Each week Get In The Know scours the web for news and events related to immigration and newcomer settlement and employment and shares its findings here!
The news and events focus on what’s happening in Surrey and surrounding communities but, when relevant, you will also find news and events at a provincial and national level. To stay current with newcomer issues, visit each week and subscribe to our weekly bulletin.
News
Express Entry: Canada invites skilled immigrants overseas for first time since 2020
By Kareem El-Assal | CIC News
Canada has invited Federal Skilled Worker Program (FSWP) candidates for the first time since December 2020.
Canadian Experience Class (CEC) candidates were also included in today’s Express Entry draw. This marks the first time since September 2021 that CEC candidates have been included in an Express Entry draw.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) invited a total of 1,500 Express Entry candidates to apply for permanent residence. The Comprehensive Ranking System (CRS) cut-off score was 557.
How to gain the competitive edge you need to succeed
By Canadian Immigrant magazine
Some sectors in Canada, like marketing, visual design and other creative fields, can be highly competitive. This makes it very important to set yourself — and your skills — apart.
There are abundant opportunities in the Canadian labour market right now. But not all industries are created equal. Some sectors are very competitive with lots of talented candidates vying for desirable job openings. Finding a job in areas like the arts, visual design, media, marketing or advertising can be challenging for skilled newcomers. Some factors like a challenging post-pandemic economic outlook for the arts and media sectors in Canada are outside of a job seeker’s control. But the actions you take as part of your job search journey can make all the difference toward reaching your career goals. We talked to a couple career advisors to get some pointers on how to set yourself apart from the competition — even in the most competitive fields.
New grant program for credentialing in BC
By Kshama Ranawana | Immigrant Muse
When DIVERSEcity Community Resources Society, an agency based in BC, began its newest program, a grant to assist newcomers, it targeted women.
Launched in November 2021, the grant is designed to to assist women in recertifying, completing qualifying examinations or evaluating their credentials so they can continue working in their chosen professions in Canada.
The one-time grant of up to $1000 per qualifying applicant is focused on women, as they are disproportionately represented. Furthermore, there are several other similar programs currently available for males through other agencies.
Canada’s broken system punishes high-skilled immigrants
By Daphne Bramham | Vancouver Sun
Opinion: It’s anathema to Canada’s fast-tracking of high skilled immigrants that their progress quickly stalls when they try to get licensed.
Early last Friday, Mariam Tariq, a couple of friends in Toronto and her mother in Pakistan were ready at their computers waiting for the moment that registration opened to get her seat to write the first of three National Dental Examining Board of Canada exams in August.
Tariq managed to get a place on the waiting list. So, she’ll have to keep studying hard … just in case.
To retain immigrants, decision-makers must address systemic failures
By Alec Regino | New Canadian Media via Surrey Now Leader
It’s high-time to recognize that it’s not so much Canada doing a favour for immigrants, but rather immigrants who are crucial to Canada’s labour market, according to a settlement advocate speaking at the 24th Metropolis Canada Conference on March 24.
“Immigration is predominantly driven by labour market needs, and this will be true more so than ever. People are coming here because we need them,” Neelam Sahota, CEO of the DIVERSEcity Community Resources Society, said during the opening plenary session of the conference on migration, integration, and inclusion, which took place in Vancouver, British Columbia.
“We need to move away from the dangerous rhetoric of the grateful immigrant,” she said, referring to the often one-sided notion that migrants are privileged to be in Canada, which limits their access to the same rights and sense of dignity as other individuals living in Canada.
Despite reduction in high-skilled immigrants, Canada will still have the people to fill jobs: minister
By National Post
Sean Fraser said the government was still targeting to accept more economic immigrants than ever before, it was just adopting a different strategy due to the pandemic
Despite a reduced number of high-skilled immigrants being accepted into Canada over the next two years, Immigration Minister Sean Fraser insists Canada will have the people it needs to fill the jobs it has.
Last month, Fraser introduced in Parliament his first levels plan as immigration minister. It proposes having 431,000 people become permanent residents next year, rising to 451,000 by 2024.
Workplace inclusion efforts yield ambivalent results, according to survey of Black Canadians
By Vanmala Subramaniam, Globe & Mail | February 2, 2022
Canadian employers have made significant progress in understanding systemic racism and creating a more racially equitable work environment, but that cognizance has not necessarily translated into better job opportunities for Black Canadians, according to new research from KPMG Canada.
The consulting giant surveyed just more than 1,000 employees who identify as Black Canadian – of different income levels and across a broad swath of industries – to gauge how promises made by employers to address systemic barriers faced by Black employees actually translated into tangible change at the workplace for them.
The results were mixed.
Where the jobs are in Canada
By Canadian Immigrant | February 14, 2022
It’s no secret that the health care industry needs more workers, but it’s far from the only sector in Canada hanging up “Help Wanted” signs. Opportunities await across the country, particularly, for skilled immigrants.
Despite being in a global pandemic for nearly two years, the economic outlook is promising with many growing job opportunities in various sectors across the country. With an aging workforce, skills shortages and strong demand expected to continue, it’s a jobseekers’ market, and employers across sectors like health care, construction and IT, are in hiring mode.
That’s good news for skilled immigrants.
The systemic barriers skilled immigrants have traditionally faced in the labour market — although still around — are easing. Obstacles, such as Canadian work experience requirements, may not be the dealbreakers they once were for employers who have jobs to fill.
“That’s not to say that immigrants don’t face any barriers getting re-integrated into the Canadian economy,” says Shawn McCarty, manager of key partnerships at Windmill Microlending, a registered not-for-profit that provides skilled immigrants and refugees with low-interest loans to help them achieve career success in Canada. “Many opportunities have arisen from the chaos of the last couple of years, breaking some of those barriers down.”