FINAL REPORT Foreign Credential Recognition Research Synthesis

Transcription

1 FINAL REPORT Foreign Credential Recognition Research Synthesis Prepared by: Lead Researcher Philip Kelly, Ph.D. Professor, Department of Geography, and York Centre for Asian Research, York University Research Assistant Lualhati Marcelino, B.A. Master s Student, Geography and Environmental Studies, Wilfrid Laurier University Research Assistant Catherine Mulas, B.A. Master s Student, Department of Geography, York University Prepared for: Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) Delivery date: May 2014 CERIS is Ontario s leading knowledge exchange network and hub for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners working in the field of migration and settlement.

2 This report is part of a research synthesis project conducted by CERIS with funding from Citizenship and Immigration Canada. The project covered five main areas of Canadian immigration on the domestic front: settlement and integration, foreign credential recognition, citizenship, multiculturalism, and refugees. In addition to synthesizing and annotating recent research, each area report samples significant research in progress and lists key research institutions and researchers. Project Director: Dr. Adnan Türegün Project Coordinator: Dr. Gunjan Sondhi For questions and comments on the project or reports, please contact CERIS at: 8th Floor, Kaneff Tower 4700 Keele Street Toronto, ON M3J 1P ceris@yorku.ca Suggested citation: Kelly, Philip (with research assistance from Lualhati Marcelino and Catherine Mulas) Foreign Credential Recognition Research Synthesis A CERIS Report Submitted to Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Ottawa. CERIS 2014

3 Executive Summary This report synthesizes research relating to immigrant outcomes in the Canadian labour market and the question of foreign credential recognition. The synthesis covers the period and lists over 400 sources a testament to the intensity of interest in this topic in recent years. While many studies make use of focused qualitative research, a number also conduct broader statistical analyses using large scale data sources. Micro-data from the 2006 census became available during the period under review and for the first time this included an important place of education question. There has also been extensive analysis of earlier surveys such as the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada (LSIC) and the Ethnic Diversity Survey. While these sources provide valuable data, they are now out-dated, especially given the economic recession and changing labour market since the last census. The 2011 National Household Survey has yet to yield any significant analyses, but is also dogged with questions of comparability given its methodology. Some promising new sources of data that have yielded important results include the monthly Labour Force Survey, which has included an immigration question since 2006, and the IMDB, which links immigrant landing records with tax file data. This synthesis starts by drawing attention to the changing profile and distribution of internationally trained immigrants arriving in Canada over the last two decades. Any analysis of labour market outcomes needs to acknowledge that the characteristics of immigrants and their geographical locations have changed greatly due to new immigration programs and selection criteria. The synthesis identifies key approaches to analyzing labour market success. In particular, we identify five different measures that have been used to evaluate employment outcomes: a match between the field of study or expertise of an immigrant and their occupational role in the Canadian labour market; the match between the level of education earned by an individual and their job placement in Canada; the patterns of employment, unemployment and participation in the Canadian labour market; the level of earnings for immigrants regardless of the match they find between skills and employment; and the occupational prestige or job satisfaction enjoyed by immigrants (even if they find themselves in a field unrelated to their earlier training). We then review recent evidence for the influence of various factors in determining the labour market success of immigrants. We identify the following factors as key to understanding employment outcomes for immigrants: the country or region from which individuals have arrived 2

4 (although this is also a proxy for several other factors); the places in which immigrants earned their highest level of education, especially post-secondary credentials; immigrants capacity in one of Canada s official languages; the specific field of study or expertise that they bring to, or earn in, Canada; the point in time at which they arrived in Canada (and the economic conditions that prevailed) and the length of time they have been resident; the immigration category through which they were admitted to Canada; their identity characteristics, especially gender and visible minority status, both of which remain fundamental axes of inequality in the labour market; their place of settlement in Canada, which has diversified away from traditional settlement cities; prior work before arriving in Canada; and the extent to which they have availed of foreign credential recognition services or pre-departure orientation programs. The report also notes some of the key costs associated with the under-utilization of immigrant skills (which go beyond the economic costs of unused human capital). The final section of the report identifies seven key gaps in data and further research questions. First, we note the need for data gathering to be aligned with analytical needs, which has been less evident in recent years with the absence of specialized surveys such as LSIC and the cancellation of the compulsory long-form census in Second, we highlight the need for expanding the scope of qualitative studies that can provide insights into the barriers to credential recognition and labour market success in specific professional fields and ethnic communities. Third, we note the need to pay attention to equity issues inside employment settings where immigrants may be working in their field but are misaligned or underutilized given their precise deployment. Fourth, we draw attention to the inter-generational effects of immigrant skills mismatch and poor labour market outcomes. Although second generation children of immigrants have generally done well in Canada, we need to be mindful that current data reflect children raised in immigrant families who arrived in earlier waves and different labour market circumstances. We need to ask whether the children of today s immigrants will be able to realize their potential. Fifth, we still know relatively little about the impact of services, both pre-departure and post-settlement, on the outcomes of immigrants. This applies both to those who use those services and to those who are unable to access them. Sixth, the recession appeared to affect recent immigrants in particular and so there is a need to understand how that will impact their long-term employment trajectories. Lessons may be learned about how immigrant admissions or services need to be modified during economic downturns. Finally, as immigrant settlement patterns have shifted towards secondary cities and 3

5 peripheral areas, it will be important to understand the geographical variability of integration experiences across Canada s diverse regional economies and labour markets. 4

6 TABLE OF CONTENTS EXECUTIVE SUMMARY... 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS... 5 INTRODUCTION... 7 THE CHANGING PROFILE OF INTERNATIONALLY TRAINED IMMIGRANTS... 9 LABOUR MARKET INTEGRATION: ASSESSING OUTCOMES AND TRENDS FIELD/SKILL MATCH EDUCATION MATCH EMPLOYMENT, UNEMPLOYMENT AND PARTICIPATION EARNINGS OCCUPATIONAL PRESTIGE/SATISFACTION THE DETERMINANTS OF OUTCOMES COUNTRY / REGION OF ORIGIN PLACE OF EDUCATION LANGUAGE ABILITIES FIELD OF STUDY TIME OF ARRIVAL AND LENGTH OF RESIDENCE IMMIGRATION CATEGORY GENDER VISIBLE MINORITY DISCRIMINATION PRIOR WORK EXPERIENCE LOCATION WITHIN CANADA FCR AND PRE-DEPARTURE PROGRAMS THE COSTS OF INCOMPLETE FOREIGN CREDENTIAL RECOGNITION RESEARCH GAPS AND FUTURE QUESTIONS I) ALIGNING DATA GATHERING WITH ANALYSIS NEEDS? II) EXPANDING THE SCOPE OF QUALITATIVE STUDIES III) SKILLS UTILIZATION AND EQUITY WITHIN EMPLOYMENT CONTEXTS IV) GENERATIONAL EFFECTS OF POOR IMMIGRANT EMPLOYMENT OUTCOMES? V) ASSESSING THE EFFECTIVENESS OF SERVICES VI) ANALYZING THE IMPACT OF RECESSION VII) ASSESSING THE CHANGING GEOGRAPHIES OF IMMIGRATION

7 CONCLUSION BIBLIOGRAPHY APPENDIX A: SIGNIFICANT RESEARCH IN PROGRESS APPENDIX B: KEY ACADEMIC RESEARCHERS AND KEY RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS RESEARCHERS KEY RESEARCH ORGANIZATIONS APPENDIX C: OTHER RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS APPENDIX D: BIBLIOGRAPHY REFEREED JOURNAL ARTICLES APPENDIX E: BIBLIOGRAPHY - GREY LITERATURE APPENDIX F: BIBLIOGRAPHY - CONFERENCE PAPERS APPENDIX G: BIBLIOGRAPHY - BOOKS AND BOOK SECTIONS APPENDIX H: BIBLIOGRAPHY - DISSERTATIONS

8 Introduction Foreign Credential Recognition has continued to be an active area of policy-making, service provision and research over the last five years. Both provincial and federal governments have taken measures to address the problem and, at the same time, immigrant selection criteria have changed in efforts to ensure more productive processes of labour market adaptation and integration by newcomers. Civil society organizations have sought to provide services and develop advocacy campaigns to promote the full utilization of immigrant skills. Educational institutions have developed bridging and other programs to facilitate the conversion or upgrading of foreign credentials. Data gathering and analytical studies have meanwhile tried (not always successfully) to keep up with this changing landscape. The volume of research that continues to emerge on this issue highlights the academic, policy and popular interest that it generates. It is also worth noting that this is an issue of concern in many other national contexts with extensive programs of permanent immigrant settlement (e.g. US, UK, Australia), although this report focuses largely on the Canadian case, given the volume of material that is Canada-specific. In total, more than 400 items have been reviewed and stored in the online bibliographical database for this synthesis. This report addresses varied forms of labour market outcomes, beyond skills mismatch, and the range of determinants that shape these outcomes. The synthesis is organized in the following way. The first section draws attention to the changing profile and distribution of internationally trained immigrants arriving in Canada over the last two decades. As we try to understand the factors that influence immigrant success in the labour market, it is important to acknowledge that the characteristics of immigrants to Canada have change significantly. The second section identifies key themes in defining labour market success. These include: a match between the field of study or expertise of an immigrant and their occupational role in the Canadian labour market; the match between the level of education earned by an individual and their job placement in Canada; the patterns of employment, unemployment and participation in the Canadian labour market; the level of earnings for immigrants regardless of the match they find between skills and employment; and the occupational prestige or job satisfaction enjoyed by immigrants (even if they find themselves in a field unrelated to their earlier training). The third section of the synthesis reviews evidence for the influence of various factors in determining the labour market success of immigrants. Here we address: the country or region of 7

9 origin; the places in which immigrants earned their highest level of education; their capacity in one of Canada s official languages; the specific field of study or expertise that they brought to, or earned in, Canada; the point in time at which they arrived in Canada (and current economic conditions that prevailed) and the length of time they have been resident; the immigration category through which they were admitted to Canada; identity characteristics, especially gender and visible minority status, both of which are fundamental axes of segmentation in the labour market; immigrants place of settlement in Canada; prior work experience before arriving in Canada (and the sector in which that experience was gained); and the extent to which they have availed of foreign credential recognition services or pre-departure orientation programs. The fourth section of the report notes briefly some of the costs associated with under-utilization of immigrant skills (which go beyond economic costs of unused human capital). The fifth section identifies key data gaps and areas for further research. The bibliographic resources are annotated where possible (and where relevant) and are organized into several appendices according to the type of publication: refereed journal articles; grey literature; conference papers; books and book chapters; and theses and dissertations. 8

10 The Changing Profile of Internationally Trained Immigrants Part of the complexity in determining the outcomes of internationally trained immigrants is derived from the fact that their profile has changed dramatically over recent decades. This has reflected changing immigrant categories and selection criteria, the vicissitudes of events in sending countries, and the dynamics of economic development and labour market change in Canada. One clear shift since 2000 has been a declining share of immigrants settling in Ontario. Although it is still the top immigrant-receiving province, from 2000 to 2008 its yearly share of the national total fell from about 59% to 45%. The main beneficiaries were Quebec, Manitoba and Alberta whose shares rose from 14% to 18%, 2% to 4.5%, and 6% to 10%, respectively (Citizenship and Immigration Canada 2012a). Another change has been in the distribution of immigrants across various immigration categories (Picot and Sweetman 2012). This too has created distinctive profiles for each of the provinces. In 2008, for example, Ontario (43%) and Quebec (32%) received the majority of applicants and dependents in the Skilled Worker categories, while British Columbia and Alberta received only 14% and 8%, respectively. In the West, Provincial Nominee Programs, which started in 1999, were far more important than in Central Canada (Citizenship and Immigration Canada 2012a; Lewis 2010; Pandey and Townsend 2011; Stobbe and Harris 2013). The human capital profile of immigrants in terms of skill and education has also changed dramatically over time. For example, Reitz, Curtis, and Elrick (2014) note that the proportion of immigrants with a university degree rose from 20.8% of those who arrived in 1994 to 45.6% in 2001 (and remained at that level through 2009). The result is that the stock of recent immigrants in successive censuses has been increasingly highly educated relative to the native-born population: Among immigrants arriving 5 years before 1996, the proportion with university degrees was nearly twice as high for immigrants as for the native-born population (24.5% v. 12.8% for men, 19.2% v. 11.6% for women). For most recent immigrants in 2006, the proportion with university degrees was nearly three times as high as for the native-born 9

11 population for men (44.2% v. 15.0%), and nearly two and one half times as high for women (38.7% v. 15.2%) (Reitz, Curtis, and Elrick 2014:9). In other words, not only are immigrants more highly educated than the native-born population, but the trend has been for this gap to widen. The 2006 census was the first to ask about the location of respondents highest educational achievement. Xue and Xu (2010a) use this data to provide a comparison of immigrants and Canadian-born. While the vast majority (98%) of the Canadian-born obtained their highest degree or diploma in Canada, nearly half of immigrants with post-secondary education also had a Canadian degree (47%) in part reflecting the cohort of childhood immigrants who arrived with parents and have passed through the Canadian educational system. Not surprisingly, this proportion decreases significantly for recent arrivals. Interesting differences exist in the field of training held by immigrants and the Canadian-born, revealed in the 2006 Census (Xue and Xu 2010a). About one in five immigrants educated at a post-secondary level studied business, management, marketing and related support services (21%), which is a very similar proportion to their Canadian-born counterparts (20%). Engineering is the second most popular field of study among immigrants (12%), while for the Canadian-born, this field accounts for just 3% of degree holders. Immigrants were also more likely to be qualified in computer and information sciences and support services (5%), compared to the Canadian-born (3%). In contrast, only 5% of immigrants studied education, compared to 8% of Canadian-born degree-holders (Xue and Xu 2010a). In assessing issues of foreign credential recognition and labour market integration, it is important to note the shifting relative human capital endowments of immigrants and Canadianborn and to be mindful of temporal trends and geographical patterns. These dynamics mean that analyses of outcomes are always contingent upon the specificities of particular cohorts and places of settlement. 10

12 Labour Market Integration: Assessing Outcomes and Trends Recent research has used a diverse range of indicators to assess the labour market outcomes of internationally trained immigrants. Chen, Smith, and Mustard (2010), for example, point out that the commonplace observation that immigrants are often over-qualified for the jobs they hold can, in fact, reflect a range of different forms of mismatch. These might include the relationship of a current job to prior education, prior work experience, or expectations upon arrival in Canada. Using the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada they calculate that these three dimensions of over-qualification have different degrees of prevalence. After 4 years of residence in Canada, among the LSIC cohort of immigrants, 51.6% of immigrants were overqualified for jobs based on their education levels, 44.4% based on their prior work experience, and 42.8% based on their expectations (Chen, Smith, and Mustard 2010). The ways in which immigrant labour market outcomes are measured have implications for how the problem is understood and addressed. Here, we highlight five different metrics that have been used: Field/Skill Match; Education Match; Employment, Unemployment and Participation; Earnings; and Occupational Prestige/Satisfaction. Field/Skill Match Internationally trained immigrants arrive with skills in specific fields, usually indicated by the field of study for their highest degree or diploma. A mismatch exists where these skills are not utilized in their current occupation. This is perhaps the most egregious form of mismatch, as it means that skills are not even being used in a related occupation. For example, nurses who work as healthcare aides are under-utilizing their skills, but those who work as retail clerks are not using them at all. Lo et al. (2010) use 2006 census data to show that, regardless of where they earned their highest diploma or degree, most Canadian-born and immigrants work outside their major field of study. Nevertheless, there is significant variation: 46.3% of those with a Canadian degree worked in their field of study, while those who completed their highest degree in South Asia were the least likely (only 23.7%) to work in their field of study (Lo et al. 2010). Xue and Xu (2010b) also use 2006 census data and examine the employment mismatch for all immigrants with a post-secondary education. They see a match as made if a person is working 11

13 in a skilled occupation and an occupation related to their education. They find that an occupation mismatch exists for all immigrant cohorts, but those who have been in Canada for a longer time outperformed their more recently arrived counterparts in almost all major fields of study. They also find that the match rate between skills and occupation increased with higher levels of educational attainment, for example, among immigrants with graduate degrees (Xue and Xu 2010b). Education Match Another measure of mismatch is assessed by comparing the level of education held by an individual with the level required to perform their job. This might be assessed on the basis of self-reporting, objective job analysis, or realized mismatch (the latter involving a comparison of an employee s years of schooling with the average years of schooling for that job). Reitz, Curtis, and Elrick (2014) use 1996 and 2006 census data to show that a significant and worsening education mismatch exists for immigrants in the Canadian labour market. They examine the percentage of degree-holding immigrants who are working in managerial or professional occupations (which are assumed to require a degree) with the percentage of native-born Canadians. Among employed male recent (<5 years) immigrants with degrees in 1996, 50.4% were in managerial and professional jobs, compared to 70.7% of Canadian-born men. By 2006, the equivalent figures were 43.5% and 70.8%. Among women, the same comparison yields a much less dramatic change, but a greater differential between immigrants and non-immigrants. In 1996, 34.6% of employed, degree-holding recent immigrant women had managerial/professional jobs, compared with 64.5% of native-born women. By 2006, 34.4% of recent immigrant women had such jobs, and 66.9% of native-born Canadian women (Reitz, Curtis, and Elrick 2014). In other words, while recent male immigrants were more highly educated both in absolute terms and relative to their native-born counterparts by 2006, their occupational outcomes in terms of managerial and professional employment had worsened. For women, their significant disadvantage relative to Canadian-born counterparts (who are almost twice as likely to hold professional/managerial jobs) had persisted. Reitz, Curtis, and Elrick do not control for age (using a wide year cohort), which could contribute to the differentials, given that immigrants are on average younger than native-born Canadians. Nevertheless, these are striking results, especially over a period when policies and programs were attempting to address the problems of credential assessment and recognition. 12

14 Gilmore (2009) uses 2008 data from the Labour Force Survey. His results also suggest that educational mismatch is an ongoing issue. He finds that 42% of foreign-born workers possessed higher levels of education than their jobs required, compared to 28% of Canadians. In addition, recent university-educated immigrants were twice as likely to work in jobs for which they were overqualified as Canadian-born individuals. Employment, Unemployment and Participation While the full utilization of education and skills would maximize the talents of immigrants, their outcomes can also be measured in terms of participation in the labour force and employment/unemployment rates. These outcomes can vary greatly by immigration category, time spent in Canada after landing, family choices, and other socio-economic characteristics (Kustec 2012). Preston et al. (2010) examine unemployment rates for university-educated immigrants in the Toronto CMA using 2006 census data. The average unemployment rate for immigrant degreeholders (6.5%) is almost twice the unemployment rate for Canadian-born degree-holders (3.8%), even though the two groups have similar participation rates (80.1% and 84.2%, respectively). The unemployment rate is highest for recent immigrants. For immigrants who arrived in the 1980s, the unemployment rate was 4.7% in 2006, compared with 11.1% for those who arrived after Among university graduates, the unemployment rate for recent immigrants is nearly three times the rate for the Canadian-born. Employment rates (the percentage of adults, aged 15+, working for pay) are used by Yssaad (2012), who analyzes trends in the Labour Force Survey from 2008 to She notes an improvement in employment rates in the post-recession period, but one that is uneven in several respects. Employment among immigrants of core working-age (25 to 54) increased notably in 2011, following a tepid recovery in This pushed their unemployment rate down 1.1 percentage points to 8.4%, while their employment rate edged up to 75.6%. At the same time, the employment rate for the Canadian-born increased 0.5 percentage points to 82.9%. The employment rate gap between immigrants and the Canadian-born remained unchanged in 2011 compared to 2009, the year of the greatest labour market impact of the economic downturn. However, the unemployment rate gap narrowed slightly over the period. The bulk of the immigrant employment increase from 2010 to 2011 was accounted for by those who had been in the country for more than 10 years. Immigrants in the Prairies and British Columbia accounted for more than half of immigrant employment growth in Most of the growth in 13

15 immigrant employment from 2010 to 2011 was in health care and social assistance and in information, culture and recreation services. Between 2010 and 2011, employment increased among university-educated immigrants and among those with more than 10 years of residency. For university-educated Canadian-born, the employment rate was virtually unchanged. As a result, the gap between the two groups in terms of the unemployment and employment rates narrowed compared with Core-aged immigrants born in the Philippines had the highest employment rate of all immigrant groups (even higher than the Canadian-born), followed by immigrants born in Europe. African-born immigrants had the lowest employment rate and highest unemployment rate of all immigrant groups, and these patterns were particularly notable among African-born who had been in the country for 5 years or less (Yssaad 2012). A further employment-related indicator of labour market outcomes is based on periods of unemployment and the amount of time required to exit the ranks of the unemployed. Aboubacar and Zhu (2013) use data from the Survey of Labour and Income Dynamics (SLID) from to analyze periods of non-employment for immigrants from developing countries and to compare their situation to immigrants from developed countries and Canadian-born residents. They find significant differences in labour market mobility between these three groups, with immigrants from developing countries being particularly disadvantaged. Such immigrants experience more periods of non-employment than immigrants from developed countries and members of the Canadian-born population. Immigrants in general were also less likely to change their employment situation, and likely to experience longer periods of non-employment, than Canadian-born individuals. This indicates lower levels of access and mobility in the labour market among immigrants (Aboubacar and Zhu 2013). While employment provides an important indicator of labour market integration for internationally trained immigrants, the quality of employment may also be indicated by whether it is part-time or full-time. Using 2006 census data for Quebec, Boulet (2012) compares the incidence of parttime employment for men and women. She finds that despite being more highly educated than men (49.8% of female immigrants held a degree compared to 41% of male immigrants), women, and visible minority women in particular, held more part-time employment. Among female immigrants who were members of visible minorities, 20% held part-time positions (the highest percentage) compared to 5.7% of native-born non-visible minority males. Men who belong to a visible minority group (11.2%) are almost twice as likely to work part-time as nativeborn men who are not part of a visible minority group (5.7%) (Boulet 2012). 14

16 Earnings Regardless of whether an immigrant s labour market positioning matches their educational level or skills, it is earnings that ultimately determine their economic well-being. Buzdugan and Shiva (2009) use income as an outcome indicator and base their analysis on the 2002 Ethnic Diversity Survey. They show that education, work experience and official language proficiency are all significantly and strongly correlated with immigrant incomes. However, among these determinants Canadian work experience is a stronger predictor of income for immigrants than education, especially in the long term. Also, work experience prior to arrival is not significantly correlated with income therefore suggesting that this aspect of human capital is being heavily undervalued. Interestingly, Buzdugan and Shiva find that Western European and Australian degrees are valued the most (even more than Canadian degrees). They conclude that there are real processes of discrimination according to the country of origin of an immigrant s university degree. Plante (2010) uses 2006 census data to examine earnings among immigrants who hold a postsecondary qualification earned outside Canada (the census question on location of education was first asked in 2006). Even after securing employment, internationally post-secondary educated immigrants generally earned less than immigrants educated in Canada or Canadianborn workers with a post-secondary education. In 2005, internationally educated immigrants working full-time full-year in the core working age group of years had median earnings of $40,800, compared to $49,000 for immigrants educated in Canada, and $49,300 for Canadianborn workers with a post-secondary education ($49,300) (Plante 2010). Reitz, Curtis, and Elrick (2014) calculate the Canada-wide lost earnings due to both lower returns to education and under-utilization of immigrant skills. They find that the dollar value of a bachelor s degree for immigrant men, relative to Canadian-born men, declined from 80% in 1996 to 67% in For women, the value of education was lower than for men, but displayed greater stability. They note, however, that it is not just a lack of access to skilled work that disadvantages immigrants in the labour market. The low valuation of immigrant skills leads to them being paid less than equally qualified native-born Canadians even when they work in occupations at the same skill level (Reitz, Curtis, and Elrick 2014:19). Bonikowska, Hou, and Picot (2011) examine the wages of university-educated new immigrant workers over a longer time period, from 1980 to They find that the wages of men in this 15

17 category declined relative to those of domestic-born university graduates over the entire study period (Bonikowska, Hou, and Picot 2011). Data from IMDB provide a rich new source of information on immigrants relative earnings, as it links landing records with tax file data (Citizenship and Immigration Canada 2012b). Over the four-year period , average entry employment earnings for all immigrants (one year after landing) increased from $20,543 for the 2004 cohort to $23,862 for the 2007 cohort. This increase of 16% compares with an increase for all Canadians of 4.5% over the same period. There has therefore been an increase in immigrant entry employment earnings relative to average Canadian employment earnings, from 51% in 2005 to 58% in 2008 (Citizenship and Immigration Canada 2012b). Occupational Prestige/Satisfaction Adamuti-Trache, Anisef, and Sweet (2013) argue that it is important to understand the sense of occupational prestige that immigrants derive from their employment. This comprises the social status or distinction popularly attributed to a job, often regardless of the income that it provides. This matters analytically because, in short, it matters greatly to immigrants themselves. It helps us to understand and explain the strategies that they adopt to enhance their employability and career decisions that might be made. The researchers find (not surprisingly) that professions are viewed as having more distinction than trades and menial employment (Adamuti-Trache, Anisef, and Sweet 2013). This also has implications for the educational and career decisions made by the children of immigrants. Employment in regulated professions is an important component of occupational prestige, and the barriers to professional accreditation feature prominently in qualitative research on foreign credential recognition (e.g. Blythe et al. 2009; Guo and Shan 2013; Ingram, Friesen, and Ens 2013; Kelly, Astorga-Garcia, and Esguerra 2009; Shan 2013; Walton-Roberts 2012). It is worth noting, however, that there is considerable unevenness across Canada in the number of regulated professions. Girard and Smith (2013) use occupational categories from the 2006 census to examine the number of people working in regulated occupations. At one end of the distribution, they point out that in Quebec and Alberta, 17.8% and 16.3% of occupations are regulated (respectively), but at the other end in PEI and Newfoundland, only 9% and 8.5% (respectively) are regulated. 16

18 It is also worth noting that there are now numerous studies based on qualitative interviews or small-scale surveys that explore the levels of job satisfaction reported by immigrant professionals. For example, Zikic, Bonache, and Cerdin (2010) suggest that a range of strategies and trajectories are adopted in forging career pathways among deprofessionalized immigrants. In some cases, immigrants may be employed in jobs that are unrelated to their training but may nevertheless derive job satisfaction. Shields et al. (2010) suggest, based on data from the Workplace and Employee Survey of 2005, that in aggregate there are only small differences in levels of job satisfaction reported by Canadian-born and immigrant workers. 17

19 The Determinants of Outcomes The research literature has identified and tested a range of variables as determinants of labour market outcomes for internationally trained immigrants. Here we identify 11 important variables: Country/region of origin Place of education Language abilities Field of study Time of arrival and length of residence Immigration category Gender Visible minority status Prior work experience Location within Canada FCR or Pre-Departure services Country / Region of Origin There is increasing recognition that immigrants are far from homogeneous as a group when it comes to labour market experiences and outcomes. Indeed, being an immigrant is not necessarily in itself a key factor in determining outcomes. Sharp differences exist among immigrants arriving from different countries and regions of the world. While these differences are, in turn, related to factors such as place of education, official language abilities, racialized identities and immigration channels used, it is worth acknowledging at the outset that there are patterns of variegated outcomes depending on where an immigrant is coming from. The labour market outcomes for immigrants from developing countries suggest that they suffer from the most acute patterns of skill devaluation (Aboubacar and Zhu 2013; Buzdugan and Shiva 2009). Regional examples are provided by studies focusing on Latin America (Hakak, Holzinger, and Zikic 2010) and sub-saharan Africa (Creese and Wiebe 2012). Preston et al. (2010) examine the effect of country of origin on earnings in the Toronto CMA using 2006 census data. Canadian-born university graduates had average annual earnings of $61,900, but the earnings of well-educated immigrants varied according to country of origin, and were all well below the Canadian-born comparison group. Immigrants born in Guyana ($50,419.30), Jamaica ($42,743.50) and Hong Kong ($42,613.00) had the highest average annual earnings of all university-educated immigrants in the Toronto labour market. Immigrants from Pakistan ($23,140.90) and Iran ($26,384.10) had the lowest wages. Preston et al. also 18

20 found that unemployment and participation rates varied by country of birth: the unemployment rates for immigrants with university degrees were highest for immigrants born in Iran (9.3%) and Pakistan (9.0%). The unemployment rates are closest to those of Canadian-born university graduates (3.8%) for immigrants born in Poland (4.3%), Jamaica (4.6%), Hong Kong (4.8%) and the Philippines (4.8%). Immigrants with university degrees who arrived after 2000 are much more likely to be unemployed than those who arrived in the 1990s and 1980s. Among immigrants with university degrees who arrived after 2000, those born in Sri Lanka, Iran, and Guyana have the highest unemployment rates of 15.7%, 13.6% and 13.0%, respectively (Preston et al. 2010). Evidence from the 2006 census, then, suggests that there are clear distinctions between groups from different regions and countries of origin. While this variable might in reality be a proxy for other factors, it is a significant starting point for analysis, not least because immigrant communities and social networks are most commonly formed on the basis of country of origin. Place of Education The first step in adding nuance to the country of origin variable is to take note of where such immigrants received their education. Girard and Smith (2013) use 2006 census data to point out that 50% of immigrants with post-secondary education had acquired it (or some of it) in Canada. This provides an important reminder, not only that immigrants are not necessarily internationally educated, but also that the category immigrant also includes individuals who arrived in Canada with their parents during childhood. Girard and Smith are concerned with access to regulated professions as an indicator of labour market success. They find that such access is higher among those who received some of their education in Canada, the US and Europe. Those who reached their highest level of study in Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean had lower rates of access to professions. Using slightly older data from LSIC, Adamuti-Trache, Anisef, and Sweet (2013) also note that the source country has a statistically significant impact on occupational prestige. Immigrants from non-anglophone source countries scored significantly lower on occupational prestige, with immigrants from South Asia having the poorest rankings. They argue that education received abroad is usually discounted in Canada either with overt barriers to recognizing foreign credentials, or by covertly dismissing the value of the education and previous work experience. 19

21 Shields et al. (2010) use LSIC data (from the survey s third wave in 2004) to show that immigrants who obtained Canadian credentials after arrival were far more likely (four years after landing) to have found employment related to their field of study or training. The rate of match between training and employment ranged from 63.0% to 79.7% for immigrants who returned to school, depending on the level of training/education taken (the higher number being those who took a Canadian university degree). This compared with a baseline of 43.2% and 32.2% for male and female immigrants, respectively, who obtained no further training in Canada. The differences between immigrants who returned to school and those who had not returned to school are significant. Among those who returned to school, the acquisition of a university degree was the route most likely to lead to employment related to the field of study/training (Shields et al. 2010). Anisef and Adamuti-Trache (2010) also use LSIC data to ask whether recent immigrants with foreign degrees, who pursue various post-secondary education pathways in Canada, find successful employment outcomes. They identify four possible pathways for internationally trained immigrants: 1. Recycling those who seek further job-related education and training in the form of a credential in non-university institutions (e.g., community and career colleges, institutes, trade school) (29% of the sample) 2. Value Added those who enrol in university to pursue a degree in same field (8% of the sample) 3. Starting Anew those who seek a university degree in a different field (9% of the sample) 4. Non-Participation those with no education or non-pse education or training (54% of the sample) The authors find that all groups improve their employment status in Canada after arrival, but that the level of improvement is lower for Non-Participants and those in the Recycling pathway group and higher for the two university pathway groups (Value Added and Start Anew). Furthermore, immigrants in the latter two categories also showed greater improvement in occupational prestige. The greatest gains were made by those in the Value Added group, who were able to pursue university education in Canada. 20

22 There are several reasons for this. One is that employers are better able to assess the value of locally obtained credentials and tend to see them as more legitimate (Adamuti-Trache, Anisef, and Sweet 2013:183). Also, while pursuing local education, immigrants strengthen their social networks and increase resources available to them by interacting with native-born students and faculty and creating bridging networks through participation in extracurricular activities. Therefore, education in the host country provides immigrants with social and cultural capital. Nevertheless, a very large number of recent immigrants are drawn to non-university educational programs or community colleges. They do so in order to a) take shorter (and less expensive) programs, b) take courses required for credential recognition, c) seek courses as prerequisites for university programs, or d) acquire familiarity with technical terms, to upgrade their skills, or simply to obtain a Canadian credential that is more trusted by employers. Lo et al. (2010) use 2006 census data to examine the impact of place of education on the match between field of education and field of work. Controlling for many other variables (age, gender, visible minority status, period of immigration, fluency in official language, whether working in regulated occupation or not, and census metropolitan area of residence) they find that for immigrants with a university degree, the odds of having relevant employment were similar for those who graduated from an English-speaking country (odds ratio=0.926) and those with Canadian degrees (odds ratio=1). Those with degrees from South Asia, however, had the lowest odds of relevant employment (odds ratio=0.432). Those with foreign-earned trade certificates or college diplomas had even lower odds of finding relevant employment than those who had studied in Canada. For immigrants, obtaining their highest education in the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa had a positive effect on earnings (even compared to those with Canadian education working in the same occupation and city). Except for university degrees obtained in Southeast Asia, credentials obtained from non-english-speaking countries had a negative effect on wages. Controlling for other factors, the greatest negative effect was for degrees and diplomas from East Asia, closely followed by West Asia/Middle East/Africa and South Asia. The smallest negative effects on wages are degrees/diplomas from the Caribbean, Central and South America and Continental Europe (Lo et al. 2010). Some similar results from 2006 census data are also reported by Plante (2010). He finds that more than 60% of internationally educated immigrants with credentials from Ireland (70%), New Zealand (66%), Israel (64%) and Australia (63%) reported working in their field of study or in an occupation requiring similar or higher skill levels. In contrast, with education-occupation match 21

23 rates below 45%, immigrants with credentials from regions other than Europe, Oceania, North America, and Southern Africa experienced greater difficulties in finding jobs in their fields of study or in equivalent occupations. The role played by country of education also varies by credential held. While more than 90% of immigrants with credentials in medicine from New Zealand, Sweden, Australia, the United States and the United Kingdom reported working as a physician or in an occupation requiring similar or higher skill levels, this was the case for less than a quarter of those with similar credentials from Japan and South Korea. While university education in Canada seems to be correlated with better outcomes in some respects, it is also important to note that the program offerings for immigrant professionals are evolving rapidly (and improving). Several studies note the importance of qualitative and soft skills as an important element of upgrading for foreign-trained individuals (e.g. Friesen 2010). In another paper, Friesen (2011) examines the expansion of a university-based FQR program in Manitoba to include issues such as cultural understanding, professional networking, and language development. With such changes underway, assessing the impact of educational programming received in Canada is an ongoing task. Language Abilities A part of the place-of-origin and place-of-education effects is likely to be derived from language proficiency. Cao and Boyd (2009) use 2001 census data to confirm a positive correlation between English/French language proficiency and immigrant earnings. They also show that lacking skills in an official language is associated with unemployment and underemployment. Cao and Boyd argue that language programs that are available upon arrival, such as LINC, may not make enough of a difference as they may not provide workplace relevant language skills and the catchments for such programs are small (according to LINC data, only 20% of newcomers participate in the program). Furthermore, these programs are for immigrants who have arrived within 3-5 years, but studies show that some immigrants who have been in Canada for many years still experience low levels of language proficiency (Cao and Boyd 2009). Kelly et al. (2010) use the 2003 International Adult Literacy and Skills Survey (IALSS) to ask whether there is a language skill threshold required for positive labour market outcomes. They find that although immigrants generally have lower earnings than the Canadian-born, there is a substantial jump in hourly earnings between Language Level 2 and Level 3 among established immigrants (from $18.44 to $26.47) and recent immigrants ($13.23 to $26.08). This would seem to suggest that Level 3 language proficiency represents a tipping point for the improvement of 22

24 immigrants labour market outcomes. At higher levels of literacy (Levels 4 and 5), the IALSS data indicate that earnings among immigrants actually exceed those of Canadian-born. It is notable, however, that recent immigrants with strong language skills still have unemployment rates that are approximately three times those of Canadian-born or established immigrants. This implies that, for some immigrants, poor labour market outcomes are not necessarily linked to poor language ability. When examining occupational skill matching, Kelly et al. (2010) find that recent immigrants had much higher levels of over-education than the Canadian-born, or established immigrants at lower literacy levels. This would appear to indicate the significance of language skills in finding work that matches the training of immigrants. The highest incidences of mismatch are consistently found in the lowest levels of language skill (Levels 1 and 2), which implies that educated immigrants without adequate language skills are unable to apply their skills in the workforce. Whereas IALSS uses objectively assessed language competency scores, comparisons can also be made using LSIC data, which includes self-assessment of reading, writing and speaking abilities. Tufts et al. (2010) use the LSIC data on spoken language abilities to show that there are significant differences in earnings based on language skills. Also, more than half of immigrants who speak English or French very well or fluently find work in a field related to their education/training, compared to less than 20% for immigrants with poor language skills. For both men and women, after 4 years in Canada, poor language ability leads to unemployment rates double those of male and female immigrants who can speak English or French very well. Tufts et al. (2010) also find that gender differences in labour market outcomes are accentuated for women with poorer language skills, while those with strong language skills have outcomes closer to their male counterparts. Field of Study There is evidence that the degree of mismatching of employment against skills or education varies according to the field in question. Girard and Smith (2009) use 2006 census data to show that immigrant under-representation in regulated professions is greater among those with education in some fields than in others. For example, 33.5% of immigrants educated in health, social science and education fields work in regulated occupations compared to 49.2% of nativeborn Canadians. A quite different situation exists for those educated in the natural and applied sciences: 37.85% of immigrants are in regulated occupations compared to 35.9% of Canadianborn (Girard and Smith 2009). Adamuti-Trache, Anisef, and Sweet (2013) similarly find that field 23

25 of study matters in relation to occupational prestige. Higher prestige outcomes are associated with education in the fields of health, mathematics, computer science and engineering. Xue and Xu (2010b) also use 2006 census data to show that significant disparities in employment and occupational outcomes exist across fields of study, but they combine this variable with consideration of where the qualification was earned. Expectedly, immigrants with a Canadian post-secondary degree had a better chance of finding employment and working in occupations commensurate with their educational level and field of study. This advantage is more apparent in the fields of business and management, marketing and related support services, social sciences and education. For immigrants with a degree from outside Canada, prospects are better for those who have graduated from universities in the U.S., the U.K. and France, and particularly those in fields such as engineering and computer and information sciences and support services. Graduates from China and India also fare better in these fields. Some groups, however, facing more barriers to skilled occupations (NOC O, A and B) include immigrants with Filipino degrees, and immigrants from China, India and Pakistan who are trained in fields other than engineering and computer sciences. While immigrants with Filipino degrees had a very low unemployment rate of 4.2%, they also had the lowest proportion working in skilled occupations among all countries of study under analysis (42.1%). Time of Arrival and Length of Residence Immigrants are attempting to integrate into Canadian labour markets, but prevailing labour market conditions vary over time. This can affect both immediate earnings and the match between skills and occupation, as well as longer term trajectories of employment. There is also evidence that recessionary conditions have the most severe consequences for recent immigrants, who are most likely to lose their jobs. Abbott and Beach (2011) use data for three immigrant cohorts from 1982, 1988 and 1994 to show that economic recessions had major negative effects on immigrants earnings levels and earnings growth rates. These effects were much more pronounced for male immigrants than for female immigrants. Median earnings growth rates for both male and female immigrants were generally lowest for the 1988 landing cohort, which encountered the early 1990s recession soon after landing in Canada, and highest for the 1994 cohort which experienced no official recession and saw more favourable macroeconomic conditions over its first ten years in Canada (Abbott and Beach 2011). 24