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Running Head: IMMIGRANTS
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Immigrants
Student’s Name
University Affiliation
Course Name and Number
Instructor’s Name
Assignment Due Date
IMMIGRANTS
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Work experience and education are among the essential skills immigrants bring to
Canada. Approximately one in five immigrants is effectively skilled workers chosen for their
labor needs. Although most immigrants are not chosen through the point system, most of them
possess extremely valuable skills to the Canadian economy and society. About 14 years ago, the
number of immigrants in possession of a degree was very minimal. Currently, the number of
skilled workers holding a degree has doubled. Although Canada has a lot of skilled immigrants
ready to work and contribute to the economy and society, immigrants face both systematic and
individual barriers that, in one way or another, prevent their integration and total acceptance to
the Canadian workforce (Girard & Smith, 2013, p. 32).
Structural Barriers
Canadian evaluators have a negative perception of the quality credential possessed by
immigrants.
Over the last decade, research reveals that Canada is critical to ensure that only migrants
with adequate skills are recruited. However, once these immigrants arrive in Canada, they are
faced with a systematic challenge of credentials not being recognized. Immigrants from the
Global south face more challenges than those of the global south. The structural barriers faced by
such immigrants mainly revolve around the negative perception of Canadian evaluators'
credentials. Previous research studies have revealed that foreign professionals' credentials are
devalued or discounted more than those of native-born Canadians (Li, 2008, p. 22). Canadian
evaluators and other significant stakeholders in the accreditation strongly believe that most
immigrants' credentials do not meet the Canadian standard requirements. If the quality of
education held by immigrants does not meet Canadian requirements' expectations, the main
question remains what the quality of education is in Canada?
IMMIGRANTS
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Normally, a country's quality of education is judged according to its recognition in the
international literacy and numeracy test score. Based on these criteria, Canadian Evaluators
strongly believe that their education is of a high standard since their Canadian education falls
within this criterion. Therefore, any country that does not live up to its educational expectations
is deemed to have a lower quality standard of education. Although existing literature reveals that
immigrants from developing countries are on average more academically equipped than
Canadian natives, Canadian evaluators continue to discount and refuse foreign immigrant
credentials. Most individuals in third-world countries dedicate more than 15 years of their life to
schooling. Schooling in most of these nations is a privilege rather than a right. The Canadian
government usually insists that immigrants intending to join the Canadian workforce must have
years of educational achievement. However, despite the fact that the many years of schooling
immigrants have been through to achieve their credentials, they still find it extremely difficult to
get employment. If indeed the Canadian government believes that most immigrants don't meet
their standard of education, it isn't easy to understand why the Canadian government insists only
on educated immigrants coming to their country.
Lack of adequate education and information on the education system of other countries
by Canadian evaluators contributes greatly to the devaluation of immigrant credentials. Bauder
(2003) argues that the non-recognition of foreign credentials is one of the reasons there is a
systematic exclusion of immigrant workers at the upper levels of the labor market. Immigrants in
Canada have continuously failed to benefits from their years of education due to the
institutionalized processes that segment the immigration labor. Immigrants' education level fails
to act as an accurate predictor of the actions and performance of the labor market in Canada.
Mainly, immigrants from the Africa, South and Central Asia, Middle East, and Eastern Europe
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have an uphill task securing high-skill occupations in Canada. Most of the highly skilled
occupations in Canada are greatly governed by professional organizations. For instance, there are
very tough standards upheld by the medical profession. Immigrants have to pass a written exam
and obtain approximately more than five years of on job training (Health Canada, 2002).
Unfortunately, most regulatory bodies only access their credentials after their arrival in Canada.
Therefore, most immigrants tend to get stranded after arrival due to subsequent devaluation.
Racial Discrimination
Racial discrimination is a structural barrier that greatly contributes to the devaluation of
immigrant credentials in Canada. Although Canadian evaluators insist that the quality of
education is the main reason immigrant credentials are devalued, a thorough analysis of those
affected reveals that most people affected belong to a specific European lineage. Most of the
immigrants are from the Global South or developing countries. Usually, such individuals are
categorized as belonging to the other side of civilization due to their failure to fall within the
European mainstream culture's periphery. Although most Canadians portray an image of an
organized and diversified society, research studies reveal that the dominant majority is strongly
resisting the admittance of minority groups to higher occupational status in the labor workforce.
A poll conducted on a randomly selected group of Canadians revealed that 17 percent of those
surveyed had personally been exposed to racism. The survey also revealed that 7 percent of
Canadians were not willing to welcome someone of a different race as their neighbor. Although
many people avoid getting into race-related debates, the race has a significant influence on many
aspects of the society we live in today. Although many highly skilled Canadians enter Canada's
labor force possessing a significant labor force, Canadian evaluators and organizations consider
IMMIGRANTS
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their skills and previous work experience obsolete. As a result, many immigrants are able to find
employment in Canada but not within their scope of the study (Guo, 2015, p. 237).
Lack of Consistency in the Evaluation Mechanisms Used by Canadian Evaluators
The lack of consistency in the techniques used to evaluate the credentials of foreign
professionals is one of the major structural barriers to successful integration into the Canadian
labor market. First and foremost, there is no centralized agency that oversees the evaluation of
foreign credentials. Therefore, immigrants are forced to consult several agencies to evaluate their
credentials. The evaluation process also differs depending on the profession. Most immigrants
willing to work in their area of study have to take Canadian exams and acquire a significant
period of supervised employment in Canada. For instance, in the medical profession, foreign
professionals have to a certification exam and a language test in addition to their credentials.
Most immigrants wishing to work in such protected professions have to deal with multiple
barriers. The certification process is usually cumbersome and time-consuming (Vahabi & Wong,
2017, p. 236).
Currently, there is no guarantee that immigrants will ever receive an unswerving
assessment of their credentials. Research studies suggest that the Canadian evaluation process is
highly ambiguous. Although most evaluators are quite aware of the nature of foreign
qualifications, most of them feel more confident about native qualifications than they do about
foreign. The lack of consistency in the Canadian evaluation processes creates a complicated
structure for the immigrant. The major problem with having several evaluation agencies is that it
can be extremely expensive for the immigrant and may cause unnecessary setbacks in the entire
integration process (Basran et al., 1998, p.1).
IMMIGRANTS
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Personal Barriers
Lack of Canadian Experience
Canadian evaluators and employers do not take recognition of work experience from
outside Canada. Recent research reveals that most immigrants face a significant amount of
differential treatment because of the non-recognition of their previous work experience.
Although most immigrants possess a wide range of foreign training, the lack of Canadian
experience places them at a disadvantage. Therefore, without any form of proof or recognized
documentation, such immigrants cannot get the necessary experience to acquire a job. Most
employers in Canada tend to be suspicious about foreign credentials because they have little or
no knowledge of their qualifications. Many employers are hesitant to take a chance on
immigrants based on their past experiences and documents. The lack of familiarity with
Canadian terminology and expressions also places most immigrants at a disadvantage. According
to most immigrants working in the Canadian society, most employers use accents and foreign
credentials as an elimination method in the recruitment process (Girard & Smith, 2013, p. 72).
Language Proficiency
Most Canadians are able to speak fluent English or French. The inability of foreign
professionals to communicate in the English or French language places them at a disadvantage.
Canadian evaluators insist that all foreign-trained professionals should be in a position to
converse in both English and French. Immigrants are mostly awarded points for their proficiency
in the language. A maximum of 4 points is awarded for proficiency in the French Language, and
a maximum of 28 points is awarded for proficiency in English. Immigrant's language proficiency
is directly linked to higher compensation packages. Recent research studies reveal that
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immigrants who arrive in Canada knowing one or more official languages are most likely to
thrive in the Canadian labor market.
In conclusion, Canada has both structural and personal barriers that limit the recognition
of foreign credentials. Unless the government comes up with a single evaluation process for
foreign credentials, immigrants will continue to experiences a lot of challenges as they attempt to
integrate into the Canadian labor market. The private sector and the Canadian government need
to work together to address the challenges faced by foreign professionals.
IMMIGRANTS
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References
Basran, G., and Zong, L., 1998, “Devaluation of foreign Credentials and Perceived by NonWhite
Professional Immigrants”, Canadian Ethnic Studies; Vol. 30, No. 3, pp. 97-121.
Bauder, Harald (2003) “Brain Abuse,” or the Devaluation of Immigrant Labour in Canada”,
Antipode 35(4): 699-717.
Foster, Lorne (2006). “Foreign Credentials in Canada’s Multicultural Society.” In Merle Jacobs
and Stephen E. Bosanac (Eds.). The Professionalization of Work. Toronto: de Sitter
Publications. Chapter 10.
Girard, M., & Smith, M. (2013). Working in a regulated occupation in Canada: An immigrant–
native born comparison. Journa...
