Conservative Immigration Changes

[penlessej]

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/RTGAM.20080323.wimmigration24/BNStory/National/homeNow I understand that there is a backlog of some 900,000 people waiting to have their applications processed but what does giving the Minister the power to cap and hand pick have to do with a solution to the problem of a backlog

Comments

[siobhan63]

I have disliked our revolving door system that allows anybody in no matter their expertise.Our system does no such thing. The vast majority of immigrants to this country come here under one of 2 classes: family sponsorship or skilled worker. It is true that if one is sponsoring family members, then their actual skills are not taken into account, but it would be truly heartless to deny people the right to be with their spouse, for example, just because that person doesn't certain job skills

[penlessej]

In my opinion, we accept far too many unskilled workers as it is and even in this area we should put a cap even if it is for family members.

I have actually heard of far more cases of highly skilled people coming to Canada through both family sponsorship and skilled worker but because of complicated trade and academic qualification recognition they end up taking on low paying jobs (the PhD cab driver).

[allhatnocattle]

We have an unskilled labour shortage. High in demand is someone who can wash dishes, push a wheelbarrow, or flip a burger.

Doctors from South Africa and Saudi Arabia already meet our qualifications where doctors from India and the UK don't. My Saudi doctor explained that the university he went to in Riyad was set up by Canadians and copied our educational specifications.

[mr_marlboro]

how can unskilled workers get jobs when even skilled ones can't find work? there is not tool and die making anymore in canada, its all fled to mexico and china. no one should be brought here so that they flip burgers, their life back home more likely better than being exploited that way. there was something in the toronto star last week about people being brought in to work in ethnic restaurants working 18 hour days and not being paid and being treated like indentured servants.

i don't get this whole oh we need more workers thing. i think were being lied to by all parties. they're only brining in immigrants so that the CPP doesn't go bankrupt when all the older canadians retire.

[harry_beast]

That doesn't mean though that they cannot find work, but not everyone can find work in the field that they prefer to find it within.
If Canadian citizens have to settle for low paying minimum wage jobs that are far below their skill level, how come immigrants don't have to? This sounds like a huge double standard. Also, if there is enough labour in Canada that we can afford to consign large chunks of the population to the career rubbish heap, how come we need to bring in large numbers of immigrants to glut the labour market even further?

stop blaming the government!

[mr_marlboro]

its the professional governing bodies (e.g. doctors associations, engineer's associtaions) that set the qualifications and jumping through hoops.

also, if you come from the chernobyl school of nuclear science and trained as a nuclear engineer, i'm sorry, but we have different standards here and you shouldn't expect to work here with those qualifications.

Urban Myth

[mr_marlboro]

"...end up taking on low paying jobs (the PhD cab driver)."

that's an urban myth. your so called PhD cab driver from somalia, zaire or serbia is more likely to be a war criminal than a doctor who is barred from working here.

oh please! i'm a PhD from afghanistan and i'm stuck driving a cab. or i went to school in the eastern bloc and no records exisit anymore becasue my country is called something else now or the school closed. whatever!

a lot of immigrants also have trouble finding work because, they're just not assertive enough, lack the proper english or smell like foods they cook at home when they apply for jobs.

sheesh! its time to stop blaming for why immigrants can't find good work. maybe the ghanaian, nigerian or bangladeshi actually doesn't have an education? look at all the times you read in the paper of a cab driver sexually assualting a female passenger or committing a crime, its more likely that they had a crimial record back home than a PhD!

Re: Urban Myth

[3_ryan_island]

"your so called PhD cab driver from somalia, zaire or serbia is more likely to be a war criminal than a doctor who is barred from working here."

There are those sweet, sweet over generalizations I love to read so much.

While I may not agree with the majority of crap people post here about immigrants being lay-abouts and Canada having an open door immigration policy, I can always count on you to lower the level of discourse that much further.

Kudos!

Re: Urban Myth

[mr_marlboro]

seriously, a lot of these immigrants come from countries where they were raised to not think independently and to be meek. they're not that assertive. look at those mainland chinese who grew up with the "yes sir yes sir three bags full" mentality. that does not help you get a job here.

if you apply for a job, were some deodorant! don't cook curry for the week before and make sure your clothes don't smell like fried fish!

also, they come from "backward" places. i'm saying that with conviction and screw cultural relativity. being a misogynist like you were back home or being uncomfortable with a woman boss is not going to help you. these days, you can't bring your homophobia from back home into the workplace too.

Re: Urban Myth

[3_ryan_island]

"a lot of these immigrants come from countries where they were raised to not think independently and to be meek

Re: Urban Myth

[3_ryan_island]

Fair enough.

What I meant by my statement is that I may not agree with certain statements or arguments they are generally well-founded or have some credibility, whereas he storms in and spouts some xenophobic nonsense overgeneralizations effectively hurting all valid argument he may or may not have. It just ends up hurting the discussion. I wasn't trying to single you or anybody else out (with obvious exceptions).