @ 8:24:12 AMTop
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Sunday, April 01, 2007L’implication des municipalités pour contrer la discrimination
Au cours des trois dernières décennies, le gouvernement du Québec s'est doté de plusieurs dispositifs juridiques, politiques et consultatifs pour affirmer son identité nationale et reconnaître la diversité du peuple québécois. En effet, le Québec a francisé l’espace public avec la Charte de la langue française. Il a aussi promu l’égalité et garanti les droits culturels en adhérant aux conventions et pactes internationaux sur les droits de la personne, à la Charte des Droits et Libertés du Québec et à la Déclaration sur les relations interethniques et interraciales. Des programmes d’équité en emploi, de formation interculturelle, d’adaptation des services publics, des mesures d’accommodements raisonnables, l’engagement dans la solidarité internationale ont démontré le désir du Québec d’affirmer son identité diversifiée. Les municipalités participent aussi à cet objectif.
Depuis le milieu des années 1980, la Ville de Montréal prend cette diversité en considération. Elle l’a démontré par la création du Bureau interculturel de Montréal en 1988, l’adoption d’un Programme d’accès à l’égalité en emploi pour les minorités, l’adoption de la Déclaration de Montréal contre la discrimination raciale (1989), la stratégie de communication par les médias ethniques, les mesures de développement économique et les mesures relatives à l’habitation, la création d’un Comité interservices, la création d’un Comité consultatif sur les relations interculturelles, le lancement du Mois de l’histoire des Noirs en février 1992, la tenue de l’Année de l’harmonie interculturelle et interraciale en 1993.
Le modèle d'intervention et de gestion privilégié par l'administration de la Ville de Montréal est basé sur l'interculturalisme qui vise le respect de chaque culture, la recherche d'une réciprocité, la rencontre de toutes les cultures en utilisant le français comme langue privilégiée de communications et d'échanges. La Ville cherche aussi à améliorer l'accessibilité de ses services et à les adapter aux besoins des membres des communautés culturelles pour les amener à participer activement à la vie municipale.
Afin d’atteindre ses objectifs, la Ville privilégie le partenariat et la concertation avec les organismes publics, parapublics et privés. De plus, le 21 mars 2002, la nouvelle Ville de Montréal proclamait le 21 mars Journée internationale pour l'élimination de toutes les formes de la discrimination raciale. Un poste d’ombudsman a aussi été créé le 10 septembre 2002. Par ailleurs, le 10 décembre 2003, la Ville présentait une proposition de Charte montréalaise des droits et responsabilités. La proposition de Charte montréalaise des droits et responsabilités établit notamment que Montréal doit porter une attention à la qualité de la vie démocratique, à la vie économique et sociale, à la vie culturelle, à l’environnement et au développement durable, à la sécurité des citoyens et des citoyennes ainsi qu’à l’offre de services municipaux de qualité.
En 2004, la Ville présentait la Déclaration de Montréal pour la diversité culturelle et pour l’inclusion, en remplacement de la Déclaration de Montréal contre la discrimination raciale. Dans cette Déclaration, la Ville s’engageait à instaurer les programmes d'accès à l'égalité en emploi, à mettre en action une politique administrative prévoyant la « tolérance zéro en matière de racisme », à prendre des mesures afin d'assurer l'égalité en dignité et en droits des individus et des groupes humains.
Concernant les relations interculturelles et la mise en valeur de la diversité, elle proposait essentiellement de faire de la diversité ethnoculturelle de la population un élément central de la planification économique, culturelle et sociale. Pour y arriver, elle proposait la mise en œuvre des mesures visant à assurer l’équité, l’accessibilité et la gestion de la diversité, une participation équitable des groupes sous représentés au sein des instances décisionnelles et de concertation montréalaises, la mise en œuvre d’un Plan d’action montréalais en matière de relations Interculturelles, l’inclusion socio-économique des groupes vivant de l’exclusion.
Elle soulignait également la nécessité d’un nouveau cadre de partenariat avec le gouvernement du Québec. On peut donc constater que la Ville de Montréal prend à cœur le bien-être des différentes communautés ethniques. Espérons que tous ces projets et ces orientations feront en sorte d’abolir toute forme de racisme et de discrimination.
Posted By: Colin Singer @ 4:14:09 PMTop
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Tuesday, March 27, 2007The Accommodation Debate: Welcoming immigrants and educating Canadians
Countries that want immigrants must first educate its citizens on immigrant customs before demanding that its immigrants adapt to host country values.
The Canadian Constitution and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms was adopted 25 years ago and that should be reason for reflection and celebration. But recent headlines which presents a disturbing reality about our tolerance and attitudes towards immigrants, raises the question: what exactly are we celebrating?
Canada has cultivated an international reputation of being a tolerant and open society. We are a nation of cultural differences welcoming of foreigners envied around the globe. We have become a nation of people joined by if not a common religion, ethnicity or history, then a shared constitution and a heritage founded on “multiculturalism”, a term coined in the 1970’s by our federal government to help immigrants overcome barriers to their full participation in Canadian society and enshrined in our Charter in 1982.
But has this vision of being a harmonious multicultural society become too majestic to maintain or moreover, is this reputation an accurate description of what we have become? What is the answer when nearly forty years later; we ask ourselves the question, “Are we as tolerant as the image we try to project? Or, have we become over accommodating in trying to be multicultural?”
In Quebec, we have experienced a long standing “accommodation problem” of sorts dating back more than 100 years. Henri Bourassa elected to Parliament in 1896, and founder of Le Devoir in 1910, one of Quebec’s most respected intellectual dailies, was virulently anti-semetic. In 1906, when Parliament was considering a resolution of sympathy for victims of Russian pogroms, Bourassa voiced his opinion stating, “The experience of every civilized country is that Jews are the most undesirable class of people any country can have”.
Recently, a small town in Quebec passed its immigrant code of conduct outlining “standards” of what it expects of its “new arrivals”. A sign at the entrance of this rural town located 165 kilometers northwest of Montreal, says: “Hérouxville welcomes you”. The municipality, which has only one visible minority family among its community, and apparently wants more, included in their code of conduct to would-be immigrants a series of standards that would hardly seem consistent with the norms of any Charter of Rights and Freedoms toting country. Among them, "a woman can ... drive a car, sign cheques, dance, decide for herself, speak her peace, walk alone in public places, study, have a job” and that “killing women in public beatings, or burning them alive are not part of our standards of life". After much public outcry, the town council recently implemented changes removing references to the banning of stoning of women in public and female circumcision.
In response to the situation in Herouxville, the Quebec Premier, Jean Charest initially mused that the “Hérouxville affair” was an isolated case of intolerance yet ordered a commission to look into a debate over reasonable accommodation of the practices and customs of minorities with those of its established citizens. Then, the Premier announced a plan to spend $5 Million a year for three years to fight racism and discrimination in Quebec.
An isolated case of intolerance? Hardly. And, what is troubling is that there is a prevailing attitude, even among Quebec’s political leaders, that “Quebec culture” must not take a back seat to “over accomodating” minorities.
Mario Dumont, leader of the Action Démocratic du Québec, the newly elected official opposition party leader, recently struck this cord by saying that Quebec should “quit bending over backwards to accommodate minorities” and “make gestures which reinforce our national identity and protect those values which are so invaluable to us.”
And André Boisclair, the leader of the Parti Quebecois, claiming that his statement got misunderstood in translation while speaking to university students on global competitiveness, said that he was surprised to see so many students "with slanted eyes" when he was studying at Harvard University. "When I was at Harvard, where I spent a year, I was surprised to see that on campus, about a third of the undergraduate students had “slanted eyes," he said to a large classroom packed with students.
How we as a society respond to these important issues will ultimately determine whether or not we are a tolerant society. But if Quebec’s political leaders are perceived to harbor unwelcoming attitudes towards minorities, then who exactly can we rely upon to educate our citizenry on relations with minorities and immigrants? It is imperative that our politicians lead by example if they wish for citizens of this country to be accepting of our “new arrivals”.
Since the 1990’s Immigration has played an increasingly important role in Canada to combat a number of demographic developments including an aging population, a growing elderly dependency ratio, a shrinking labour force and a problem of brain drain. Repeated studies show that by 2030, labour force growth in Canada will be almost entirely fuelled through federal and provincial immigration policies and programs. Canada currently admits 250,000 immigrants each year with about 150,000 destined for the province of Ontario and about 40,000 settling in Quebec.
These numbers would be higher – some say our annual intake of immigrants should be raised to 300,000 to ensure our strong economic performance in the future. However policy makers are reluctant to increase the numbers substantially until programs are in place to ensure that our infrastructure can successfully absorb an increased number of immigrants to Canada.
Our future economic standing depends on immigration. Government policy should continue to promote immigration policies that will maximize the capacity of our existing economic, social and demographic infrastructure while simultaneously ensuring that the numbers of newcomers settling in Canada is proportionate to our ability to absorb them successfully. But joint federal and provincial programs must also be implemented to educate Canadians on the importance of immigration and to ensure that with reasonable limitations, the pillar of tolerance that we extend towards immigrants by our citizenry, is consistent with the image that is required to attract and keep newcomers here. This double edged strategy is critical to ensuring the success of our immigration policies.
Posted By: Colin Singer @ 1:48:16 PMTop
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