DISCLAIMER:
The following has been prepared by Colin R. Singer, Attorney At Law, for the intended reference by interested individuals and is not intended to create an attorney-client communication. This writing may be reproduced for the personal non commercial use of interested individuals on the express or implied condition that the contents herein are neither edited, modified nor altered in whole or in part, directly or indirectly without the express written consent of the author herein. (Canadian Immigration and Employment Law)

A team of researchers from the University of Montreal's Ethnic Studies Research Center has recently published the results of a study which concludes that newcomers to Montreal integrate quickly into the Quebec labor force: (Comparative Immigrant Economic Integration by Victor Piche, Jean Renaud, Lucie Gingras). The findings also suggest that national origin is an influencing factor in the success or failure of immigrant integration.

The findings are derived from an analysis examining two areas of immigrant economic assimilation: (1) length of access to first employment and (2) income and socio-economic status after 26 weeks of residence in the Province of Quebec.

The study comprises of 1000 immigrants divided into six World Bank geographical regions (Sub Saharan Africa; the Middle East and Africa; East Asia; South Asia and the Pacific; South America and the Caribbean; Eastern Europe; and the rest of Europe and North America) from 80 countries who arrived in Montreal from 1989 - 1992. Longitudinal data is compiled from a number of micro-individual indicators of pre and post migration attributes of newcomers. Education, language and social (class) origin were the pre-migration attributes examined while the post migration factors included duration of residence, age at arrival, immigration status and date of arrival.

The sampling procedure includes a series of interviews which took place a year after arrival (on average, after 43 weeks of residence) covering the sample group. Questions were formulated on household composition as well as events having occurred since arrival in Quebec such as employment, non-employment, studies, housing, etc. The second and third years rounds of interviews took place at the end of the second and third years of stay respectively, and focused on events which had occurred since the first interviews.

With regard to access to first employment, male immigrants (the study, to its deficiency, does not adequately address the differentials of female immigrants) from the rest of Europe/North America were the fastest to become employed, requiring on average, only three weeks after arriving. Immigrant men from Sub Sahara Africa and Asia were the slowest, requiring up to twenty and eighteen weeks respectively to become employed. Among women, it is also those with origins in the rest of Europe/North America who most quickly become employed (eighteen weeks).

Once employed, a significant number of immigrants maintained their employment status for at least six months, the focal point in the study measuring income and socio-economic status (SES).

The study considers employment as all forms of remunerated work, be it salaried or self-employed, full-time or part-time, and regardless of duration.

Hourly wage was used to consider income. This aspect of the study reveals large discrepancies between the high income earners, (rest of Europe and North America), and the low earners (Sub Saharan Africa), this despite their strong pre-migratory attributes (they are well educated, come from families of high socioeconomic status and mostly have strong language skills upon arrival).

Job status (SES) was measured by income, education level and profession prestige. Once again the rest of Europe/North America ranked the highest among all groups. Interestingly, the Sub-Saharan Africa grouping experienced a high level of (SES) despite having the lowest income. The study also reveals a number of additional statistical findings:

- Very few Sub Sahara Africans had migrated after the age of 41 whereas this age group accounts for nearly a third of Asian immigrants.

- Refugees represent a large proportion of Eastern Europeans (46.2%), with virtually none from the Middle East/North Africa and the rest of Europe/North America.

- Certain groups declare a strong knowledge of French upon arrival (such as those from Sub Saharan Africa, Middle East/North Africa, and the rest of Europe/North America).

- An estimated 80% of men and 60% of women find employment in the first year of settlement; only 6.8% of men and 25.6% of women had not found employment within the three years of observation.

Canadian Citizenship & Immigration Resource Center (CCIRC) Inc.
Law Offices of Colin R. Singer
Authorized by the Government of Canada

Newcomers Integrate Rapidly in Quebec
DISCLAIMER:
The following has been prepared by Colin R. Singer, Attorney At Law, for the intended reference by interested individuals and is not intended to create an attorney-client communication. This writing may be reproduced for the personal non commercial use of interested individuals on the express or implied condition that the contents herein are neither edited, modified nor altered in whole or in part, directly or indirectly without the express written consent of the author herein. (Canadian Immigration and Employment Law)

A team of researchers from the University of Montreal's Ethnic Studies Research Center has recently published the results of a study which concludes that newcomers to Montreal integrate quickly into the Quebec labor force: (Comparative Immigrant Economic Integration by Victor Piche, Jean Renaud, Lucie Gingras). The findings also suggest that national origin is an influencing factor in the success or failure of immigrant integration.

The findings are derived from an analysis examining two areas of immigrant economic assimilation: (1) length of access to first employment and (2) income and socio-economic status after 26 weeks of residence in the Province of Quebec.

The study comprises of 1000 immigrants divided into six World Bank geographical regions (Sub Saharan Africa; the Middle East and Africa; East Asia; South Asia and the Pacific; South America and the Caribbean; Eastern Europe; and the rest of Europe and North America) from 80 countries who arrived in Montreal from 1989 - 1992. Longitudinal data is compiled from a number of micro-individual indicators of pre and post migration attributes of newcomers. Education, language and social (class) origin were the pre-migration attributes examined while the post migration factors included duration of residence, age at arrival, immigration status and date of arrival.

The sampling procedure includes a series of interviews which took place a year after arrival (on average, after 43 weeks of residence) covering the sample group. Questions were formulated on household composition as well as events having occurred since arrival in Quebec such as employment, non-employment, studies, housing, etc. The second and third years rounds of interviews took place at the end of the second and third years of stay respectively, and focused on events which had occurred since the first interviews.

With regard to access to first employment, male immigrants (the study, to its deficiency, does not adequately address the differentials of female immigrants) from the rest of Europe/North America were the fastest to become employed, requiring on average, only three weeks after arriving. Immigrant men from Sub Sahara Africa and Asia were the slowest, requiring up to twenty and eighteen weeks respectively to become employed. Among women, it is also those with origins in the rest of Europe/North America who most quickly become employed (eighteen weeks).

Once employed, a significant number of immigrants maintained their employment status for at least six months, the focal point in the study measuring income and socio-economic status (SES).

The study considers employment as all forms of remunerated work, be it salaried or self-employed, full-time or part-time, and regardless of duration.

Hourly wage was used to consider income. This aspect of the study reveals large discrepancies between the high income earners, (rest of Europe and North America), and the low earners (Sub Saharan Africa), this despite their strong pre-migratory attributes (they are well educated, come from families of high socioeconomic status and mostly have strong language skills upon arrival).

Job status (SES) was measured by income, education level and profession prestige. Once again the rest of Europe/North America ranked the highest among all groups. Interestingly, the Sub-Saharan Africa grouping experienced a high level of (SES) despite having the lowest income. The study also reveals a number of additional statistical findings:

Very few Sub Sahara Africans had migrated after the age of 41 whereas this age group accounts for nearly a third of Asian immigrants.

Refugees represent a large proportion of Eastern Europeans (46.2%), with virtually none from the Middle East/North Africa and the rest of Europe/North America.

Certain groups declare a strong knowledge of French upon arrival (such as those from Sub Saharan Africa, Middle East/North Africa, and the rest of Europe/North America).

An estimated 80% of men and 60% of women find employment in the first year of settlement; only 6.8% of men and 25.6% of women had not found employment within the three years of observation.

The study advances a number of conclusions:

1- Newcomers to Montreal are found to integrate quickly into the Quebec labour force.

2- Once in the work force, national origin of immigrants as well as human capital variables exercises significant influences on the earned income and job socioeconomic status of immigrants.

3- Immigrants from industrialized nations (North America and (non-Eastern) Europe are clearly distinguished from other groupings of immigrants by their stronger capacity in obtaining jobs with higher income and socioeconomic status.

4- The study assesses that certain groups of immigrants are discriminated against based on, amongst other factors, the difficulty in translating human capital experiences from less economically developed societies.

5- Discrimination operates through differential recognition of labor market qualifications in a discriminatory credentialing process.

6- The duration of residence is determinant in the integration process: over time immigrants may develop counter-strategies (e.g. increased education) to improve their qualifications.

7- Albeit this study seems thorough in its use of reliable statistical models to determine the performance of immigrant groupings, it is, however, important to note that the amalgamation of numerous individuals into only six regions may greatly detract from the basis of the study's findings. It is therefore difficult, without further national origin specification, to consider the performance of specific groups of persons necessarily definitive.

8- The study does appear however to debunk ongoing and longstanding myths about the negative influence of immigrants in Canada and perhaps North America as a whole. With this study having been conducted in the City of Montreal where rates of unemployment are perhaps one of the highest of any major city in the western world, one could expect that immigrants within other major cities in Canada and North America (where rates of employment are lower) are likely to succeed in even more pronounced measures.