an alliance of university, community, and government partners dedicated to fostering welcoming communities and promoting the integration of immigrants and minorities across Canada
The Media Roundup provides links to recent and archived articles, in both English and French, on immigration and diversity appearing in the national and local news. Some international content is also included. Articles are updated weekly.
CBC – Skilled Immigrants Face Hurdles in Finding Jobs, Government Report Says
The Conservatives have made the recognition of foreign credentials for new immigrants a top priority, but skilled newcomers have told government-commissioned researchers there are “huge obstacles” preventing them from finding jobs even when they’re qualified to work here. In a report prepared earlier this year by Environics Research, newcomers in 12 focus groups across the country said other issues hinder their ability to get work. The participants — including doctors, pharmacists and engineers — said language barriers and requirements for Canadian experience on some job postings pose the biggest problems. They said they suspected that Canadian experience requirements were “a coded way for employers to favour the Canadian-born,” the report said. The participants also pointed to a lack of Canadian connections or networks and “difficulty in general social interactions due to language and cultural differences.”
Maclean’s – New Age Limits on Dependents Have Immigrant Advocates Crying Foul
Thousands of young adults who used to qualify as dependents can no longer make the trip on their parents’ coattails. The move, which took effect on Aug. 1, has upset advocates for immigrants and refugees and sparked the latest round in an ongoing feud between the governing party and its critics at the Canadian Bar Association. Until the end of July, children of new immigrants could apply as dependents until they turned 21. The new rules set the ceiling at 18. The rationale is that kids who arrive in Canada earlier can benefit from a Canadian education, and ultimately offer more to our fragile economy than their older counterparts. […] “Canadian employers need to find new entrants into the labour force,” says Dan Kelly, president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, “and often kids that come with their parents will look for a job.” There’s another question that remains unanswered, which is how much of a difference those three years make. A seven-year-old might assimilate much more quickly than a child of 21, but how much better does one adapt at 18 than at 20?
Metro News – Skilled Immigrants Struggle to Find Work in Canada: Report
The Conservatives have made the recognition of foreign credentials for new immigrants a top priority, but skilled newcomers have told government-commissioned researchers there are “huge obstacles” preventing them from finding jobs even when they’re qualified to work here. In a report prepared earlier this year by Environics Research, newcomers in 12 focus groups across the country said other issues hinder their ability to get work. The participants — including doctors, pharmacists and engineers — said language barriers and requirements for Canadian experience on some job postings pose the biggest problems. They said they suspected that Canadian experience requirements were “a coded way for employers to favour the Canadian-born,” the report said. The participants also pointed to a lack of Canadian connections or networks and “difficulty in general social interactions due to language and cultural differences.” The participants didn’t feel the issue of formal recognition of credentials was a major barrier to employment. There were also differences of opinion on the value of foreign credentials, depending on the participants’ country of origin. […] A spokesman for Employment Minister Jason Kenney said the government commissioned the study in order to determine why skilled immigrants had trouble finding work.
Toronto Star – Who Carved Two Swastika’s on Roma Refugee’s Neck?
Would a Czech Roma asylum seeker be so desperate to get accepted in Canada that she’d carve two swastikas in her back to fool a refugee judge? While Janette Ganova said the markings were cut by two neo-Nazi skinheads who kidnapped her in Zatec, Czech Republic, her now-estranged husband allegedly wrote a “poison pen letter” to immigration officials claiming that her injuries were self-inflicted. After four hearings that stretched over two years and ended in July, the Immigration and Refugee Board couldn’t determine the culprits who did the crime, but rejected the Toronto woman’s claim because her evidence was inconsistent and there’s enough protection in Czech Republic for Roma. […] The issue of the swastikas’ origin emerged at the family’s July hearing after her estranged husband wrote a letter alleging that she caused her own injuries — months after Ganova and her children fled to a shelter, allegedly to escape Horvath’s abuse. The couple’s asylum claim was split into two files as a result. Ganova said that her now-ex wrote the letter out of vengeance after the breakup and wanted “her and the children to return home” — an argument that [IRB adjudicator] Paquette-Neville rejected.
Radio Canada International – Mopaya – Nous sommes tous des étrangers et nous avons tous une histoire
Mopaya est un site multimédia conçu pour inspirer la réflexion sur les questions de la diversité culturelle, l’intégration sociale et de la construction des identités. Il regroupe des web séries, des entrevues et reportages audio basés sur le vécu, les sentiments et les idées reçues souvent associés à l’« étranger », un concept vaste et rarement présenté hors des clichés.
The Guardian – Calais Fears Clashes as Far Right Plans Protest March
Extra police will be drafted into Calais on Sunday ahead of a planned far-right demonstration, amid warnings that tens of thousands of Eritrean migrants could soon be heading towards Europe. Following chaotic scenes in the northern French port last week, when scores attempted to storm a cross-Channel ferry to Dover, the anti-immigration group Sauvons Calais (Save Calais) will march in protest at the growing population of migrants, largely Eritreans, hoping to reach Britain. Calais officials have reserved the right to ban the demonstration if there is a “threat to public order”.Former home secretary Michael Howard became the latest politician to wade into the debate on Saturday, insisting that France needed to “get its act together” and deal with the growing numbers of asylum seekers in Calais instead of blaming Britain. Both the mayor and deputy mayor of Calais have issued direct appeals for UK help. Elsewhere, reports indicate growing numbers of migrants continue to head north from Africa, with new routes opening up as the continued instability in Libya and the closure of the Israeli-Egyptian border forces migrants to travel along the north coast of Egypt, principally through Alexandria.
