The ACTEW Blog

While Ontario's Labour Market Development Agreement (LMDA) recognizes new immigrants as one of several client groups having “more complex needs” that may be met through “enhanced services”, it does not name the particular needs and barriers of immigrant women.

Employment is a central concern for immigrant women, yet they face many barriers to securing stable, suitable work.

Research by the National Organization of Immigrant and Visible Minority Women of Canada (NOIVMWC) confirms that immigrant women still statistically remain at a disadvantage in securing sustainable employment. In their study of employers' perspectives, NOIVMWC found that women’s immigration status poses the biggest barrier to employment. Immigration status provoked issues such as credential recognition, language proficiency, lack of Canadian experience and cultural knowledge.

NOIVMWC identifies two key issues specific to immigrant women that must be addressed to achieve systemic employment gains:

• the need for changes in government policy and settlement services so that there is an integrated process for guiding immigrant women into the job market and enabling them to have access to adequately compensated jobs commensurate with their educational background and professional experience gained either in their countries of origin or in third countries
  
  
• the need to upgrade the services offered, so that immigrant women can be professionally accompanied from settlement to integration in the Canadian economy and society.

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