What obstacles to employment do skilled immigrants face?
Skilled immigrants may face the following barriers when trying to enter the labour force: • Lack of recognition of international education, training, and experience; • Insufficient information about employment opportunities and requirements; • Lack of professional networks; • Lack of occupation-specific terminology in English or French; • Lack of targeted training programs to bridge gaps in qualifications; and, • Difficulty obtaining Canadian work experience. According to the Conference Board of Canada, the lack of recognizing the qualifications and experience of immigrants costs Canada $3.42 to $4.97-billion each year. A study by RBC Financial Group offers additional figures: If immigrants had the same likelihood of employment at the same average income as people born in Canada, then personal income would be about $13 billion higher and there would be almost 400,000 extra workers.
