Archives for March 2006

A Gallup poll was commissioned recently by The Association for Canadian Studies (ACS) regarding Canada ‘s attitude towards immigration. The census reveals Canadians as “more open” to the idea of immigration than many other immigrant-receiving nations.

The census data also shed light on international perspectives regarding immigration. Where Canadians feel that immigration is a positive “nation-building” exercise, their American and British Counterparts feel less so. In fact, 58% of Americans, and 60% of Britons polled by Gallup have said that they would want to see their immigration levels decrease. Canada on the other hand sees immigration as the only way to quell its declining population and labour shortages.

Another question asked in the survey was if immigration was “good for the economy”. Once again, Canadian responded positively with over 60% polled saying that they thought it was a good thing for the country’s economic forecast. Canada isn’t alone in believing this either . Both Australia and New Zealand feel that their economies, respectively, will benefit from newly-landed immigrants.

Potential European immigrants will be given access to Canada through British Columbia ‘s (BC) Provincial Nominee Program (PNP). The initiative will expedite work permit processing as well as Permanent Resident applications.

B.C is currently undergoing a labour shortage that is affecting its booming construction industry. This month Vancouver ‘s Regional Construction Association (VRCA) president, Keith Sashaw will be promoting B.C immigration to Europeans in Germany , England , and Scotland . Sashaw’s goal is to recruit journeymen-level employees who will fill the province’s increasing job vacancies. “Right now, there’s a demand for almost all trades in the construction industry,” explains Sashaw.

CEO of the Greater Vancouver Home Builders Association, Peter Simpson wants the Province to do everything it can to increase “the pool of skilled labour,” and says that BC “must look at all the options.”

The Construction Sector Council (CSC), a national organization whose goal is to “help develop a highly skilled construction sector”, estimates that B.C. will face a 50 per cent increase in demand for skilled trades workers by 2013; An astounding figure which translates into approximately 60,000 new workers.

The Canada West Foundation, an organization which makes recommendations on government policy, is promoting the use of the Provincial Nominee Program to help fill skill shortages. Executive Vice-President for the Independent Contractors and Businesses Association of B.C., Philip Hochstein, believes that immigration is part of the solution to B.C.’s skilled-labour shortage.

BC’s construction projects include venue infrastructures in advance of the 2010 Winter Olympics, the Vancouver Convention and Exhibition Centre expansion, the Sea-to-Sky Highway expansion, and the Canada rapid transit line between Vancouver Airport and downtown. New-home construction is also expected to remain strong throughout the period.

Backgrounder:

Canada ‘s labour crunch has it facing one of the most serious shortages of skilled workers in the industrial world. A recent Manpower inc. poll of Canadian small and enterprise-level business highlights the growing trend. Second only to Mexico , sixty-six per cent of Canadian employers cannot find qualified staff. Well below the global average, Canada has its aging population and declining birth rate to blame.

One of the ways in which the Canadian government is addressing this burgeoning problem is by increasing federal immigration levels in both the Skilled-worker, and Temporary worker categories, respectively.The B.C. provincial nominee program allows provincial governments more leverage in determining their regional immigration needs. The “strategic occupations” categories of BC’s PNP allow the Province’s Government to select highly skilled immigrants to fill critical labour shortages.

Ontario has officially launched two new immigration-centric websites. The online resources facilitate both settlement and career services, respectively.

Ontarioimmigration.ca welcomes Canadian Newcomers to Ontario and provides them with comprehensive settlement information. The new online service is intended to help ease the transition for over 120,000 newly-landed immigrants that settle in Canada ‘s most populous province each and every year.

“The [Ontario] immigration website is a great way for newcomers to learn more about our city, our schools and our services before and after they arrive,” Greater Sudbury Mayor Dave Courtemanche said in a written statement.

The website features helpful advice regarding living, working and studying in Ontario . It also includes details about starting a business, and practicing in a trade or profession. Immigrants can choose to download important forms such as immigration and driver’s license applications on the site.

Skillsinternational.ca, yet another project partially funded by the Government of Ontario, allows prospective employers and skilled Canadian immigrants to find each other online. The website is the first of its kind in Canada.

Employers are able to use the free service to post positions on the website and the system will automatically match and rank the available candidates that best meet the employer’s specified criteria. If a match is found, employers will receive a notification email containing the candidate’s that fit the job profile.

“This [website] is part of our regional distribution approach. There are tremendous opportunities across the province,” Ontario Immigration Minister Michael Colle announced. He applauds the new service as yet another way to help the province “regionalize” immigration to benefit smaller communities outside the boundaries of the metropolitan areas of Ontario.

The website is a not-for-profit project aimed at bridging the divide between Canada’s growing population of skilled immigrants and prospective Canadian employers. The website has also partnered with Newcomer agencies across the province of Ontario to provide “employment preparation programs”. These agencies will post pre-screened resumes of qualified applicants who are ready and able to begin working in their profession.

In his first public address as Immigration Minister, Monte Solberg announced that a federal agency will be developed to respond to the needs of Canada ‘s skilled immigrants. He also re-iterated his government’s plan to reduce the immigrant landing fee by half.

Speaking at the Public Policy Forum Convention held In Toronto recently, Solberg did not mention specifically when the new “credentials recognition” agency will be instituted, however has noted that it would require co-operation from various levels of government and business, as well as the academic establishment and various community groups.

He has also repeated his government’s promise to cut the Right of Permanent Residence landing fee by half. He believes that the reduced fee will make it “easier and more attractive for Newcomers to come to Canada”.

“Our efforts should be focused on welcoming Newcomers and helping them fit in, not taxing them to death,” he explained. According to Solberg, the reduction in the landing fee won’t translate into less money for his department.

Despite the lack of a specific procedural timeline for the changes, Solberg did mention that any further commitments to the projects announced will come after the throne speech. The announcements were good news to conference attendees, many of whom work closely with Canada ‘s immigrant community.