employment and Immigrant women

Immigrant women have specific needs related to employment and training. ACTEW's research has found that while education levels are rising among recent immigrant women, they are still more likely to experience poverty.

Many immigrants of both sexes face problems with foreign credentials, underemployment, and working in a different language, but there are other employment-related challenges particular to women's experience.

For example, service providers responding to ACTEW's Pre-LMDA Survey report that the lack of suitable program supports and government eligibility criteria are the two greatest barriers to providing adequate services to newcomer women. >more

Integrating Employment Services for Immigrant Women

Two new agreements between Canada and Ontario are presently being rolled out that will affect services for immigrants. Given the overall goal of economic integration, these agreements could have a broad impact on the continuum of services to newcomer women, as well as men.

The Immigration Agreement provides new funding for language training and settlement services. The Labour Market Development Agreement (LMDA) recognizes new immigrants as one of several client groups having “more complex needs”, although it does not name the particular needs of immigrant women.

Recommendations from the National Organization of Immigrant and Visible Minority Women of Canada (NOIVMWC) set out ways policy makers can improve economic and social integration for immigrant women. 
>more on the LMDA and Immigrant Women
>more on the Immigration Agreement

Facilitating Inclusion
St. Joseph Immigrant Women's Centre (Hamilton)

The Facilitating Inclusion program trains women from diverse cultural backgrounds in group facilitation, research, and leadership skills. Eligibility is not contingent on either employment or immigration status. Training includes participation in local planning and leadership roles, enabling women to affect change within their community.

Not only does Facilitating Inclusion support individual women as they gain marketable skills, it also addresses the lack of representation of minority groups in policy-making and community development. To date, participants have facilitated eight community development projects in the Hamilton area. >more

Report from Service Delivery Advisory Group
Now that the transfer is complete, the MTCU continues focus on business continuity (“business as usual”) and is starting to turn long-term attention to policy and program integration and alignment. That being said, MTCU still says they are continuing with a slow planning approach, and intend to engage key stakeholders and local planning processes to ensure systems meet the needs of communities. MTCU’s presentations can be downloaded from ACTEW’s web site. >more

Statscan Reports More Women Getting Jobs
A recent Labour Force Survey from Statistics Canada indicates that women are making strong employment gains. Women experience growth in employment gains at 3.9%, whereas men's growth was only at 1.9%.  However, the Survey doesn't tell us the form of employment -- full- or part-time -- or the rate of pay. Does this increase actually represent a move towards financial stability for Canadian women? Does it mean that women are less likely to be poor? >more

Women’s Challenges, Priorities and Opportunities
At the Women's Summit in November, 65 Brockville-area women interviewed each other on the key issues for business and personal life. The Employment and Education Centre (EEC) has released the final report, which summarizes the findings, highlighting barriers to education and training, and expressing a desire for women to get more informed of policies that affect their lives.
>more

Facts

• 18% of immigrant women have a university degree, in comparison with 14% of Canadian-born women. (1)

• In 1980, recent female immigrants were paid 23% less than Canadian-born women of similar ages and educational attainment. By 2000, this gap had almost doubled to 45%. (2)

• Lack of childcare is a barrier for immigrant women trying gain Canadian experience through volunteer work or wanting to access employment and training services. (1)

• Almost two-thirds of service providers with newcomer women as clients reported that government criteria limits client access to programs. (3)

• 49% of children in recent immigrant families are poor. (4)

(1) Immigrant Women Fact Sheet , ACTEW, 2007.

(2) The Daily, October 2003

(3) Pre-LMDA Survey on Training and Employment, ACTEW, 2007

(4) 2006 Report Card on Child and Family Poverty in Canada, Campaign 2000

Questions

How will the Federal and Provincial Ministries coordinate the policies and programs of the IA and LMDA to ensure full integration of services for immigrant women?

Are there ways that eligibility criteria for employment and training services can be more responsive to the particular life circumstances of immigrant women?

Get Involved

Forum on Precarious Employment, Toronto

• St. Lawrence Centre Forum is hosting the event “Precarious Employment: Can You Stand the Strain?”, The first in a series of forums presented with The Toronto Star in its War on Poverty series.  March 20, 2007 from 7:30 to 9:30 pm. >more

March Presentation at Jobs and Justice Conference, Vancouver

• Deanna Yerichuk will be presenting ACTEW’s Putting Women in the Picture in March at Jobs & Justice: Strategies and Solutions for Economic Security Conference. >more

Regional Meetings in Spring 2007

• ACTEW is working with member agencies and Local Boards across the province to set up LMDA and information-sharing meetings in Hamilton, Ottawa, Thunder Bay, and Grand Erie in the Spring of 2007. Attend a meeting or set one up in your region. >more

Visit our web site to learn more about
Putting Women in the Picture