Many new immigrants to Canada have a difficult time getting Canadian work experience and integrating into life in Canada. Census statistics show recent immigrants have a lower employment rate (62.2%) than non-immigrants (71.7%), and the unemployment rate of visible minority newcomer women (9.7%) is higher than both visible minority (8.5%) and non-visible minority (6.4%) newcomer men.
With an aging workforce, Canada is actively recruiting highly skilled foreign workers to immigrate to Canada to fill open jobs and create new jobs to help grow Canada's economy.
To help highly skilled newcomers find work and enter the job market more quickly, Canada announced a $10 million Call for Concepts under the Foreign Credential Recognition (FCR) Program on March 7, 2019, to help internationally trained skilled newcomers to Canada get their credentials recognized, gain Canadian work experience and find work.
"Helping newcomers obtain assistance to have their foreign credentials recognized will allow them to join the Canadian workforce faster, which is critical to growing our economy and strengthening the middle class. Through this Call for Concepts, we are giving more newcomers a fair chance at success in Canada."
– The Honourable Patty Hajdu, Minister of Employment,
Workforce Development and Labour Press Release
Canada defines a highly skilled newcomer as "someone who holds an internationally obtained post-secondary degree, diploma or certification recognized in Canada, including apprentices." The Call for Concepts will help fund 15 approved projects to help newcomers find work; submissions are due by April 11, 2019.
Immigration lawyer Evelyn Ackah helps people move to Canada, including work permits and visas for highly skilled immigrants, and applauds the government's commitment to helping newcomers find work in Canada and commit to staying in Canada:
There are many highly educated and trained people who want to move to Canada, and Canada needs these foreign workers to fill jobs and grow our economy. The Express Entry - Permanent Residence - Federal Skilled Worker program helps attract Canada attract skilled foreigners, and government programs that address the barriers many immigrants face in getting their foreign skills recognized in order to work in Canada are essential to a successful immigration initiative.
