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.
Radio-Canada – Un service d’aide aux immigrants touché par les compressions
La perte d’une subvention du ministère de l’Immigration menace la survie du Service d’aide à l’adaptation des immigrants et immigrantes (SAAI) de Québec qui connaît d’importantes difficultés financières. Depuis trois ans, l’organisme communautaire qui procure des services de santé et de services sociaux aux nouveaux arrivants doit composer avec la perte de 80 000 $ que subventionnait le ministère de l’Immigration. L’organisme, qui chiffre ses besoins à 150 000 $, continue de fonctionner avec les subventions de Centraide et du ministère de la Santé, mais a de plus en plus de mal à s’acquitter des frais fixes liés à ses activités, affirme Jelena Krstic, directrice générale du SAAI. La situation est précaire au point où l’organisme pourrait fermer ses portes. […] L’organisme a signé un bail de 20 ans avec Cominar, mais la subvention qu’il recevait du ministère de l’Immigration a été réduite lorsque le gouvernement du Québec a décidé de repenser son offre de service en immigration.
Le Franco – CIC consulte les francophones de l’Alberta pour améliorer Entrée express
« J’ai apprécié qu’ils fassent leur tournée de consultation. J’aurais juste aimé qu’elle ait lieu avant parce qu’on aurait pu faire des modifications pour les francophones hors Québec », regrette Suzanne Corneau, directrice générale d’Accès-Emploi. Un avis largement partagé parmi les représentants des organismes invités à La Cité francophone pour donner leur avis Entrée express, une plateforme censée faciliter la venue d’immigrés économiques. Depuis la suppression fin septembre l’Avantage significatif francophone, un programme conçu pour simplifier le processus d’embauche de travailleurs qualifiés d’expression française, l’immigration des francophones dans des provinces où ils seront minoritaires s’avère plus compliquée. […] Entrée express ne tient nullement compte de l’exception francophone alors que, paradoxalement, le gouvernement affirme vouloir « attirer plus de francophones à l’extérieur du Québec, et ainsi contribuer à assurer la vitalité, le développement et la prospérité des communautés francophones en situation minoritaire au Canada. »
Caledon Enterprise – Peel Newcomers Learn Universal Language of Food at Culinary Program
When Anna Derevainko, 30, immigrated to Canada from Ukraine two years ago, she knew just a handful of words in English and no transferable skills that would help her land a job. […] The Mississauga woman credits her success to the Catholic Crosscultural Services Peel’s (CCS Peel) culinary training program for newcomers. The program, introduced last year, offers new immigrants to Canada a chance to hone their skills in their kitchen and find work in the industry. As part of the intensive course, delivered under the watchful eye of a qualified chef, Derevainko learned to plan menus, whisk sauces, prep food and add flavours to dishes. She also navigated various equipment and processes that are integral and common to commercial kitchens. […] The culinary program for newcomer youth program is one-of-a-kind in the area and is offered to newcomers between the ages of 15 to 29, explained Rekha Mistry, employment facilitator for the program.
Globe and Mail – Program Aims for Greater Ethnic Diversity on Boards
One in five Canadians is an immigrant, and in 15 years visible minorities will make up nearly a third of this country’s population. But the unelected bodies that hold sway in a community, the boards of public institutions and agencies, typically have significantly fewer immigrants and visible minorities than might be expected given their share of population. How to change that situation is a question that has preoccupied Ratna Omidvar, executive director of the Global Diversity Exchange at Ryerson University. Most of the leaders she lobbies say they want to see change, but don’t know how to achieve it. […] This week Ms. Omidvar announced the national launch of a program aimed to break down the barriers of the old-boy network by identifying, training and selecting qualified board candidates who are also either immigrants or members of a visible minority group. […] The program is called DiverseCity onBoard, and it will expand from Toronto, where it has placed more than 700 candidates on boards over the past several years, to Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary, Ottawa, Hamilton and London.
CBC – Alberta Law Allows Recruiters to Bill Foreign Workers
Even though employment agencies in Alberta are forbidden to charge foreign workers to find them a job, a loophole allows recruiters to bill the workers thousands of dollars. The Fair Trading Act prohibits an employment agency from collecting money “directly or indirectly” from foreign workers, but permits unlimited charges for services “that are not employment agency business services.” Those other services can include job-skills training and resume-writing, but also immigration consulting. Go Public found at least dozen Alberta businesses operating as one-stop shops that act as both recruiter, which cannot charge workers, and immigration consultants, which can. Critics say the practice creates a grey area in which foreign workers may believe they are paying for a job. The rules are inconsistent across western provinces. British Columbia is similar to Alberta, while Manitoba completely bans recruiters from billing workers. In Saskatchewan recruiters can charge for immigration consulting with the worker’s consent, but makes employers pay for any training and resume preparation.
CBC – Temporary Foreign Worker Mass Exodus Expected April 1
A mass exodus of temporary foreign workers is on the horizon, employers and lawyers predict. Beginning April 1, low-skill, temporary foreign workers who have been in Canada at least four years will be forced to leave. Most of those workers are employed in the agricultural and fishing industries. Bill Stevens, the CEO of Mushroom Canada, is pushing for a reprieve. […] Stevens is pushing for a moratorium on the April deadline and for new avenues for low skill temporary foreign workers to achieve permanent residency. Immigration lawyer Maria Fernandes in Windsor, Ont., is pushing for similar changes. […] Under the old rules, which were changed in 2011, workers could simply reapply to continue working for their Canadian employer, Fernandes said. Now, after a temporary foreign worker has reached their four-year cumulative duration limit, they will not be granted another work permit in Canada for an additional four years. After that time has elapsed, the worker will again be permitted to work in Canada.
