Abstract
The prevalence of highly skilled Canadian immigrants doing jobs that do not make use of their skills is high. This means that their credentials are not adequately and accurately evaluated. These individuals are valued in their countries of origin. Many other qualified individuals are denied entry into the country. Surprisingly, several provinces, including Ontario perennially experience workforce shortages annually.
Various reasons explain why many people migrate to Ontario, ranging from employment to increased opportunities available to the immigrants. Though immigrants have been associated with adverse effects on social amenities, the benefits settlers bring in Ontario surpass the pressures they put in social services. As such, immigration policies should be re-evaluated to accommodate the needs of the immigrants and put in place measures that ensure Ontario exploit the economic benefits immigrants bring into the town. Policies such as entry modes, employment status, and award of citizenship criteria should be re-examined to regulate the entry of the immigrants that would promote the economic wellbeing of Ontario.
Introduction
For decades, the Ontario administration had little to do with immigrants in terms of employment. Individuals from diverse locations outside Ontario were alive and would migrate to the province and get lucrative jobs. The immigration transpired, even though the majority of the immigrants speak little English. Despite the implementation of Ministry of Immigration and Citizenship in 2010 that sought to attract professional immigrants to the country (Black, 2013). However, the arbitrary rejection of more than a hundred thousand applications augmented due to fear of the government incurring extra costs on issues like health that relate to the asylums’.
How Ontario as a province recognizes newcomers’ skills
In the human resource migration concept, immigration is viewed as one of the multiple methods of investment in human capital (Boman, 2011). Immigration should hence happen only if the returns are anticipated to be higher than the costs. The Ontario administration is aware of this concept. There is a need for more skilled individuals in the labor force. Other provinces have recognized the enormous value of skilled immigrants. To mitigate large-scale labor force shortage, Ontario has also implemented diverse strategies to attract and retain an expert labor force. The policies are legally entrenched in the Canada-Ontario Immigration Agreement.
The strategies include the evaluation of immigrant skills. The immigrants with the necessary skills, expertise, and talents are offered jobs according to their qualifications. Initially, any immigrant would migrate to Ontario, get employed in the factories, and earn a living irrespective of their requirements. By ranking the immigrants according to their skills, more physicians, engineers, and other professionals are settling in the province. Ontario draws a clear line between the skilled class and those hosted by families. The experienced group is better educated and significantly contributes to the Ontario economy compared to the refugee claimants (Corak, 2012).
What attracts the immigrants to Ontario
The province enjoys a robust and diversified economy. It has many categories of jobs and diverse industries. Majority of immigrants move to Ontario due to the employment prospects offered there. There is rapid growth in the business services industry. These include information technology, financial sector, the leisure industry, and the cultural industry. In northern Ontario, the economy is mostly centered on natural wealth such as woodlands and nature reserves. The southern part of the province is the country’s industrial hub. Previously, Ottawa had pledged respite for immigrants.
However, it could not provide what it promised to offer. In 2002, the Centre for Social Innovation (CSI) announced that it would assist the province in growing its economy. The CSI is the core of Toronto’s increasing community enterprise division. The CSI reaches out to jobless immigrants who possess credentials but are unable to have credentials recognized by potential employers.
Regardless of the willingness to assist the immigrants, the CSI, for instance, is unable to offer full-time waged employment. It provides the immigrants a Canadian setting in which to apply their expertise while fine-tuning to a new business setting. Thus the diverse government programs are not paper-obsessed. The programs do not consider an individual’s race, beliefs, or background. The implementation of multi-governmental programs that offer the immigrants without a job the opportunity to use its facility in searching for employment has had a positive impact on the economy.
The Canadian and Ontario administration is intensifying the OBTP (Ontario Bridge Training Programs) that benefits thousands of experienced immigrants in acquiring licenses to embrace contracts that suit their skills. The immigrants are also attracted to Ontario by the fact that once they get a job in whichever capacity, they get decent wages. Individuals without credentials move to the province in the hope of making a living from the multiple industries in the province (Goar, 2012).
Benefits immigrants are given in Ontario
Advantage Canada, which is the national economic strategy, presented the Ontario administration with an opportunity to develop businesses with other provinces that adds to its growth. The development was aimed at ensuring that immigrants were assisted in becoming complete members of the Canadian community. The immigrants receive better access to linguistic training, particularly for immigrants who speak little English. Interpreting and translating is part of this linguistic training. Immigrants are experiencing language barriers, yet they have the needed skills to receive interpretation and translation services. The program implemented by the Ontario administration offers employment services to immigrants with credentials.
Over 100,000 new arrivals annually gain from the federal government-funded assistance. This is achieved through two hundred immigrant-aiding associations traversing Ontario. The federal government funds the program with annual supplementary funding of $290 million for new immigrants. Additionally, new immigrants are assisted in settling in the Ontario province. The administration continuously improves admission to settlement services. It locates the services in parts presently visited by new immigrants, including employment centers and libraries (Lhalungpa et al., 2006).
Job opportunities for immigrants in Ontario
Currently, the government and many organizations have realized the potential of immigrants in growing the economy. Several strategies have been employed in attracting new immigrants to Ontario. Advantage Canada is one of the federal programs that not only attract new immigrants to Ontario but also assist the inappropriate placement of skilled immigrants. The CSI also plays a central role, including creating networks for immigrants through entrepreneurs.
Conversely, the entrepreneurs either employ the immigrants or refer them to other contacts. In recent years, industrialists have been having not invested heavily in the manufacturing industries due to the loss of thousands of jobs in the country (Goar, 2012). Most of the work that does not require expertise is taken up by homegrown Canadians. The increase in the aging Canadian population (baby-boomers) is leaving more room for unskilled immigrants to take up the blue collar jobs.
What should determine immigrants’ citizenship status
The doors to Canada for immigrants opened long in the colonial days. Previously, Canadians had resisted immigration based on racism. However, the growing need for more labor to augment the increasing business needs of the thriving after-war economy is imminent. Several pieces of legislation have been passed. The Pearson changes in the 1960s eliminated racial discrimination, but the Conservative changes recently have been criticized for reintroducing criteria that lead to racial discrimination. Not all immigrants are welcome to the country as a result of this move. Preference when granting citizenship is given to experts and professionals when consideration for citizenship is being done. Family members and skilled merchants are also given priority (Goar, 2012). Proposals are also given to the live-in caregivers as well as supported spouses. The number of considerations given in granting citizenship should vary depending on the needs of the country but not based on racism.
Difficulties immigrants face
For decades, Canadian immigrants faced resistance from the government and the public. The opposition was based on racism. For instance, immigrants faced xenophobia from the residents. They were viewed as competing for the available employment opportunities with the residents. Despite multiple legislation attempts after World War II (WW2) to eliminate discrimination, immigrants continue to face numerous challenges. The challenges are particularly elevated for unskilled immigrants. The agencies responsible for granting a visa and work permits reject the applications of qualified immigrants basing the argument on the limited number of immigrants allowed into the country annually.
Immigrants granted entries into Canada are faced with the challenge of securing employment. The credentials and abilities of each are not the only hindrances. The state of the economy is also a challenge, particularly for those who are unable to secure employment. It is not strange to find a doctor or an engineer driving trucks or engaging in odd jobs. Those who cannot speak or who speak little English or French face more challenges. Despite the removal of discriminatory policies, employers continue to discriminate against immigrants based on ethnic names (Corak, 2012).
Different approaches to entrance requirements of family members by government
The Ontario government is typically interested in skilled individuals who can help boost the economy. The authorities are often reluctant in admitting family members or spouse without credentials. The result is that professionals who are determined to live with their families usually avoid applying for jobs in Ontario. The government should grant entrance to family members of persons working in the country. It should consider allowing relatives to be citizens.
Working immigrants who do not live with their families in the country often send financial assistance to families abroad. Instead, when family members are granted entry, the immigrants will spend money within the economy. Additionally, when members are granted citizenship, they will provide labor in the future. Additionally, working immigrants will invest in the province hence boosting the economy.
Immigrants’ credentials assessment
Academic requirements vary for every job and career. In Ontario, several establishments evaluate an individual’s education to certify that they meet the province’s standards. Every regulatory agency in the province chooses the criteria for evaluating an immigrant’s academic qualifications. Academic institutions and professional monitoring bodies have their own-developed evaluation criteria. Others utilize the services of a CAS. For example, the World Education Services – Canada transforms overseas high school and post-high school academic credentials into their own Ontario equals. Certificate-by-certificate, training-by-training or tailored documents are accessible for educational, settlement, certifying or occupation commitments. The evaluation documents are obtainable in English and French.
The Comparative Education Service (CES) of the University of Toronto affords the evaluation of transnational educational credentials. The CES matches them to those afforded nationally. This supports companies and establishments to comprehend the employee’s qualifications appropriately. The CES specifically assesses qualifications for occupational purposes only. The International Credential Assessment Service (ICAS) assesses all papers at any academic level for help with occupational, academic, or professional development. Comprehensive and tailored reports are obtainable to fulfill all necessities.
Government role in solving the problem of recognizing newcomers’ credentials
The Ontario government since 2006 has been playing a central role in ensuring that new immigrants succeed. This objective is achieved through the Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration. The ministry ensures that employment makers are brought together throughout the province to certify that the expertise of immigrants aligns with the prerequisites of employers. To ensure that more immigrants get employment opportunities through recognition of their credentials, Ontario unveiled the Ontario Award for Leadership in Immigration Employment (Callahan and Sylvis, 2013).
The award distinguishes proprietors who embrace diversity in companies and businesses. Organizations that demonstrate headship in the recruitment and mentorship of immigrants or validate the following commercial effect of employing immigrants are also recognized. This means that employers must initially recognize the credentials of immigrants before hiring them.
Conclusion
The number of immigrants in Ontario has been increasing. The province’s Immigration Strategy is targeted at increasing the economy by utilizing immigrants’ expertise. Various reasons explain why many people migrate to Ontario, ranging from employment to increased opportunities available to the immigrants. Though immigrants have been associated with adverse effects on social amenities, the benefits settlers bring in Ontario surpass the pressures they put in social services. As such, the government must reevaluate the immigration policies to accommodate the needs of the immigrants and put in place measures that ensure exploitation of the economic benefits. The provincial administration should change the policies such as entry modes, employment status, and award of citizenship to regulate the entry of the immigrants for sustained economic comfort.
References
Black, D. (2013). Canada’s immigration history one of discrimination and exclusion. Toronto Star 1(1), 369-370. Web.
Boman, A. (2011). The Mobility of Immigrants and Natives: Evidence from Internal Migration Following Job Displacement. Regional Studies, 45(3), 283–297. Web.
Callahan, K. & Sylvis, L. (2013). Province helping newcomers succeed. Web.
Corak, M. (2012). Immigrants face challenges in finding jobs that are not of their own making. Web.
Goar, C. (2012). New programs offers immigrants a foothold in the job market. Politics Government. 1(1), 374-375. Web.
Lhalungpa, P. et al. (2006). New Settlement and Language Training Services Benefit Immigrants in Ontario. Web.