Supporting immigrants to get Canadian credentials - is it worth it?

By Dianne Fehr

An accountant with a Master's degree, Abdulhameed had a very successful career before he came to Canada. He held many senior positions, including one with a significant North American oil and gas company with operations in Libya. Fleeing the volatility and war in their home country of Iraq, Abdulhameed and his family immigrated to Canada in 2005.

Abdulhameed worked hard to settle his young family in Calgary, and spent
most of the family's savings to do so. Unable to find work as an accountant
because he didn't have Canadian training or experience, he worked as a clerk
at a convenience store for minimum wage.

Abdulhameed knew his best chance to escape his survival job was to get
Canadian training in his field of accounting. On his minimum wage income,
though, the $550 fee for each course was impossible.

Thankfully, Abdulhameed learned about the Immigrant Access Fund, a micro
loan program that helps immigrants living in Alberta with the costs of
obtaining the Canadian accreditation or training they need in order to work
in their pre-immigration occupation. An Immigrant Access Fund micro loan
made it possible for him to register for the accounting classes he needed.

Abdulhameed completed only two accounting classes before being hired by a
Calgary energy company. His starting wage was $40 an hour.

When he earned minimum wage, Abdulhameed paid neither federal nor provincial income tax because he didn't earn more than the basic personal exemption amount.

Earning $40 an hour, he would pay about $12,000 in income tax in his first
year alone. Abdulhameed eventually obtained a Canadian accounting
designation. As a young professional with an income that is sure to grow,
Abdulhameed's contribution to Canada's prosperity during his working life
will be significant.

This week, Community Foundations of Canada released its Canada’s Vital Signs 2010 report, which highlights the fact that immigrants with university degrees
are much more likely to be unemployed than their Canadian-born counterparts.
Clearly, Canada is not optimizing the economic potential of these highly
educated workers.

As a taxpayer, I would like every immigrant like Abdulhameed to have
employment commensurate with his or her skills and experience. I want them
to pay tax, be active consumers, and contribute to their communities. The
Immigrant Access Fund and hundreds of other organizations across
Canada – including the immigrant employment councils that are springing up in
many communities – are coming up with innovative ways to help skilled
immigrants become job-ready, supporting employers as they adopt inclusive
hiring practices and diverse workplaces, and encouraging regulatory bodies
to be open and accepting of their internationally educated/trained
colleagues.

Given the tremendous rate of return Canada realizes when people move from
minimum wage to full employment, it only makes sense to ensure that this
happens. Under very conservative estimates, the rate of return on the public
funds that help support the Immigrant Access Fund's work is 33% (more for
high-earning occupations). I expect that any program that results in
immigrants working at their potential would see a similar return.

Fully integrating Canada's immigrants into our workforce is not an
impossible dream; Immigrant Access Fund is doing it one micro loan at a
time. I know from dealing with recipients of Immigrant Access Fund loans
that skilled immigrants are highly motivated to succeed and willing to do
what it takes. They sometimes need a bit of help, and it is in everyone's
best interest that we support them when they do.

Dianne Fehr is Executive Director of the Immigrant Access Fund Society of Alberta