Abstract
The aim of this chapter is to examine how economic integration mechanisms for immigrants in Canada might systematically devalue immigrant labor, transform their self-esteem, and as a result inhibit their integration into the host society. The higher rates of poverty and unemployment that skilled immigrants experience compared to their Canadian counterparts are identified as a social pathology which can be investigated through an application of recognition theory. The main conclusion of the chapter is that the contradictory situation of highly skilled immigrants in the Canadian economic system emanates from the fact that immigrants are subject to a different recognition order than their Canadian counterparts. Double standards are so invisible that they usually go unnoticed and strengthen the dependence of immigrants on their ethnic groups.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Notes
- 1.
As of January 2015, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) announced important changes in its immigrant admission program and introduced Express Entry for skilled foreign workers. In comparison to the previous point system, Express Entry prioritizes candidates who have a valid job offer from an employer in Canada, Canadian work experience and education. These changes to the point system are made to overcome some of the barriers that skilled immigrants face during their job search in Canada. Even though these are progressive steps to eliminate these barriers, there is not enough research to test the effect of this policy change. It is de facto known that most of the job offers that candidates get are from their networks in their ethnic enclaves. For more information: http://www.cic.gc.ca/english/resources/publications/employers/express-entry-spo-sheet.asp
- 2.
The immigrant category which I will be employing for this chapter is that of (1) legal immigrants admitted through the skilled worker program. This study focuses on economic barriers to the immigrants’ entrance to the Canadian job market. The basic argument is that even though a major proportion of immigrants to Canada are admitted based on their skills and qualifications, once they arrive, they are either stuck in survival jobs or unemployed. This is the reason for the narrow definition of “immigrant” in this manner. There are also differences between newcomers, longtime residents, and second-generation immigrants. The economic pathologies investigated in this chapter mostly affect (2) newcomers; however, longtime residents and even second-generation immigrants are not free from unemployment and poverty . Moreover, I will generally be talking about (3) individual immigrants rather than immigrant groups. While the main emphasis will be on (4) immigrants coming from anywhere except the United States and United Kingdom, the arguments in this chapter has a stronger stance for (5) immigrants who belong to racial minorities and women immigrants of any nationality.
- 3.
Canadian Immigrant Integration Program (CIIP ) is a program that can be counted as a step to overcome the mismatch between reality and fantasy recognition orders . CIIP is established in 2007 and offers in-person sessions in offices in New Delhi, India, Manila, Philippines, and Guangzhou, China, or online classes to help newcomers gain employment that reflects their skills, credentials, and experience. For more information: https://www.newcomersuccess.ca/about/
- 4.
Survival jobs refers to “the jobs that support basic livelihood needs for oneself and one’s family rather than jobs that utilize one’s educational and skill level” (Chun and Cheong. 2011, p. 4).
- 5.
Authors find that “applicants with English names about 45 percent more likely to receive a callback from an application than resumes with Chinese or Indian names” (Oreopoulos and Dechief 2011, pp. 7–43).
- 6.
For further information on career services: http://www.successbc.ca/eng/services/employment-services (06/21/2017).
- 7.
More specifically, “five provincial and territorial credential assessment agencies provide foreign credential assessment services to immigrants. These agencies are International Qualifications Assessment Service (Alberta), International Credential Evaluation Service (BC), Academic Credentials Assessment Service (Manitoba), World Education Services (Ontario), and Education Credential Evaluation (Quebec). The five agencies formed the Alliance of Credential Evaluation Services of Canada (ACESC), which facilitates the dissemination and exchange of information regarding international education” (Guo 2009, p. 42).
References
Barbulak, W. (2003). Connecting volunteers with your community: A research project for volunteer Victoria. In Secondary connecting volunteers with your community: A research project for volunteer Victoria. Victoria: Volunteer Victoria.
Bauder, H. (2003). “Brain abuse”, or the devaluation of immigrant labour in Canada. Antipode, 35(4), 699–717.
Boyd, M. (2013). Canadian, eh? ethnic origin shifts in the Canadian census. International Migration Review, 47(2), 296–329.
Buzdugan, R., & Halli, S. S. (2009). Labor market experiences of Canadian immigrants with focus on foreign education and experience. International Migration Review, 43(2), 366–386.
Canada’s Immigration Plan. (2017, June). Canada Visa. http://www.canadavisa.com/canada-immigration-plan-2017.html. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Carens, J. (2010). Immigrants and the right to stay (A Boston review book). Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Chun, J. J., & Cheong, A. (2011). Immigrants and low-paid work: Persistent problems, enduring consequences (Metropolis British Columbia No. 11–20). http://mbc.metropolis.net/assets/uploads/files/wp/2011/WP11-20.pdf. Accessed 28 June 2017.
Creese, G., & Kambere, E. N. (2003). What colour is your English? Canadian Review of Sociology/Revue Canadienne de sociologie, 40(5), 565–573.
Daya, S., & de Long, B. (2004). A new Canadian’s first decade of volunteering: Examining ways to involve new Canadians in community organizations. London: Pillar Voluntary Sector Network.
Dejours, C., & Deranty, J. P. (2010). The centrality of work. Critical Horizons, 11(2), 167–180.
Dossa, P. (2004). Politics and poetics of migration: Narratives Iranian women from the diaspora. Toronto: Canadian Scholars’ Press.
Esses, V., Dietz, J., & Bhardwaj, A. (2006). The role of prejudice in the discounting of immigrant skills. In Cultural psychology of immigrants (pp. 113–130). Mahwah: L. Erlbaum Associates.
Fehr, D. (2017). Immigrant access fund Canada: 2017 federal budget submission. Government Canada. http://www.ourcommons.ca/Content/Committee/421/FINA/Brief/BR8398281/br-external/ImmigrantAccessFundCanada-e.pdf. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Gera, S., & Songsakul, T. (2007). Benchmarking canada’s performance in the global competition for mobile talent. Canadian Public Policy/Analyse de Politiques, 33, 63–84.
Gilmore, J., & Le Petit, C. (2008). The Canadian immigrant labour market in 2007: Analysis by region of postsecondary education. Statistics Canada, Labour Statistics Division. http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/71-606-x/71-606-x2008004-eng.htm. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Grant, T. (2017). Canadians still pro-immigration, but souring on United States: Survey. The Globe and Mail. https://beta.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/canadians-still-pro-immigration-souring-on-united-states-survey/article34916205/?ref=http://www.theglobeandmail.com&. Accessed 02 Sept 2017.
Green, A. G., & Green, D. A. (1995). Canadian immigration policy: The effectiveness of the point system and other instruments. The Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d’Economique, 28, 1006–1041.
Green, A. G., & Green, D. A. (1999). The economic goals of canada’s immigration policy: Past and present. Canadian Public Policy/Analyse de Politiques, 25, 425–451.
Guo, S. (2009). Difference, deficiency, and devaluation: Tracing the roots of non-recognition of foreign credentials for immigrant professionals in Canada. The Canadian Journal for the Study of Adult Education, 22(1), 37.
Handy, F., & Greenspan, I. (2009). Immigrant volunteering: A stepping stone to integration? Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Quarterly, 38(6), 956–982.
Honneth, A. (1996). The struggles for recognition: The moral grammar of social conflicts. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.
Honneth, A. (2005). Reification: A recognition-theoretical view. The tanner lectures on human values. Berkeley: University of California.
Honneth, A. (2007). Recognition as ideology. In B. van den Brink & D. Owen (Eds.), Recognition and power. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Honneth, A. (2012). The I in we: Studies in the theory of recognition. Cambridge: Polity Press.
Hopper, T. (2012, February 11). Canada: As immigration booms, ethnic enclaves swell and segregate. National Post. http://nationalpost.com/news/canada/canada-as-immigration-booms-ethnic-enclaves-swell-and-segregate/wcm/20c3f334-01d4-4c6c-a174-d2ebb3103870. Accessed 30 June 2017.
How Ontario is helping internationally-trained immigrants find suitable jobs. (2017). Immigrant.ca. Retrieved from http://www.immigration.ca/ontario-helping-internationally-trained-immigrants-find-suitable-jobs/. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Kazemipur, A., & Halli, S. S. (2001). Immigrants and ‘new poverty’: The case of Canada. International Migration Review, 35(4), 1129–1156.
Kymlicka, W. (1998). Finding our way: Rethinking ethnocultural relations in Canada. Toronto: Oxford University Press.
Lee, J.-a. (1999). Immigrant women workers in the immigrant settlement sector. Canadian Woman Studies, 19, 97–103.
Lee, K. K. (2000). Urban poverty in Canada: A statistical profile. Ottawa: Canadian Council on Social Development.
Li, P. S. (2001). The market worth of immigrants’ educational credentials. Canadian Public Policy, 27, 23–38.
Li, P. S. (2003a). Initial earnings and catch-up capacity of immigrants. Canadian Public Policy, 29, 319–337.
Li, P. S. (2003b). Deconstructing canada’s discourse of immigrant integration. Journal of International Migration and Integration, 2, 315–333.
McDade, K. (1988). Barriers to recognition of the credentials of immigrants in Canada. Ottawa: Institute for Research on Public Policy and Studies in Social Policy.
McMahon, T. (2013, April 24). Why the world’s best and brightest struggle to find jobs in Canada? McLean’s. http://www.macleans.ca/economy/business/land-of-misfortune/. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Nakamura, A., Nakamura, M., & Erwin Diewert, W. (2003). The potential impacts of immigration on productivity in Canada. In A. G. Green, J. G. Reitz, & C. M. Beach (Eds.), Canada’s immigration policy for the 21st century. Kingston: John Deutsch Institute: McGill-Queen’s University Press.
Ng, R. (1990). Immigrant women: The construction of a labour market category. The Canadian Journal of Women and the Law/Revue Femmes et Droit, 4(1), 96–112.
Ng, R., & Shan, H. (2010). Lifelong learning as ideological practice: An analysis from the perspective of immigrant women in Canada. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 29(2), 169–184.
Oreopoulos, P., & Dechief, D. (2011). Why do some employers prefer to interview Matthew, but not Samir? New evidence from Toronto, Montreal, and Vancouver (Working paper 11–13). Vancouver: Metropolis BC.
Papillon, M. (2002). Immigration, diversity and social inclusion in Canada’s cities (Canadian Policy Research Network discussion paper F27). http://www.urbancentre.utoronto.ca/pdfs/home/debates/CPRNImmigration.pdf. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Picot, G., & Hou, F. (2014, December). Immigration, low income and income inequality in Canada: What’s new in the 2000s? Statistics Canada. http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11f0019m/11f0019m2014364-eng.htm. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Qadeer, M., & Kumar, S. (2006). Ethnic enclaves and social cohesion. Canadian Journal of Urban Research, 15(2), 1–17.
RBC Top 25 Canadian immigrant awards winners announced. (2013, June 20). Canadian immigrant. Retrieved from http://canadianimmigrant.ca/news-and-views/2013-rbc-top-25-canadian-immigrant-awards-winners-announced. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Reitz, J. G. (2001). Immigrant skill utilization in the Canadian labour market: Implications of human capital research. Journal of International Migration and Integration, 2, 347–378.
Reitz, J. G. (2006). Recent trends in the integration of immigrants in the Canadian labour Market. Ottawa: Human Resources and Social Development Canada.
Reitz, J. G., Breton, R., Dion, K. K., & Dion, K. L. (2009). Multiculturalism and social cohesion: Potentials and challenges of diversity. New York: Springer.
Scott, K., Selbee, K., & Reed, P. (2006). Making connections: Social and civic engagement among Canadian immigrants. Canadian Council on Social Development. https://volunteer.ca/content/making-connections-social-and-civic-engagement-among-canadian-immigrants. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Shan, H. (2009). Shaping the re-training and re-education experiences of immigrant women: The credential and certificate regime in Canada. International Journal of Lifelong Education, 28(3), 353–369.
Shields, J., Phan, M., Yang, F., Kelly, K., Lemoine, M., Lo, L., Preston, V., & Tufts, S. (2010). Does returning to school after immigration affect labour market outcomes for immigrants? (TIEDI Analytical Report 9). Retrieved from http://www.yorku.ca/tiedi/doc/AnalyticalReport9.pdf. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Somerville, K., & Walsworth, S. (2015). Information sources and knowledge transfer to future migrants: A study of university students in India. Asian and Pacific Migration Journal, 24(1), 28–50.
Statistics Canada. (2008). Canada year book 2008, pp. 159–169. http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/11-402-x/2008000/pdf/ethnic-ethnique-eng.pdf. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Statistics Canada. (2011). Immigration and ethnocultural diversity in Canada. http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/nhs-enm/2011/as-sa/99-010-x/99-010-x2011001-eng.cfm. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Statistics Canada. (2017, February 08). Population size and growth in Canada: Key results from the 2016 Census. http://www.statcan.gc.ca/daily-quotidien/170208/dq170208a-eng.htm. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Suhasini, G. (2012, December 28). Q and A with Kenney on attracting young immigrants to Canada. Canadian Immigrant. http://canadianimmigrant.ca/news-and-views/q-a-with-kenney-on-attracting-young-immigrants-to-canada. Accessed 30 June 2017.
The Intersection of poverty and immigration in BC and Canada Info Sheet. (2013, February 27). AMSSA. http://www.amssa.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/AMSSA-Info-Sheet-Issue-6-Final.pdf. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Vertovec, S. (Ed.). (1999). Migration and social cohesion. Aldershot: Edward Elgar.
Walsh, P. (2011). Quantifying citizens: Neoliberal restructuring and immigrant selection in Canada and Australia. Citizenship Studies, 15, 861–879.
Walton-Roberts, M., & Hiebert, D. (1997). Immigration, entrepreneurship, and the family: Indo-Canadian enterprise in the construction of greater Vancouver. Canadian Journal of Regional Science, 20, 119–140.
Zietsma, D. (2010). Immigrants working in regulated occupations. Statistics Canada. http://www.statcan.gc.ca/pub/75-001-x/2010102/article/11121-eng.htm. Accessed 30 June 2017.
Zurn, C. F. (2011). Social pathologies as second-order disorders. In D. Petherbridge (Ed.), Axel Honneth: Critical essays with a reply by Axel Honneth (pp. 345–370). Leiden: Brill.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2018 The Author(s)
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Goksel, G.U. (2018). Socio-economic Integration of Skilled Immigrants in Canada. In: Integration of Immigrants and the Theory of Recognition. International Political Theory. Palgrave Macmillan, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-65843-8_4
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-65843-8_4
Published:
Publisher Name: Palgrave Macmillan, Cham
Print ISBN: 978-3-319-65842-1
Online ISBN: 978-3-319-65843-8
eBook Packages: Political Science and International StudiesPolitical Science and International Studies (R0)