Akbar: Canadian immigrants are overqualified and underemployed — reforms must address this

2025/02/20 Leave a comment

Well, labour economists would disagree regarding competitiveness given the current mix of temporary workers and students but interesting that CERC academics recognize the value of AI without automatically expressing concerns of algorithmic biases. Kahneman argues convincingly that such systems ensure greater consistency, albeit with the risk of coding of biases:

…Canada’s long-term competitiveness is hindered not by immigration, but by systemic labour market discrimination and inefficiencies that prevent skilled newcomers from fully contributing to the economy. 

Eliminating biases related to Canadian work experience and soft skills is key to ensuring newcomers can find fair work. The lack of recognition of foreign talent has a detrimental effect on the Canadian economy by under-utilizing valuable human capital.

To build a more inclusive labour market, a credential recognition system should support employers in assessing transferable skills and experience to mitigate perceived hiring risks related to immigrants. 

For international students, enhanced career services at educational institutions are critical. Strengthening partnerships between universities, colleges and employers can expand internships, co-op placements and mentorship programs, providing students with relevant Canadian work experience before graduation. 

Such collaboration is also key to implementing employer education initiatives that address misconceptions about hiring international graduates and highlight their contributions to the workforce. 

Artificial Intelligence (AI) can also play a role in reducing hiring biases and improving job matching for new immigrants and international graduates. Our recent report, which gathered insight from civil society, the private sector and academia, highlights the following AI-driven solutions:

  • Tools like Toronto Metropolitan University’s AI resume builder, Mogul AI, and Knockri can help match skills to roles, neutralize hiring bias and promote equity.
  • Wage subsidies and AI tools can encourage equitable hiring, while AI-powered programs can help human resources recognize and reduce biases.
  • Tools like the Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council Mentoring Partnership, can connect newcomers with mentors, track their skills and match them to employer needs.

Harnessing AI-driven solutions, alongside policy reforms and stronger employer engagement, can help break down hiring barriers so Canada can fully benefit from the skills and expertise of its immigrant workforce.

Source: Canadian immigrants are overqualified and underemployed — reforms must address this

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HESA: How We Choose to Respond to Crises

2025/02/19 Leave a comment

Some good questions where universities and academics should make a contribution regarding current and future challenges, some driven by Trump, some long-term. Surprising no immigration questions (e.g., how to manage population demographics without relying solely on immigration, how do we come up with a balanced immigration policy that incorporates pressures on housing, healthcare and infrastructure):

…The first and most important way that could happen? By putting the collective brainpower of Canadian academia to work on very specific problems that our governments—with their brutally short-term focus—cannot hope to answer quickly. Imagine if all Canadian universities got together right now and said: we are putting our best minds together for the next 12 weeks (which is about how long it will take for an election to occur, assuming the Liberals lose a confidence vote in late March) and we’re going to answer the following questions about the future of Canada.

  • What does a post-NATO foreign policy look like. Who are our allies now?
  • What does an independent defense policy look like now? What can we learn from, say, Finland’s posture with the Soviet Union in the 1970s and 1980s? Is universal national service an option?
  • How can Canada improve the status of its domestic knowledge-based industries? How do we make “smart” pay?
  • What would it take for Canadian businesses to genuinely pivot to new markets? What are the barriers and how can they be overcome?
  • More generally, how do we once again generate economic growth?
  • How can we best balance the protection of our democracy with the maintenance of norms of free speech?

It’s obvious the country needs answers to all of these hard questions. It’s equally obvious that the country’s universities are collectively the largest source of expertise to answer them. So let’s do it, now. Get a couple of hundred of the best minds in the country, relieve them of whatever other duties they have for the next few weeks and put together a lightning Royal Commission the likes of which we’ve never seen. It would be tough to organize, but who knows? It might remind people that universities are worth funding (Lord knows nothing else seems to be working on that score).
 

  •  But I think universities will also need to go further. They will also need to look critically at whether what universities currently do is aligned with the new priorities. So maybe a second group of top minds could answer questions such as:
  • What would be the impact on national productivity if we re-shaped the bachelor’s degree to be default three years instead of four?
  • Would we be more growth-oriented if we had more bachelor’s graduates, or fewer? What about graduate degrees?
  • How would postsecondary education change if we introduced a form of national service?
  • What role could business faculties play in promoting trade diversity? Would requiring students to take more foreign language courses help?
  • How might more specialist outfits like Citizen Lab contribute to Canadian domestic and foreign policy?

I suspect many will recoil from even posing such questions. Sacred cows, etc. But we have to. We can either, as a sector, act to protect and improve the state we have, or we can leave it easier prey to the bullies, liars, and thieves that are currently assaulting democracies around the globe. Those are the choices.

Canada made difficult choices and took bold action thirty years ago. I am certain we can do it again. But the country—and the higher education sector—first has to take the threat seriously. Will we?

Source: How We Choose to Respond to Crises

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This new Canadian immigration program [caregivers] is being heavily promoted by recruiters. Here’s why that’s causing concern

2025/02/19 Leave a comment

As always, recruiters see a business opportunity, taking advantage of desperate migrants:

It’s bound to be one of the most appealing immigration programs for earning permanent residence in Canada.

The requirements, released to date, appear simple:

  • Basic English skills at Canadian Language Benchmark Level 4 to understand instructions and have a conversation;
  • The equivalent of a Canadian high school diploma;
  • Recent and relevant work experience; and
  • A full-time home care job offer.

However, while the home care worker immigration program, which the government promised would “improve support” for migrant caregivers, is still awaiting details, recruiters are stepping up to take on applicants to fill the spots, with some promising to connect them with employers.

Advocates fear that predatory agents are going to take advantage of migrants desperate for permanent residence, and the money could be all for naught when the rules are unclear and misinformation abounds….

Source: This new Canadian immigration program is being heavily promoted by recruiters. Here’s why that’s causing concern

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Chrystia Freeland’s housing plan ties immigration to supply, cuts development charges

2025/02/19 Leave a comment

Remarkable and somewhat comical, depressing and revealing, walking back from previous government positions where she was Deputy PM. I don’t disagree with the changed policy thrust, just wonder why it took so long….:

Liberal leadership candidate Chrystia Freeland’s plan to fix the housing shortage would tie the number of newcomers Canada admits to housing availability.

The former finance minister made the promise in a 10-point policy document her campaign issued Monday morning. Freeland said the move would slow down population growth until housing affordability stabilizes.

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has been promising for some time now to tie immigration numbers to housing starts.

Under the federal government’s current immigration plan, the number of permanent residents being admitted is set to decline annually until it reaches 365,000 in 2027. The previous goal was to admit upwards of 500,000 permanent residents annually from 2024 to 2026.

The link between immigration and housing starts isn’t the only thing the Freeland and Poilievre plans have in common….

Source: Chrystia Freeland’s housing plan ties immigration to supply, cuts development charges

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Ottawa boosts immigration officers’ ability to cancel visitor visas, travel permits 

2025/02/18 Leave a comment

Of note and overdue:

Canadian immigration officers have been given broader powers to cancel travel permits and visitor visas under new rules designed to bolster border security and clamp down on fraud.

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) has issued “strengthened” regulations, including the ability to revoke visitor visas if their holders destroy their passports. Officers can also rescind authorization to travel to Canada if they believe a visitor may not leave the country.

Airlines have been informed of the new rules, which could also mean some people will not be allowed to board flights, according to a notification of the new regulations in the federal government’s Canada Gazette.

“A small portion of travellers may be turned back at the airport or at a port of entry in the case of their document being cancelled prior to their entry to Canada,” the notification says.

The changes “enhance the integrity of Canada’s temporary residence programs and are expected to strengthen security at the border and within Canada,” according to an online posting from IRCC.

The regulations expand current powers to cancel immigration documents – for example, if someone has concealed a criminal history – and aligns Canada with practices in the U.S., Britain, Australia and New Zealand….

Source: Ottawa boosts immigration officers’ ability to cancel visitor visas, travel permits

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Poilievre suggests capping immigration at Harper-era levels, deportations for wrongdoers

2025/02/15 Leave a comment

Back to Kenney-era levels, about half of current levels (no specific mention of levels of temporary workers and international students). Unclear whether the provinces would accept such a major reduction but good to have Poilievre provide specific numbers.

Ramping up deportations will be more challenging than a “deport bogus refugees” or “deport hate” slogans:

Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has confirmed his plans to reduce immigration levels to Stephen Harper-era levels and deport those who break Canada’s laws while on temporary visas, in an exclusive interview with Juno News co-founder Candice Malcolm.

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On the broader issue of immigration levels, Poilievre stated that the current annual intake of permanent residents — set to reach 500,000 in 2025 — is unsustainable and has contributed to Canada’s housing crisis.

He proposed a return to the levels of previous Conservative governments, around 200,000 to 250,000 per year, aligning population growth with the number of new homes being built.

“It would be a lot more like the Harper numbers that were basically the same for 40 years before Trudeau took office — we were bringing in about 200,000 to 250,000 a year,” said Poilievre.

“We were building about the same number of homes as we were adding people, so we had a housing surplus. I would bring in a simple mathematical formula: we cannot bring in people faster than we add houses.”

According to Poilievre, the formula would be based on the homebuilding numbers from the prior year as well as population growth targets.

“I would actually make sure that we’re building housing surpluses over the next four years because that’s how we close the gap that has built up,” said Poilievre.

Poilievre also made it clear that his government would swiftly deport non-citizens who commit crimes while in Canada on temporary status. He emphasized that those engaging in violent acts, such as firebombing businesses or places of worship, should be immediately arrested and deported.

“I don’t know how anybody can disagree with that. If someone shows up in our country claiming to be a student or a temporary worker and they start firebombing coffee shops, bakeries, synagogues, or any other place, then they need to be immediately arrested and deported,” said Poilievre in reference to recent pro-Hamas protests rocking Canada.

“If someone is obviously a citizen, they should be prosecuted through our legal system and put in prison here in Canada for those sorts of crimes.”

Poilievre added the federal government also has to take the issue of illegal immigration seriously and expedite deportations for those found to be in Canada under false pretences.

“If someone comes in, makes a false asylum claim, and it gets rejected, they’re supposed to leave today,” said Poilievre.

“The challenge we’re going to face is that under nine years of the Carney-Trudeau Liberals’ open border policies, we now have millions of people whose permits are going to expire over the next two years. If they don’t leave, we have a very hard time even knowing they’re still here, finding them, and then carrying out a deportation.”

The Conservative leader, however, did indicate that among illegal immigrants there were “some among them that we do want to keep.”

“They could be a master’s graduate in computer engineering with a six-figure job in Kitchener-Waterloo, someone who has started a family, integrated, speaks the language. This is someone we want to keep,” said Poilievre.

“But we need to be able to make that decision ourselves through selection based on these criteria — not just by accident because people who are not eligible to stay decide they’re not going to leave.”

According to Poilievre, the Canadian government should implement further refugee reviews for claims, including what he calls a “last in, first out” approach.

“This is how it works: if you’re the last person to enter the country, your claim is immediately heard. Within a couple of weeks, if your claim is false, you’re sent back. What that does is send the signal to everyone who might come in the future that they’re going to be sent home automatically,” said Poilievre.

“The problem right now is that if someone gets in illegally — even if they’re not a real refugee, they’re not fleeing danger — they have seven or eight years of appeals, during which we’re paying for their hotels, lawyers, food, and healthcare, above and beyond what Canadians get.”

Source: Poilievre suggests capping immigration at Harper-era levels, deportations for wrongdoers

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Canadian Immigration Tracker – December 2024 update and full-year comparisons

2025/02/15 Leave a comment

Full Year 2024 annual comparisons

  • Permanent residents admissions: From 449,00 in 2023 to 482,000 in 2024 or 7.3 percent.   
  • TR2PR (Those already in Canada): From 244,000 in 2023 to 247,000 in 2024 or 1.3 percent. 
  • TRs-IMP: From 874,000 in 2023 to 746,000 in 2024 or -14.7 percent. Significant decrease in PGWP and spouses
  • TRs-TFWP: From 191,000 in 2023 to 198,000 in 2024 or 3.6 percent.
  • Students: From 709,000 in 2023 to 540,000 in 2024 or -28.9 percent. Post-secondary only: Decline from 544,000 to 387,000 or 23.9 percent.
  • Asylum Claimants: From 149,000 in 2023 to 175,000 in 2024 or 17.5 percent.
  • Citizenship: From 377,000 in 2023 to 372,000 in 2024 or -1.3 percent.
  • Visitor Visas: From 1,846,000 in 2023 to 1,478,000 in 2024 or -19.9 percent.
  • Note settlement services and citizenship application numbers for 2024 requested and will post when received.

Canadian Immigration Tracker – December 2024 update and full-year comparisons

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FIRST READING: Trudeau government already missing targets on pledge to bring down immigration

2025/02/14 Leave a comment

Annual changes in chart below. Monthly data indicates that change is happening:

In October, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a suite of new controls on immigration designed to “pause population growth.” In a video at the time, Trudeau even expressed regret that he hadn’t curbed immigration sooner, saying, “We could have acted quicker and turned off the taps faster.”

Although admissions of international students have gone down dramatically in the interim four months, a new analysis by Desjardins finds that Canada is still accepting roughly the same amount of temporary foreign workers and permanent immigrants.

As such, the report said that Canadian population growth is about the same as it was before the October cuts, and isn’t likely to change without “more aggressive reductions.”

“We remain skeptical that the Government of Canada will be able to reach its (lower) target for admissions of newcomers,” it read.

Desjardins added that the Trudeau government often seems to make promises that it fails to fulfill, and that immigration reduction is a prime candidate for this.

Source: FIRST READING: Trudeau government already missing targets on pledge to bring down immigration

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UK to reject ‘dangerous journey’ refugees citizenship

2025/02/13 Leave a comment

Not sure how that will withstand legal challenges but we shall see:

The government has toughened up rules making it almost impossible for a refugee who arrives in the UK on a small boat to become a British citizen.

New guidance states that anyone who enters the UK illegally having made a dangerous journey, which could be via boat, but also by means such as hiding in a vehicle, will normally be refused citizenship, regardless of the time that has passed.

In a statement, the Home Office said the strengthened measures made it clear that anyone who entered the UK illegally would face having a British citizenship application refused.

But, the change has been condemned by the Refugee Council and some Labour MPs – including Stella Creasy who said the change “meant refugees would forever remain second class citizens”.

Changes, first disclosed by the Free Movement blog, were introduced to guidance for visa and immigration staff on Monday.

The changes mean that anyone deemed to have entered the country illegally – including those already here – will not be able to apply for citizenship.

Described as a “clarification” to case worker guidance when assessing if a claimant is of “good character’, it says: “Any person applying for citizenship from 10 February 2025, who previously entered the UK illegally will normally be refused, regardless of the time that has passed since the illegal entry took place.”

Another new entry to the same guidance says: “A person who applies for citizenship from 10 February 2025 who has previously arrived without a required valid entry clearance or electronic travel authorisation, having made a dangerous journey will normally be refused citizenship.

“A dangerous journey includes, but is not limited to, travelling by small boat or concealed in a vehicle or other conveyance.”

Previously, refugees who had arrived by irregular routes would need to wait ten years before being considered.

Under international law, people are allowed to seek asylum, but the government’s move to strengthen its border control and laws on entry, will prevent some people from doing so.

It comes after Labour’s new border security bill, which scraps the Conservatives’ Rwanda plan and boosts police powers against people smugglers, cleared its first vote in the House of Commons on Monday.

The Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill sets out Labour’s plan to treat people smugglers like terrorists, and creates a new crime of endangering another person during an illegal crossing in the Channel.

The Home Office also published footage of enforcement teams raiding 828 premises, including nail bars, car washes, and restaurants, as part of a UK-wide crackdown on illegal working earlier this week.

The Refugee Council estimates the guidance will prevent at least 71,000 refugees from obtaining British citizenship.

Enver Solomon, CEO of the charity, said the government’s move “flies in the face of reason”.

“The British public want refugees who have been given safety in our country to integrate into and contribute to their new communities, so it makes no sense for the government to erect more barriers.

“We know that men women and children who are refugees want to feel part of the country that has given them a home, and support to rebuild their lives.

“We urge ministers to urgently reconsider.”

Meanwhile, immigration barrister Colin Yeo claimed on social media that it is a “clear breach of the refugee convention”.

Although the Conservatives have yet to respond to the government’s decision, Tory leader Kemi Badenoch told the BBC last week that she believes the right to citizenship and permanent residency “should only go to those who have demonstrated a real commitment to the UK”.

Badenoch spoke about her proposals to toughen up citizenship rules by making it more difficult for new immigrants to be able to permanently settle in the UK.

Citizenship applications will continue to be considered on a case-by-case basis, it is understood.

A Home Office spokesperson said: “There are already rules that can prevent those arriving illegally from gaining citizenship.

“This guidance further strengthens measures to make it clear that anyone who enters the UK illegally, including small boat arrivals, faces having a British citizenship application refused.”

Source: UK to reject ‘dangerous journey’ refugees citizenship

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Skuterud: The Growing Data Gap on Canada’s Temporary Resident Workforce

2025/02/13 Leave a comment

Useful recommendations:

Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey (LFS) underestimates the rapidly growing non-permanent resident (NPR) population. This undercount potentially distorts important economic indicators, such as nominal wage growth and unemployment rates, because NPRs disproportionately influence these measures as a growing share of new labour market entrants.

To address this data gap, this E-Brief recommends revising the LFS to better identify NPRs by including specific questions about study or work permits and exploring the possibility of linking survey data to immigration records for improved accuracy.

Introduction

Canada has experienced a dramatic increase in its non-permanent resident (NPR) population in recent years. Before 2020, NPRs never comprised more than 3 percent of Canada’s population. As of October 2024, they comprised 7.4 percent of the population. While initial concerns over runaway NPR population growth were focused on overheating housing markets, by mid-2024, worries turned to the contribution of NPRs – particularly international students – to rising youth unemployment rates.

Evaluating the labour market impacts of Canada’s growing NPR population requires timely, high-quality data on Canada’s labour force. It is well known that Statistics Canada struggles to sample NPRs, in part due to challenges related to how Statistics Canada’s Labour Force Survey (LFS) sampling frame is constructed. The LFS samples dwellings, not individuals, and gathers data on all persons usually living at the sampled address, including NPRs. There may be ambiguity about whether the address where NPRs are sampled is their usual residence, resulting in their exclusion from the survey.1 Skuterud (2023) highlighted a significant and widening discrepancy between the share of NPRs in Canada’s labour force estimated using the LFS and administrative data from Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC).2 With continued growth in the NPR population since 2023, there is reason to believe this discrepancy has grown.

Why does this matter? The accuracy of the LFS’s estimates of nominal wage growth and unemployment rates are critical in informing the Bank of Canada’s monetary policy decisions and collective bargaining negotiations across the country. As IRCC introduces policies to rein in NPR entries, understanding whether international students are, in fact, crowding out and suppressing the wages of existing residents is essential.

This E-Brief examines the impact of Canada’s surging NPR population on the quality of the LFS data by comparing the LFS’s population estimates with official population estimates from Statistics Canada’s Centre for Demography. The results reveal a substantial and growing divergence in official and LFS population estimates starting in 2021. While it is unclear to what extent this is affecting estimates of wage growth and unemployment, the growing discrepancies suggest there is reason for concern…

Source: The Growing Data Gap on Canada’s Temporary Resident Workforce

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