Nice CV! You Will Hear From Us: Canadian Labor Market and the Phenomenology of the Marginalized Ethnic Professional Migrant

Abstract

Problem statement:In the last several decades, the quest for human capital has meant that Canada's consideration of potential migrants hinged largely on the needs of its labor market. Applying the human capital theory espoused by Schultz (1961) Canada, like other industrialized countries shows interests only in those migrants who it strongly believes will make exemplary contributions to the economy. Approach: Whereas migrants of European descent have run the gauntlet of Canadian labor market integration, Visible Minorities especially have experienced and share narratives of unprecedented devaluation of their education, training, skills and lived experience. At the premigration stage, most of these migrants were highly qualified professionals in various fields. At the post-migration phase they are cleaners, cab drivers, nurse's aide, telemarketers and despondent citizens. Results: This study evaluated international lived experiences of some ethnic migrant professionals to Canada; provided a comparative analysis of the migrant professionals and resident or non-migrant types. It examined systemic barriers to full integration, including the intersectionality of race, ethnicity and gender in the integration or exclusion of migrants from the labor market and participation in the economy. Conclusion: It proffered research-based policy approaches to full integration of migrants into the labor market, economy and citizenship participation.

Discourse Pertaining to Immigrants & Refugees by the Trudeau Liberal Government

“…Neoliberalism assumes that almost everyone through hard work-ethic and enough aspiration can elevate their human effort and capital in order to succeed in the society. Human capital refers to professional skills, education and other types of knowledge that can yield as economic return (Ogbuagu 2012). Neoliberalism can also be understood in terms of a meritocracy, where one's success is not predetermined from birth, but is obtained through their skills and knowledge gained through the endless opportunities provided for all in the free capitalistic society (Sharma 2011).…”

Discourse Pertaining to Immigrants & Refugees by the Trudeau Liberal Government

“…Neoliberalism assumes that almost everyone through hard work-ethic and enough aspiration can elevate their human effort and capital in order to succeed in the society. Human capital refers to professional skills, education and other types of knowledge that can yield as economic return (Ogbuagu 2012). Neoliberalism can also be understood in terms of a meritocracy, where one's success is not predetermined from birth, but is obtained through their skills and knowledge gained through the endless opportunities provided for all in the free capitalistic society (Sharma 2011).…”

Who Says We are Dumb?: Identification of the Causes of Learning Difficulties Encountered by New Immigrant Learners in their Adaptation to the Canadian Classrooms

“…Stiffman & Davis (1990) define acculturation as "the acquisition of patterns of another's group" (p.329). They list reasons for the acculturative stress, which occur amongst most minority groups as poverty, discrimination, unemployment, low socioeconomic status (Ogbuagu, 2012), and fewer educational opportunities, among other things. Ullman, and Tatar (2001) compare immigrants' psychological constructs, because of being uprooted from their old life, where they had a support system, to those experienced by war veterans-PTSD, mal-adaptation, nightmares, depression, somatization disorders, which can be comorbid with mood and anxiety disorders with unknown or unclear pathophysiology.…”

“…If according to Delwyn & Tattum (1992), "language makes possible the richness and variety of human social life" (p.17), it is not surprising, therefore, that a child who has a language problem would have problems socializing with other children in and out of the classroom setting. Most of the new learners in the study, including those with advanced degrees in languages other than English were afraid to engage in class discussions, contingent on their experiences with being ridiculed by others from the dominant cultures (Ogbuagu, 2012). Understanding the linguistic needs of an immigrant learner is very vital in order not to misunderstand and misinterpret the demeanor of such a learner as learning disabled.…”

“…A measure of an individual immigrant's traditional culture and the scope of the usage of English, as a second language, from the country an immigrant leaner comes, determine his or her English proficiency. The issue of limited English proficiency has been a very sticky point vis-à-vis the extent of the adaptative problems most of the immigrants have in their new cultures (Ogbuagu, 2012) as the schools in the new culture continue the socialization process started at childhood. The sum of the process of socialization by the family, church, school, media, friends, started early in an immigrant's life struggles for continuity in the new culture.…”