'Vote by feet'
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Perhaps NotCanada.com has a point to make when it tells people not to come to Canada because "there is no job".
According to information provided by the federal ministry of human resources, only 42% of new immigrants can find professional jobs within two years. An immigrant services group says the number of immigrants from China choose to return to their home country is rising rapidly (story in Chinese).
In a research retreat organized yesterday by RIIM, a think tank organization on immigration, representatives from the ministry of immigration anc citizenship, HRDC, BC's Immigrants Services Sociey and many experts/researchers on immigration issues gathered to look for ways to use the talents immigrants are ready to offer.
Silvano Tocchi of the HRDC quoted studies pointing out that while about 80% of new immigrants can find a job within two years, only 42% of them are professional jobs that they come here for. Even for those immigrants who have successfully obtained accreditation of their credentials, many are still unable to find professional jobs.
Lacking local work experience and language ability are the two biggest problems, Tocchi said.
He therefore applauded recent efforts by the BC gov in funding internship programs that will help immigrants to gain local experience. "That's the most practical way to deal with the problem."
Clifford Bell of ISS's employment counselling program said 70% of the 40 new immigrants the program serves every month are from China. People studying employment courses are already the ones who have the strongest wish to stay in Canada. However, Bell said about 10% would choose to return to their home countries even before their studies are finished, the majority of them being immigrants from China.
He believed the real figure of Chinese immigrants leaving Canada to China should be far over 10%.
Bell noted that some immigrants take a 6-month or one-year leave from their employers in China, usually those who are employed in state-own enterprises or in the bureacracy, and come to Canada to test their luck in getting a job. Once they find out they cannot get a decent enough job, they may return to China, Bell said.
Bell mentioned the website NotCanada.com is overwhelmed with posts written by "former Canadian citizens who leave Canada for good", sharing their failure stories of settling in Canada.
Bell believed that these negative portraits of immigration to Canada may adversely influence our ability to compete in the international market and attract future immigrants.
Another study by RIIM that published earlier this year discusses the well being of returnees. Researchers from both Canada and Hong Kong found that HK immigrants who chose to return to HK had a 70% chance higher those who stayed in Canada to take up managerial positions. Immigrants from China who chose to stay in Canada has a 35% less likely to be managers than Canadian natives.
The study concludes that:
These findings have policy implications. For an immigrant hosting country, investment in integration is at least as important as educating them to serve the society. From a sending country’s perspective, it is important to improve the environment for the attracting of the talented from overseas. Social mobility is as important as income in the decision of return migration.One survey in Toronto (in Chinese) released in March 2006 shows that 15% of immigrants from China plan to return within a year after landing. Among the returnees, 65% say they don't regret the decision 45% say they've found better jobs in China. 48% of them have obtained highest post-grad degrees from Canadian universities. Most returnees are professionals, teachers, business and financial talents.
Chinese returnees have a saying that they are "voting (against Canada) by feet". Perhaps it's high time policy makers take their concerns more seriously.
related:
'Vote by feet'
A land of promise or a land of dismay?
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