Will Canada remain the No. 1 choice for global talent?

Canada’s recently-announced immigration levels plan will welcome more newcomers than ever over the next few years, with up to 500,000 per year by 2025. This ambitious plan underscores the importance of immigration in our social and economic future. It echoes calls from groups like the Century Initiative to increase Canada’s population to support a more prosperous, resilient, and influential future. It is often forgotten that immigrants must choose us before we can choose them. Happily, a 2021 survey from Boston Consulting Group found Canada was the No. 1 destination of choice for potential migrants to live and work. But to keep that top spot, attracting, welcoming, and retaining immigrants must be seen as a whole-of-society endeavour. I recently attended a meeting of international officials in Berlin, where we discussed migration issues and policy-making processes. Other countries are facing the same challenges we are: labour and talent shortages, uncertain economies, inflation, and housing unaffordability. But they look to Canada’s success in attracting prospective immigrants and want to emulate what works here. Our spot at the top is not guaranteed. For Canada to remain the first choice of global workers in all sectors, we first need to ensure they will have jobs that fit them. Our economic selection and settlement programs must respond, above all, to the needs of our employers. They are the ultimate gatekeepers when it comes to the labour market integration of most immigrants. By ensuring that employers have a stronger voice in the selection of the people who will come to fill jobs, Canada can better address the high levels of unemployment and chronic underemployment immigrants historically face. We also have to address immigration application processing delays to keep the flow of needed talent moving. Employers can themselves improve. The Canadian economy loses tens of billions of dollars yearly because employers fail to recognize newcomers’ skills and abilities. Businesses create a competitive edge for themselves if they shift their thinking away from using only official credentials as a shorthand for ability, and toward truly looking for skills and competencies. Eighty per cent of the labour market is unregulated, meaning that credentials are not needed; all that’s required is the trust from an employer that the candidate can do the job. In an era where businesses cite a lack of available talent as a barrier to growth, they’re willfully ignoring the deep pool of skills we have in the immigrants who are already here. Departments like Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) are helping to move us in this direction by funding programs that help immigrants better explain—and employers better understand—their talents. But we cannot view immigration as the sole responsibility of IRCC. Integration has always been a whole-of-society exercise, yet many of the key players have not stepped up to the plate. Employers, universities, colleges, and communities have all reaped the rewards of an effective and efficient immigration program. Yet, most do not invest enough in the integration and well-being of the newcomers that grow their businesses, pay high fees for their classes and grow their communities. As Canada ramps up its immigration numbers, it is to our benefit to step back and look at how we encourage stakeholders to play their role in selecting and integrating newcomers. IRCC should reconsider the carrots and sticks, required to have those who benefit from immigration contribute their fair share to its success. Of course, Canada would not be where it is without many notable bright spots: more of our institutions need to follow the lead of New Brunswick Community College and Northeastern University, which invest in the settlement and integration of their international students. The City of Vernon, B.C., is seeing tremendous success using the federal Rural and Northern Immigration Pilot Program to connect newcomers with employers and the broader community. With a retention rate of over 90 per cent of newcomers over the last few years, this community leads by example. Further scaling successful pilot programs like this across Canada can provide employers and communities with the tools they need to understand immigrant talent while helping immigrants better integrate into their new homes. Immigration is not the only solution to labour market challenges, but it is an important driver of growth. Immigrants are choosing us above other countries, but we cannot be complacent. Canada can keep its place on the global podium, but like any serious competition, we will all have to work for it. Patrick MacKenzie is the CEO of the Immigrant Employment Council of B.C. He works in policy and program areas aimed at supporting Canada’s communities through economic and social development. He previously spent 11 years working for Immigration, Refugees, and Citizenship Canada in Ottawa and Vancouver. The Hill Times