IMMIGRATION POLICY AND HOW IT TRANSLATES IN THE WORKPLACE

 

THE NOTION OF SUCCESS IN THE WORKPLACE IN OUR IMMIGRANT SOCIETY HAS TYPICALLY BEEN SEEN AS THE ONUS OF IMMIGRANTS

 

NICK NOORANI’S SEVEN SECRETS OF SUCCESS FOR IMMIGRANTS:

 

1. LEARN THE LANGUAGE {COMMUNICATION SKILLS/ I ARGUED FOR    LANGUAGE REQUIRMENT IN POINT SYSTEM}

 

2. STAY POSITIVE {NEW EMIGRATION STUDIES}

 

3. EMBRACE CANADA [THINK HONG KONG]

 

4. HAVE A PLAN B [THINK JOESPH CAMPBELL]

 

5. STAY CLEAR OF ETHNIC SILOS [FORMERLY PROTECTION]

 

6. TAKE RISKS

 

7. VOLUNTEER, FIND A MENTOR (SHIN, 2008: 21)

 

QUESTION: CAN YOU THINK OF OTHER STRATEGIES FOR IMMIGRANT SUCCESS? è

 

 

SOME RESEARCH ARGUES THAT IMMIGRANT ADAPTION HAS TO BE MATCHED BY EMPLOYER ADAPTION

 

HOW CAN EMPLOYERS ADAPT?

 

IT IS ARGUED è IMMIGRANTS HAVE ALWAYS KNOWN THEY HAD TO CHANGE – BUT – EMPLOYERS ARE JUST NOW STARTING TO REALIZE THAT THEY CAN IMPROVE THEIR OWN PERFORMANCE BY CHANGING.”

 

[EX: EMPLOYERS ARE LOOKING FOR WAYS TO RETAIN IMMIGRANTS AND ENSURE THAT THEIR INTERNAL POLICIES FOSTER A SENSE OF BELONGING (SHIN, 2008: 25).].

 

[FOR THE MORE SOPHISTICATED EMPLOYERS è THE NEW IDEA IS THAT A MORE DIVERSE WORKFORCE INCREASES ORGANIZATIONAL EFFECTIVENESS  è HOW {?} è LIFTS MORALE, BRINGS GREATER ACCESS TO NEW MARKETS, ENHANCES PRODUCTIVITY, AND HAS MANY OTHER POSITIVE IMPACTS].

 

FOR THE MOST PART THEY ARE STILL “NOT” ADAPTING

 

è TYPICALLY, EMPLOYERS ONLY LOOK AT IMMIGRANTS IF THEY ARE UNABLE TO FIND THE RIGHT CANDIDATES AMONG OTHER GROUPS (SEE: CFIB 2002; AND LOCHHEAD 2003A).

 

[IN THIS INITIAL CONCEPTUAL STAGE], IMMIGRANT JOB SEEKERS ARE DEEMED NON-CANADIAN, CONSTRUED AS A BURDEN TO THE LOCAL LABOUR MARKET STRUCTURE AND CONSEQUENTLY THEY ARE RELEGATED TO THE BOTTOM OF THE HIRING HIERARCHY.

 

è THE “DEFICIT MODEL” STRONGLY CONTRADICTS THE “CREAM OF THE CROP MODEL” REFLECTED IN CANADA’S IMMIGRANT SELECTION SYSTEM è WHICH SERVES AS THE KEY PUBLIC POLICY FOR CANADA’S LABOUR FORCE GROWTH.

 

EX: CREAM OF THE CROP MODEL è  IN 2007, 37 PER CENT OF IMMIGRANTS AGED 25 TO 54 HAD A UNIVERSITY DEGREE, COMPARED WITH ONLY 22 PER CENT OF CANADIAN-BORN OF THE SAME AGE GROUP. (SHIN, 2008: 22).

 

èTHIS CONCEPTUAL GAP AMONG EMPLOYERS LEADS TO THEIR NEGLECT OF THE IMMIGRANT WORKFORCE AS A KEY RESOURCE POOL FOR ADDRESSING THEIR LABOUR NEEDS.

 

SEVERAL FACTORS MAY HAVE CONTRIBUTED TO THIS CONCEPTUAL GAP. FIRST AND FOREMOST, THE DEFICIT MODEL CONTRIBUTES TO THE PATHOLOGIZATION OF IMMIGRANTS.  A TYPICAL IMAGE OF IMMIGRANT NEWCOMERS IS THAT THEY ARE PEOPLE WHO ARE IN NEED OF HELP AND STRUGGLING TO BE INTEGRATED INTO THE MAINSTREAM SOCIETY – [AGAIN] A DEFICIT TO SOCIETY RATHER THAN AN ASSET.

{GO TO} ADMINISTRATIVE HISTORY OF IMMIGRATION è TELLS A LOT ABOUT THE NATIONAL AND MORAL DEVELOMENT OF THE COUNTRY

 

 

THE BIGGEST PROBLEM TODAY IS CULTURAL

 

[MODERN IMMIGRATION HAS DIVERSIFIED SOCIETY BUT] SURVEY FINDINGS SUGGEST THAT THERE IS A TREMENDOUS “CULTURAL DISTANCE” è PARTICULARLY WITH “RACIALIZED” IMMIGRANTS [STIGMAS ATTACHED TO “FOREIGN” CULTURE – “PERPETUAL FOREIGNER SYNDROME”] [EX: JUSTICE MAVIN WONG – “SOCIAL NULLIFICATION OF DIFFERENT-NESS]

 

THIS IS NOT CAUSED BY OLD-STYLE “RACISM” OR RACIAL INTOLERANCE – BUT RATHER A NEW STYLE OF CULTURAL POLITICS

 

 

HOW DO YOU FORMULATE THIS PHENOMENON?

 

VISIBLE MINORITIES ARE NO LONGER WIDELY PORTRAYED AS GENETICALLY INFERIOR AS INTHE PAST // BUT THE “DOMINANT {WHITESTREAM} CULTURE” (SEE GRANDE 2004) STILL OFTEN PERCEIVES NON-WHITE CULTURES AS INSTITUTIONALLY BACKWARD // WHICH CAN LEAD TO SKILLS DISCOUNTING AND ACCREDITATION BLOCKAGE IN THE WORKPLACE.

 

{{SHIN, MELLISSA. 2008. DIVERSITY SURVEY: IMMIGRANTS FACE A “STICKY FLOOR” RATHER THAN A GLASS CEILING, BUT CHANGE IS FAST APPROACHING.  NO ROOM FOR TALENT? CORPORATE KNIGHTS DIVERSITY ISSUE.}}

 

“I think our immigration policy is built upside down. We go around the world and we harvest the world’s best brains. We select the best people from every part of the globe, and we bring them here and we get them to flip burgers – or enter their fields at lower than expected levels of pay and responsibility.” – Oliver Schmidtke,  Political Science Professor, University of Victoria.

 

Linda Manning, an economics professor at the University of Ottawa, is leading a research project on immigrant advancement in the workplace called Diversity for Growth. She calls this phenomenon the “sticky floor” –

 

“An immigrant might get hired, but they often don’t get their credentials and experience recognized, so they don’t get into the jobs that they really deserve or that would best serve the organization,” says Manning.  “If you start from there, that already shortchanges your possibility for advancement” (Shin, 2008: 22).

 

 

 

MELISSA SHIN RESEARCH BY CORPORATE KNIGHTS è THE CORPORATE KNIGHTS DIVERSITY LEADERSHIP INDEX POINTS TO COMPANIES THAT ARE BREAKING THROUGH GLASS CEILINGS TO CREATE INCLUSIVE WORKPLACES RIGHT AT THE TOP OF THE CORPORATE POWER STRUCTURE.

 

AS PART OF THE ANNUAL BEST 50 CORPORATE CITIZENS RANKING, CORPORATE KNIGHTS TAKES A LOOK AT CANADIAN BOARDS OF DIRECTORS

 

THE FINDINGS FAILED TO REFLECT CANADA’S DEMOGRAPHICS. OF THE 140 SURVEYED, 75 PER CENT OF BOARDS OF DIRECTORS HAD NO VISIBLE MINORITIES, AND 23 PER CENT HAD NO WOMEN.  THERE WERE NO FEMALE CEOS IN THE 2007 BEST 50 (WITH DATA FROM FISCAL 2006).

 

 

 

HERE IS THE “BUSINESS CASE FOR DIVERSITY” è THE BUSINESS CASE FOR DIVERSITY (TAYLOR, 1995) ARGUES THAT WORKPLACE POLICIES AND STRATEGIES THAT TRULY ENGAGE OUR DIFFERENCES MAKE GOOD BUSINESS SENSE, NOT ONLY FOR ETHICAL AND LEGAL REASONS BUT ALSO FOR THE ADVANTAGES THEY BRING. THESE INCLUDE A RANGE OF NEW AND VARIED OPPORTUNITIES, SUCH AS STRENGTHENING CORPORATE VALUES, TACKLING MANPOWER SHORTAGES, GENERATING MORE CREATIVENESS AND INNOVATION, INCREASING MOTIVATION AND WITH IT, EFFICIENCY AMONG THEIR EMPLOYEES, AND BROADENING THE CUSTOMER BASE.

 

AN RBC-COMMISSIONED STUDY CONDUCTED IN 2005 FOUND THAT IF WOMEN AND IMMIGRANTS HAD THE SAME LIKELIHOOD OF EMPLOYMENT AT THE SAME AVERAGE INCOME AS MEN AND PEOPLE BORN IN CANADA, RESPECTIVELY, THE RESULT WOULD BE AN EXTRA 1.6 MILLION EMPLOYEES AND AN EXTRA $174 BILLION IN PERSONAL INCOME—A GAIN OF 21 PER CENT COMPARED TO 2005 LEVELS.

 

BY IGNORING THIS REALITY, BY FAILING TO TAP THE FULL POTENTIAL OF IMMIGRANTS AND WOMEN IN THE HIRING PROCESS, EMPLOYERS ARE CAUSING A PERSONAL INCOME SHORTFALL OF $174 BILLION PER YEAR, ACCORDING TO RBC FINANCIAL GROUP.

 

è [CASCADING EFFECTS] – IF THERE IS $174 BILLION IN LOST INCOME — IF WOMEN AND IMMIGRANTS FACE BARRIERS IN INTEGRATION INTO THE WORKFORCE — THEN THEY ALSO FACE BARRIERS IN ACCESSING THE MARKETS FOR HOUSING, CONSUMER SPENDING, WEALTH MANAGEMENT SERVICES, AND RELATED BUSINESS INVESTMENT OPPORTUNITIES.

 

 

UPSHOT/CONCLUSION: THE PARADIGM SHIFT REGARDING WORKPLACE EFFECTIVENESS – MOVING BEYOND DIVERSITY TO CREATING INCLUSIVE ENVIRONMENTS, WHERE PEOPLE REALLY FEEL LIKE THEY MATTER AND BELONG è  FOSTERING A SENSIBILITY IN OUR SERVICE CLIMATES WHERE OUR DIFFERENCES, IN THE MYRIAD OF FORMS THAT THEY COME IN, ARE TRULY VALUED AND WELCOMED. SUCH INCLUSIVE, WELCOMING APPROACHES ARE ALSO KEYS TO BUSINESS SUCCESS.

 

NOT THE BUSINESS CASE FOR DIVERSITY BUT THE DIVERSITY CASE FOR BUSINESS.

 

WHAT ARE THE OBJECTIVES AND CHALLENGES OF CANADIAN PUBLIC POLICY ON IMMIGRATION

RE: DIVERSITY AND WORKPLACE INTEGRATION

 

FEDERAL PUBLIC POLICY CHALLENGEè

 

1)         RESPONDING TO A RANGE OF SKILLS-RELATED CHALLENGES IN CANADIAN WORKPLACES, IN ORDER TO IMPROVE OUR PRODUCTIVITY AND POSITION OURSELVES TO EFFECTIVELY COMPETE IN THE GLOBAL KNOWLEDGE-BASED ECONOMY.

 

2)         HELP NEWCOMERS TO CANADA - OVERCOMING BARRIERS, UPGRADING TECHNICAL AND ESSENTIAL SKILLS, MATCHING JOBS AND SKILLS, AND/OR IMPROVING ESSENTIAL SKILLS OF NEWCOMERS TO CANADA IN CANADIAN WORKPLACES, PARTICULARLY THOSE IN NON-REGULATED OCCUPATIONS.

OBJECTIVES

TO DEVELOP FOREIGN CREDENTIAL ASSESSMENT AND RECOGNITION PROCESSES THAT ARE FAIR, ACCESSIBLE, CONSISTENT, TRANSPARENT, AND RIGOROUS

PROGRESS TO DATE

  • WORKING WITH PROVINCES AND TERRITORIES, PARTNERS AND STAKEHOLDERS
  • ENGAGING POST-SECONDARY INSTITUTIONS AND ASSESSMENT AGENCIES
  • ENGAGING EMPLOYERS
  • NEGOTIATING BILATERAL AGREEMENTS WITH THE PROVINCES
  • REGULATED OCCUPATIONS
  • IMPROVING COHERENCE IN PROCESSES TO RECOGNIZE CREDENTIALS AND SKILLS;
  • LEADERSHIP

CHALLENGES

1)      DETERMINING WHICH OCCUPATIONS TO ADDRESS NEXT

2)      JURISDICTIONAL ISSUES {?}

 

  • PORTABILITY: CREDENTIAL RECOGNITION VARIES FROM ONE JURISDICTION TO THE NEXT
  • NEED TO BETTER PREPARE IMMIGRANTS FOR THE LABOUR MARKET THROUGH IMPROVED LABOUR MARKET     

A)                INFORMATION PORTAL OVERSEAS AND

B)                 BRIDGING PROGRAMS  IN CANADA

FLAW: OCCUPATIONAL FOCUS VS. ETHNO-RACIAL FOCUS

 

 

POLICY DIRECTIONS IN FOREIGN CREDENTIALS

 

1)         THIS NEW POLICY DIRECTION IS TO GIVE SKILLED IMMIGRANTS CLEAR CAREER PATHS TO FOLLOW SO THAT THEY CAN REGAIN THEIR PROFESSIONAL QUALIFICATIONS IN A REASONABLE LENGTH OF TIME.

 

[STUDIES SHOW THAT IMMIGRANTS WANT CLARITY è ADOPTING THIS POLICY DIRECTION IS LIKELY TO BE PRACTICALLY USEFUL BECAUSE CLARITY IS HIGHTLY DESIRED]

 

[EX: IN THIS REGARD, FEDERAL POLICY MAKERS WANT TO BE INFORMATION BROKERS // CONDUITS FOR CLARITY]

 

{IS THERE A PROBLEM ALSO?}

 

[[HOW DO THEY DETERMINE WHETHER ASSESSMENT AND RECOGNITION PROCESSES ARE FAIR, ACCESSIBLE, CONSISTENT, TRANSPARENT, AND RIGOROUS?]]

 

2)         IT IS IMPORTANT TO DEVELOP FLEXIBLE IMMIGRATION POLICY INITIATIVES{?} [THAT CAN ADDRESS STRUCTURAL BARRIERS TO THE SKILLED LABOUR MARKET IN THE CONTEXT OF THE CAREER GOALS AND THE FINANCIAL CIRCUMSTANCES OF FOREIGN-TRAINED MIGRANTS THEMSELVES.]

 

EX:      A)        PROVINCIAL NOMINEE PROGRAM (PNP),

B)                 TEMPORARY FOREIGN WORKER (TFW) PROGRAM – [LET INTERNATIONAL STUDENTS AND SKILLED WORKERS CONTINUE WORKING OR STUDYING IN CANADA WHILE THEIR APPLICATIONS ARE BEING PROCESSED] AND

C)                CANADIAN EXPERIENCE CLASS – [ARE GIVING BUSINESSES, INDUSTRY SECTORS, AND PROVINCES NEW AND IMPROVED OPPORTUNITIES TO ATTRACT, RETAIN, AND SETTLE THE INTERNATIONAL TALENT THEY URGENTLY NEED è GIVING IMMIGRANTS NEW AND IMPROVED PATHWAYS TO PERMANENT RESIDENCY]

D)                FOREIGN CREDENTIALS REFERRAL OFFICE (FCRO) – GOAL OF THE FCRO IS HELPING INTERNATIONALLY TRAINED INDIVIDUALS WHO WANT TO WORK IN CANADA GET THEIR CREDENTIALS ASSESSED AND RECOGNIZED MORE QUICKLY. A BUDGET 2007 SET ASIDE $32.2 MILLION FOR THE OPERATIONS OF THE FCRO. A WEBSITE DESIGNED TO HELP FOREIGN-TRAINED WORKERS SUCCEED IN CANADA WAS ALSO LAUNCHED THROUGH THIS INITIATIVE.

 

 

PROBLEM: FEDERAL GOVERNMENT REFUSES TO ASSUME THE NECESSARY ROLE OF POLICY MANAGER è AND ACCEPT RESPONSIBILITY FOR MONITORING THE QUALITY CONTROL OF THE SYSTEM

 

QUESTION{?}: WHAT HAPPENS WITH A LARGE PROJECT YOU CREATE WHERE YOU JUST GIVE OUT THE GOALS AND OBJECTIVES, DIVVY OUT RESOURCES, AND DELEGATE RESPONSIBILITIES?

 

MY THESIS: THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT IS IN THE MOST ADVANTAGEOUS POSITION TO MONITOR THE IMMIGRANT WORKPLACE INTEGRATION IN A SUBSTANTIVE EQUALITY FORMAT THAT LINKS THE GLOBAL AND THE LOCAL è POLICY MANAGER FUNCTION è BUT BECAUSE OF “SUB-CONTRACTING” THE  COMPLEX POLICY LANDSCAPE OF IMMIGRANT EMPLOYMENT HAS BECOME “UNWORKABLE” è THE POLICY MANAGER FUNCTION TO BE THE PIVOTAL FEATURE OF GOVERNANCE.