The Impact of Economic Selection Policy on Labour Market Outcomes for Degree- Qualified Migrants in Canada and Australia

IRPP Diversity, Immigration and Integration

choicesVol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 ISSN 0711-0677 www.irpp.org

Lesleyanne Hawthorne Lesleyanne Hawthorne is associate dean, international, at the University of Melbourne. Previously she was research manager at Australia’s ounded in 1972, the Institute for Research on Bureau of Immigration, Multicultural and Popu- Public Policy is an independent, national, lation Research. She has 20 years of experience F nonprofit organization. researching high skill migration. Most recently she was recruited by the Organisation for Economic IRPP seeks to improve public policy in Canada by Co-operation and Development to compare high generating research, providing insight and sparking skill migration patterns across 10 member nations. In 2005-06 Professor Hawthorne was appointed to debate that will contribute to the public policy an Expert Panel of Three by Australia’s federal decision-making process and strengthen the quality of cabinet to do the most extensive evaluation of the the public policy decisions made by Canadian nation’s skill migration program since 1988 (all professional fields). Since September 2007 the governments, citizens, institutions and organizations. panel’s recommendations have governed the selection of all economic migrants. In 2004-06 she IRPP's independence is assured by an endowment fund was commissioned by Citizenship and Immigration established in the early 1970s. Canada, Statistics Canada and Human Resources and Social Development Canada to compare labour market outcomes for migrant professionals in Canada and Australia in 10 key fields. In 2006-07 she completed the most complete Australian study ondé en 1972, l’Institut de recherche en to date on foreign medical graduates (following the politiques publiques (IRPP) est un organisme main Australian studies on global mobility in the engineering and nursing professions). Additional F canadien, indépendant et sans but lucratif. major consultancies include studies on global high-skill migration and foreign credential L’IRPP cherche à améliorer les politiques publiques recognition for the OECD and UNESCO. canadiennes en encourageant la recherche, en mettant de l’avant de nouvelles perspectives et en suscitant des This publication was produced under the direction débats qui contribueront au processus décisionnel en of Geneviève Bouchard, Research Director, IRPP. The manuscript was copy-edited by Mary Williams, matière de politiques publiques et qui rehausseront la proofreading was by Barbara Czarnecki, production qualité des décisions que prennent les gouvernements, was by Chantal Létourneau, art direction was by les citoyens, les institutions et les organismes Schumacher Design, and printing was by AGL Graphiques. canadiens. Copyright belongs to IRPP. To order or request L’indépendance de l’IRPP est assurée par un fonds de permission to reprint, contact: dotation établi au début des années 1970. IRPP 1470 Peel Street, Suite 200 Montreal, Quebec H3A 1T1 Telephone: 514-985-2461 Fax: 514-985-2559 E-mail: [email protected]

All IRPP Choices and IRPP Policy Matters are available for download at www.irpp.org

To cite this document:

Hawthorne, Lesleyanne. 2008. “The Impact of Economic Selection Policy on Labour Market Outcomes for Degree-Qualified Migrants in Canada and Australia.” IRPP Choices 14 (5).

The opinions expressed in this paper are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of IRPP or its Board of Directors. Diversity, Immigration and Integration / Diversité, immigration et intégration Research Director / Directrice de recherche Geneviève Bouchard

his series comprises individual IRPP Choices and IRPP Policy Matters studies on Canadian T immigration policy and its challenges, and also on other countries’ immigration and refugee policies. Issues discussed in this research program include the relationship between sovereignty and economic integration, security and border control, and reconcilia- tion of economic and humanitarian objectives.

ette série comprend des études Choix IRPP et Enjeux publics IRPP qui portent sur la poli- C tique canadienne d’immigration et ses nouveaux défis, mais également sur les différentes politiques d’immigration et de protection de réfugiés partout au monde. Les questions abordées dans ce programme de recherche touchent aux rapports entre souveraineté et intégration économique, sécurité et contrôle des frontières, conciliation des objectifs économiques et humanitaires.

Contents

2The Policy Context 7Canada’s and Australia’s Selection of Degree- Qualified Migrants 12 Employment Outcomes for Degree-Qualified Migrants: The 2001 Census 30 Employment Outcomes for Economic Principal Applicants 36 Conclusion 39 Appendix 42 Notes 44 References IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 Lesleyanne Hawthorne and Australia* Migrants inCanada Degree-Qualified Market Outcomesfor Selection Policy onLabour The ImpactofEconomic reviewed by two anonymous referees. anonymous two by reviewed peer been has it series, the in papers 2007a).all Like(Hawthorne Compared” Australia and Canada Professionals: Migrant for Outcomes Market “Labour entitled Canada, Development Social and Resources Human and Canada, Immigration and Citizenship Canada, Statistics by commissioned study a of version updated and revised abridged, an is Choices IRPP This * illegal, permanentandtemporary. Temporary people and unskilled,familymemberrefugee,legal G Economic migrationtrends The Policy Context with active Given thedynamismofthesetrends,fewnations number ofimmigrantsseekingtoenteranother. ty ofoneimmigrant-receivingcountrymaylowerthe movement isrisingmarkedly. Therelativeaccessibili- (PAs) qualifiedinthe professions. Skilledmigrants stantial numbersofpoints-tested principalapplicants in theeconomiccategory— in particular, ittook sub- 2006, 2008).In2004,Canada selected133,746people Economic Co-operationand Development[OECD] ment ofmigrantswithskills(Organisationfor have placedextraordinaryemphasisontherecruit- Over thepastdecade,bothCanadaandAustralia and theUnitedStatesat11.7 percent(Miller2005). nationalities), followedbyCanadaat19.2percent (24.6 percentofthepopulation,representingover240 world’s highestpercentageofforeign-bornresidents migration programs.By2005,Australiahadthe administered economic,familyandhumanitarian nation buildingthroughgovernmentplannedand (Stahl, Ball,InglisandGutman1993,xiv). resource development,populationandforeignaffairs” of policyareas:economicdevelopment,human dures toensurepositiveoutcomesinadiverserange policy goals...toutiliseimmigrationselectionproce- programs toachievediverseandoftenincompatible tering “difficultiesinharnessingtheirimmigration obliged tomodifytheirentrypolicies,whileencoun- Canada andAustraliaareglobalexemplars of embraces everycategoryofpeople—skilled the earlytwenty-firstcentury. Migration lobal migrationisadefiningphenomenonof 1 immigration programsareconstantly 2 constituted 59.6 percent of the total planned intake are, in order: China, India, Philippines, (224,346 people) at this time, far exceeding the tar- Pakistan, United States, Colombia, United Kingdom, South Korea, Iran and gets set for family (51,500 to 56,800) and humanitari- France…Canada plans to admit between an (30,800 to 33,800) entrants. By 2005, the number 240,000 and 265,000 immigrants in 2007. Of those about 60% are to be economic class, of economic migrants to Canada had risen to 156,310 meaning skilled workers, 25% family class, (counting business immigrants and provincial/territo- and 15% protected persons. (2007, A4) rial nominees), and an estimated 138,193 were due to Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The arrive in 2006 (Cardozo and Guilfoyle 2007; Differences in Canadian and Australian Citizenship and Immigration Canada 2007). The pro- economic migration policy, 1999 to the present portion of economic migrants selected by Australia in Within this context, Canada competes for economic 2004-05 was virtually identical to that selected by migrants with Australia and other Western nations, as Canada (58 percent), including 77,800 applicants out well as with select parts of Africa, Asia and the Gulf of a permanent migrant/humanitarian intake of States. In the recent period, to address the needs of their 133,000 people. knowledge economies, Canada and Australia have: Australia’s preference for economic migrants has •Prioritized economic migration remained dynamic, with targets of 97,500 achieved •Diversified immigrant source countries and skill levels for 2005-06 and 2006-07, and 102,500 set for 2007- •Utilized points systems designed to improve selection 08 — the largest in the country’s history (Birrell, objectivity while maximizing employment outcomes Hawthorne and Richardson 2006; Australia, •Strengthened regional initiatives to encourage more Department of Immigration and Citizenship 2007a, geographically dispersed settlement patterns through 2008). Canada’s current immigration program allo- policy input and expanded settlement options cates 138,257 places for economic migrants out of a •Enhanced scope for two-step migration (the transi- total annual quota of 240,000 to 265,000 (reduced to tion from temporary to permanent status) about 57 percent ), including 67,000 places for skilled •Attempted to minimize program abuse through the workers, 22,000 for provincial nominees and up to introduction of more coherent and transparent selec- 12,000 for those in the new Canadian Experience tion systems Class (Mamann 2007). It is important to note here the While both Canada and Australia use points-based decreasing proportion of landed immigrants derived selection criteria designed to support economic category from OECD nations by both countries, a trend associ- development and growth (based on a system devised by ated with the growing problem of overqualification Canada in the 1970s), it is essential to note the sharp (OECD 2008).2 divergence in the strategies used that has emerged in the In March 2007, Canada’s first release of 2006 past decade. According to a recent paper, Census data confirmed the significance of migration The human capital model…has dominated to the country’s population growth and economic Canada’s selection of skilled migrants — endorsed in its most recent migration review development in a context where “[i]mmigration and (2002), and standing in sharp contrast to an unprecedented economic boom in Alberta fuelled a Australia’s intensification of screening for select employment attributes. While educa- population surge in the country that outpaced every tion level matters for principal applicants, other G8 industrialized nation from 2001 to 2006, field and place of qualification do not, in a including the United States” (Weeks and Leong 2007, context where labour market demand is seen as hard to predict and ‘individuals can expect 1). Between 2001 and 2006, Canada’s population grew to have several careers over their working by 1.6 million, despite a declining fertility rate of 1.5 lives.’ According to Hiebert (2006) the pre- vailing Canadian view is that ‘well-trained — close to two-thirds of this a consequence of recent flexible individuals…who have experience in migration. The impact of migration flows was striking the labour force’ should be able to ‘adapt to in Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver and to a lesser extent rapidly changing labour market circum- stances.’ In consequence ‘general’ rather than Calgary, with 90 percent of all national growth con- ‘specific’ competence is sought — Canadian centrated in cities (O’Neil 2007). According to Brean, selection criteria admitting PAs with limited host country language skills, non-recognised Of the 1.2 million international immigrants qualifications, and in fields of minimal over the five year census period, fully half labour market demand on an equal basis to Hawthorne leyanne went to Ontario. Roughly 44% of immigrants those with more immediately sought after to Canada are female, a proportion that has attributes. (Birrell, Hawthorne and been increasing by about one percentage Richardson 2006; 130-1) point a year. The 10 largest source countries

3 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 •R e d u c e d p•H o e i aincluded: n v t iviews dovaryonthis).KeyIRPA modifications s e rmentals andgrapplewithglobalrealities(though f o wsented alostopportunitytore-examinethefunda- r e iCanadian officialsinterviewedforthisstudyitrepre- w g o htion changes,intheviewofanumbersenior r t k iProtection A n e g x p f e o r r i e e n d c u e c a ( t a i o m n e a a l s u q r u e a l i f i c a t i o n s to the39,239 migrants whoarrivedwithdiplomas. migrant professionals arrivedinAustralia, inaddition Between 1986and1991, 91,193 degree-qualified speaking-background (NESB) sourcecountries. market outcomesfor professionalsfromnon-English- researchers hadconsistently identifiedinferiorlabour (though somevestigesremain).From1980to1996, capital modelforselectingeconomicmigrants trast toCanada,haslargelyabandonedthehuman criteria oftheUnitedKingdomandNewZealand. which alsoincludesfurtherdetailsoftheselection Australia’s pointssystemsin2005,seetheappendix, comprehensive comparisonofCanada’sand 8; OECD2008;Aydemir andSkuterud2005).Fora when gainedinnon-OECDnations)(Sweetman2004, Canadian labourmarket experience”(particularly substantial declineintheeconomicreturntopre- required), despiteresearchevidenceconfirming“very work experience(closetoone-thirdofthetotal allowed. Substantialpointswerestillallocatedto competency, withself-assessmentbyapplicantsstill guage testingordefinedlevelsofEnglish/French was nomandatoryrequirementforhost-countrylan- (OECD 2007; Kustec,ThompsonandLi2007). There ential recognitionratesinCanadanotwithstanding other forselectionpurposes—thecertaintyofdiffer- eign credentialswerestilltreatedasequaltoeach •M o d e s•E t x t•I c e n a n c p s r a i e c o a i n s t e y o d f f p o t o r h i e n t t e a s m g p e f o o r r r a a r n h y g o e s e t n f - t o c r r o a u n w n t h t s i r c y t h o l p a s o n h i g i n u f t a t s g e t a o r a e b i l i t y for doctoral-leveldegrees ing taken intoaccountandseveralbonuspoints (to amaximumof25points),withyearsschool- While Canada’s Over thepast10 years,Australia,inmarked con- Despite suchinnovations,aftertheIRPA allfor- and ImmigrationCanada2002) preference forpermanentmigration(Citizenship permanent residentstatusinthecontextofaclear awarded (uptoage53) educated graduates) designed toencouragetheentryofrecenttertiary- ct, 2002 Immigration andRefugee (IRPA) heraldedeconomicselec- serving broadsocialpurposes,highandpersistent humanitarian migrationintakes wereendorsedfor tism (Hawthorne2005).WhileAustralia’sfamilyand found selectionpolicyshiftfromaltruismtopragma- under JohnHowardin1996coincidedwithapro- advantaged. sional work,andNESBworkers wereinvariablydis- of 1986-91 degree-qualifiedarrivalsfoundprofes- Australia: just41 percentof1981-85 and49percent disappointing formanymigrantslongsettledin Hawthorne 1997).Labourmarket outcomesremained tion periodfoundworkinanyprofession(Birrelland employed; fewdiplomaholdersfromthesamemigra- 30 percentofthesedegree-qualifiedmigrantswere ing. Withinonetofiveyearsofarrival,however, just and theproportionsinotherkey professionswereris- puter professionalsand40percentofitsdoctors— electrical/electronic engineers,43percentofitscom- Australia’s mechanicalengineers,48percentofits By 1991, theoverseas-bornconstituted49percentof Multicultural Affairs 1999,vii).Inthedecade since, (Australia, Department ofImmigrationand to evaluatetheeffectiveness ofthepointstest in 1997-98,thedepartment initiated amajorreview applicants. Followingapreliminary auditconducted actively “selectingforsuccess” fromamongprincipal migrants inthefirsttwoyearsaftertheirarrivaland process, abolishingsocialsecuritybenefitsfor reviewed andtransformeditseconomicselection Immigration andMulticulturalAffairssystematically budget” (Ruddock1996,1). bution totheAustralianeconomy, labourmarket and benefits,” while“quicklymak[ing]apositivecontri- skills…becom[ing] quicklyestablished…notrequir[ing] “obtaining ajobsoonafterarrivalthatusestheir make “a goodskill[ed]applicant,”mostnotably, Multicultural Affairsdefinedsixkey attributesthat tion, theDepartmentofImmigrationand stating itsdeterminationtochangeeconomicselec- program toonethatisinthenationalinterest.”In ing governmentaimedto“returnthebalancein gy as“outofbalanceandoutcontrol,”theincom- Australia’s ImmigrationPolicy 1988). nomic development(CommitteetoAdvise on explicitly devisedin1988tosupportAustralia’seco- ness oftheeconomicmigrationprogram—one migrants wasperceivedtounderminetheeffective- unemployment amongrecentlyarrivedskilled The electionofAustralia’sLiberalgovernment From 1996to1999,Australia’sDepartmentof Jettisoning theformerLaborgovernment’sstrate- 4 Australia has sought early and positive employment Australia’s recently completed 2005-06 economic integration rates from the program — given that migration review (the most extensive since 1988) has results at six months are strongly correlated with confirmed the effectiveness of these policy initiatives in long-term labour market performance (Birrell, delivering superior labour market outcomes (Birrell, Hawthorne and Richardson 2006). To facilitate this Hawthorne and Richardson 2006). To fine-tune the pro- process, the review drew on two definitive databases: gram further, additional measures were introduced the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Australia (starting in September 2007) related to enhanced Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The (LSIA) (based on a representative sample of 5 percent English-language ability, level of domestic labour mar- of migrants/refugees from successive cohorts of ket demand and work experience of former internation- 1990s migration); and a comparative analysis of al students (who, by 2005, constituted 52 percent of employment outcomes for migrant professionals from economic migrants). a variety of countries/regions of origin (based on 1996 Census data). Comparative economic migration labour market In line with the review’s findings, since 1999 an outcomes: recent data increasing number of principal applicants at per- How do the results of Australia’s decisive economic ceived risk of delayed or deskilled employment in migration policy change compare with the outcomes of Australia have been excluded from economic migra- Canada’s human capital selection model? A decade ago, tion at point of entry through rigorous expansion of labour market integration rates for economic migrants premigration English-language testing (extended to to Canada and Australia were virtually identical: about family-skill categories), mandatory credential assess- 60 percent of principal applicants secured some form of ment and a range of additional modifications to the work six months after their arrival. Since then, points selection process. Key Australian policy initia- Australia’s outcomes have dramatically improved while tives have included: Canada’s have stood still. This is despite the near-iden- •Allocation of greatest points weighting to “the tical economic cycles of the two countries, and the fact core employability factors of skill, age and English that they are equivalent settlement sites for degree- language ability” based on the establishment of qualified migrants across all immigration categories “minimum threshold standards” for each of these (economic, family and humanitarian), as demonstrated aspects (Australia, Department of Immigration and by the 2001 Census analysis. Multicultural Affairs 1999, 12) Major gains have been achieved in Australia by tra- •Additional points weighting for occupations in ditionally disadvantaged groups. Employment rates demand, along with degree-level qualifications within six months of arrival for principal applicants related to specific (rather than generic3) profession- from Eastern Europe rose from 31 percent to 79 percent al fields between 1993-95 and 1999-2000, compared to 57 to •Allocation of bonus points for former international 76 percent for migrants from the Philippines, 56 to 73 students with credentials recently completed in percent for those from India and 45 to 61 percent for Australia (a minimum of one and subsequently those from China. The negative impacts of older age two years) and female gender have been greatly reduced. •Abolition of age-related points for applicants aged According to the most recent available data (May 45 and over and English-language points for 2006), 83 percent of principal economic applicants are applicants possessing less than “vocational” levels now employed in Australia within six months of of English arrival, with 60 percent immediately using their cre- •Allocation of further bonus points for those with dentials and skills. Their salary levels have risen astro- recent continuous Australian or international nomically. Their average weekly wage is now experience in a professional field, for those with a AUD$1,015, compared to AUD$769 for Australian “genuine job offer” in an occupation in demand, graduates in their first full-time job (Birrell, Hawthorne for those with a spouse satisfying economic appli- and Richardson 2006). cation criteria, for those bringing “a high level of In Canada, by contrast, wage outcomes have wors- capital with them to Australia” (AUD$100,000 or ened to the point where it may take 20 to 30 years for Hawthorne leyanne more) and for those sponsored by close Australia- principal economic applicants to achieve parity (if they based relatives (Australia, Department of ever do) with comparably qualified Canadians Immigration and Multicultural Affairs 1999) (Frenette, Green and Picot 2004; Pendakur and

5 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 informants: ported byextendedinterviewswith32key Canadian definitive CanadianandAustraliandatasetssup- this issue.Theresearchwasbasedonthefollowing Coulombe 2007, 5-6). from 13%intheearly1990s)”(Picot,Houand the skilledeconomicclass,and41% haddegrees(up poor immigrant;bythelate1990sone-halfwerein rose. Whatdidchangewasthefaceofchronically peared by2000,asthenumberofhighlyeducated school educatedintheearly1990shadlargelydisap- educated enteringimmigrantshadover, say, thehigh parts, andthesmalladvantagethatuniversity chronic low-incomethantheirfamilyclasscounter- actually morelikely toenterlow-incomeandbein skilled classenteringimmigrants[toCanada]were entrenched disadvantage:“[B]ytheearly2000s, economic migrationisnewlyassociatedwith and Skuterud 2005).Assummarizedinarecentstudy, Aydemir 2004; Reitz 2004; 1998, Pendakur percent forCanada comparedto3.0percent for gross domestic productfrom1991 to1996was1.7 decade. Whiletheaverageannual growthinreal remarkably similareconomic cyclesinthepast to affirmthatCanadaandAustralia havehad lyzing theirlabourmarket experiences,itisimportant degree- ratherthandiploma-levelcredentials.Inana- •T h e L o n g i t u d i•2 n 0 a 0 l 1 S C u e r n v s e u y s o d•I n a m t m I a i m g m — r i a g a t r l i a l o n o n t w s i a n r t g r o i a v C n a a a l n l a y s d s t a i a s t i o s f t i t c h s e f o r d e g r e e - q u a l i f i e d This studyinvestigatesarangeofdatarelevantto The studyfocusesonrecentimmigrantswith 2006, isalsoprovided) outcomes (thelatestAustralianLSIA data,toMay Australian policydifferencesonlabourmarket in ordertoassesstheinfluenceofCanadianand principal applicantsbetween1994-95and2000-01 economic points-tested for rates integration ket —allowingcomparison oflabourmar- (LSIA) data Longitudinal SurveyonImmigrantstoAustralia (LSIC), theImmigrationDatabase(IMDB)and negative labourmarket outcomes well asthefactorsassociatedwithpositiveversus migrants (acrossallimmigrationcategories),as employment opportunitiesfordegree-qualified extent towhichCanadaandAustraliaoffersimilar immigration categories assisted familystreams,comparedtoallother Canada andAustraliawithintheeconomic nition ofthescaleinflowsskilledmigrantsto migrants in10 professionalfields—allowingdefi- 4 5 and werelookingforemployment,botheconomies countries’ longitudinalandcensussurveys]arrived period, duringwhichmigrants[includedinboth superior tothatofCanada.Duringthe1996-2001 ing the1991-1996 periodthatAustralia’sgrowthwas form wellduringthedecadeto2001, itwasonlydur- very alike”: “WhereasAustralia’seconomydidper- economic perspective,AustraliaandCanada“look study. According toRichardson andLester, from an provides anexcellent baseforacontrastingpolicy Australia averaged7.4percent.Suchcomparability rates werealsosimilar:Canadaaveraged8.1percent; 0.2 to0.3percentineachcountry. Unemployment with anaverageannualemploymentgrowthofabout was employed,comparedto69percentofAustralia’s, 1996 to2001, 69.5percentofCanada’spopulation percent inCanada;2.7Australia).From age byalmostidenticalratesineachcountry(2.8 course ofthedecade,realGDProseannuallyonaver- Canada comparedto3.9percentforAustralia.Inthe Australia, from1996to2001 itwas3.8percentfor •C a r e f u l c a t e g o r i z•I a n t i l o i n n e a t w•E i m t t p h h l e o c y s e m t n e a s n r u t t s o o a u•W f n t h d c ical issueshere: t o l h L m e e S e I s tance” (2004,10). s C h t / r e ube explainedsimplyintermsofeconomicperform- L a d S t f y force performanceofmigrantstoAustralia…cannot I h i A e nperformed equallywell.Thus[any]superiorlabour r d p i r t n a h g c a s t n i o c e f e a , r t n h t i i h n s e g s s t l u e d v y e l s s h e d l i g h t o n Statistics Canada. level ofemployment, basedonexpertadvice from Australia, ma-level qualificationsbetween Canadaand ensured directcomparability ofdegree-anddiplo- significant work). assess theproportionofnewlyarrivedmigrantsin erous ILOdefinitionofemploymentwasusedto (where “mainactivity”ratherthanthemoregen- except inrelationtoAustralia’sLSIA 3outcomes tion of“employment” wasusedthroughout, International LabourOrganization’s(ILO)defini- monly usedinAustralia. given thattheformeraremeasuremorecom- are theprimaryfocusofanalysistofollow, here. migration, whichthereforecannotbeprovided extend topolicyrecommendationsoneconomic the initialreportonwhichitisbaseddidnot important policychoices,thetermsofreference I shouldbrieflynotefouradditionalmethodologi- 7 as wellfieldofqualification and 6 6 Canada’s and Australia’s Selection secondary diplomas or certificates, compared to of Degree-Qualified Migrants Australia’s 570,905 degree-qualified migrants and Recent migration in the professions: landed 270,183 diploma-qualified migrants. From 1996 to 2001, immigrants newly arrived migrants were more than twice as likely as the Canadian-born to be degree-qualified (37 percent compared to 15 percent). Similar patterns were evident he past decade has seen a vast inflow of in Australia (26 percent compared to 14 percent), and Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The degree-qualified professionals to both Canada the trend was appearing in a growing number of OECD and Australia with credential levels far exceed- T nations (OECD 2006, 2008) (see tables 1a and 1b). ing those of previous cohorts. From 1996 to 2001, 37 This credential superiority of recent migrants in rela- percent of all migrants to Canada possessed degrees, tion to the native-born applied to women as well as compared to 21 percent of pre-1991 arrivals and 22 men. Male migrants to Canada were far more qualified percent of 1991-96 arrivals. The credential level of than females (41 percent of males held degrees, com- these intakes surpassed that of migrants to Australia, pared to 33 percent of females); but both genders where 26 percent of 1996-2001 arrivals held degrees, exceeded the credential norm of the Canadian-born (15 compared to 17 percent of pre-1991 migrants and 24 percent of Canadian-born males held degrees, compared percent of 1991-96 migrants. to 16 percent of females). In Australia, by contrast, In terms of numbers, by the time of the 2001 recently arrived females were virtually identical in terms Census, Canada’s population included 978,139 degree- of education levels to migrant males (25 percent of qualified migrants and 758,589 migrants with post-

Table 1a Educational Attainment1 among Canadian- and Foreign-Born Adults,2 by Period of Arrival, 2001 (percent)

Post-secondary Post-secondary, Period Degree/higher diploma no diploma High school of arrival degree or certificate or certificate or less All (N)

Canadian-born3 15.0 19.0 20.1 46.0 16,009,426

Foreign-born4 Before 1991 20.8 19.9 18.7 40.7 2,657,064 1991-96 22.1 17.1 18.5 42.3 719,443 1996-2001 36.6 14.9 14.2 34.3 726,880

Foreign-born total 23.8 18.5 17.9 39.8 4,103,387

Total 20,112,81

Source: 2001 Census (Canada). 1 Includes those with a bachelor’s or a higher degree. 2 Includes adults aged 15 to 64. 3 Includes those born outside Canada to Canadian parents. 4 Excludes nonpermanent residents (employment authorization, student authorization, minister's permit or refugee claimants).

Table 1b Educational Attainment among Australian- and Foreign-Born Adults,1 by Period of Arrival, 2001 (percent)

Diploma/advanced Period Degree/higher diploma/ Skilled of arrival degree certificate IV vocational Other All (N)

Australian-born 13.7 7.6 13.3 65.4 8,765,927

Foreign-born2 Before 1991 16.6 8.5 13.1 61.8 2,231,809 1991-96 23.9 9.3 8.6 58.2 308,835 1996-2001 26.1 10.6 7.2 56.1 483,700

Foreign-born total 18.9 8.9 11.7 60.5 3,024,344 leyanne Hawthorne leyanne Total 11,790,271

Source: 2001 Census (Australia). 1 Includes adults aged 15 to 64. 2 Excludes those for whom birthplace or year of arrival is unknown.

7 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 •I n fwell asinformationtechnology): o rregulatory professionsinCanadaandAustraliaas m avocational fields(includingvirtuallyallofthemajor t iintegration fordegree-qualifiedmigrantsinseven o nassociated withgreaterorlesserratesofeconomic tcy formation,thecurrentstudyassessedfactors e csions inCanadaandAustralia.To informfuturepoli- h nmigrants hasaclearpotentialtoimpacttheprofes- o l o gwith significantemploymentramifications.) y shall see,thegenderofskilledmigrantsisanissue ( Ifemales and27percentofmaleshelddegrees).(Aswe T ) •Engineering oa 102. 6447793,374,057 129,420 7.9 6.5 152,245 91,337 4.7 515,503 312,154 3.8 208,140 9.6 1,106,842 4.6 287,723 384,653 9.8 16.4 2.1 76,749 8.8 11.9 5.2 6.8 19.8 7.6 109,292 3.5 29.0 5.8 1.8 15.9 5.5 22.2 3.6 22.1 8.7 19.0 5.0 15.3 71.0 19.9 11.4 9.2 77.8 20.9 9.4 15.5 35.3 21.9 14.7 23.4 35.5 15.2 23.7 35.3 24.3 64.7 19.4 50.4 27.3 76.6 64.5 84.8 48.7 64.7 Total 75.7 50.9 49.6 72.7 Other sciences physical and Natural 51.3 arts creative culture, and Society commerce management, of Rest 49.1 Accounting education Teacher, Nursing studies Medical building and Architecture Engineering technology Information Professional Foreign-Born and Canadian- 2a Table oa 773. 1042711,769,154 189,175 7.1 5.8 100,923 137,949 4.2 285,971 145,453 47,251 3.6 7.7 405,391 2.7 136,454 218,339 21.0 8.2 2.8 32,554 9.9 19.4 7.0 4.6 69,694 11.6 10.5 2.2 32.3 5.4 1.8 7.0 5.8 28.8 3.6 14.2 8.5 23.4 5.0 19.2 67.7 23.8 15.2 4.4 71.2 30.1 7.2 20.5 35.7 27.7 20.1 24.1 37.4 19.8 22.3 45.8 31.1 64.2 27.4 47.8 35.6 75.9 2 1 (Canada). Census 2001 (Australia), 2001Census Source: 62.6 80.2 33.7 54.2 Total 68.8 48.8 52.2 64.4 Other sciences physical and Natural 66.3 arts creative culture, and Society commerce management, of Rest 51.2 Accounting education Teacher, Nursing studies Medical building and Architecture Engineering technology Information Professional Foreign-Born and Australian- 2b Table 3 2 1 (Canada). 2001Census Source: oainlceeta il onborn born field Vocational/credential born field Vocational/credential Excludes nonpermanent residents (employment authorization, student authorization, minister's permit or refugee claimants). refugee or permit minister's authorization, student authorization, (employment residents nonpermanent Excludes parents. Canadian to Canada outside born those Includes degree. higher a or bachelor’s a with those Includes Excludes those for whom birthplace or year of arrival is unknown. is arrival of year or birthplace whom for those Excludes degree. higher a or bachelor’s a with those Includes The recentsustainedentryoftertiary-qualified utain Foreign- Australian- aain Foreign- Canadian- 2 1 1 Workforce, by Field and Period of Arrival, 2001 (percent) 2001 Arrival, of Period and Field by Workforce, Workforce, by Field and Period of Arrival, 2001 (percent) 2001 Arrival, of Period and Field by Workforce, born 3 2 10 qualification fields, constituting approximately constituting fields, qualification 10 high proportionsofforeign-bornprofessionalsinall arts; naturalandphysicalsciences. agement, commerce;societyandculture,creative these incontemporarymigrationflows:restofman- dential fields,sincethereisstrongrepresentationof for migrantswerealsoexaminedinthreegenericcre- •Accounting•Teacher,•Nursing•Medicine•A r ceducation h i t e c t u r e a n d b u i l d i n g Before 1991 1991-96 1996-2001 All ( All 1996-2001 1991-96 1991 Before Before 1991 1991-96 1996-2001 All ( All 1996-2001 1991-96 1991 Before By 2001, CanadaandAustraliawerehometovery For contrastivepurposes,employmentoutcomes Foreign-born by period of arrival of period by Foreign-born Foreign-born by period of arrival of period by Foreign-born 8 N N ) ) half of all degree-qualified workers in engineering family/humanitarian categories; 38 percent of nurses (50 percent in Canada, 48 percent in Australia), IT (51 were in economic categories and 62 percent in percent in Canada, 49 percent in Australia), architec- family/humanitarian categories; 58 percent of doctors ture and building (49 percent in Canada), and medical were in economic categories and 42 percent in studies (46 percent in Australia) (see tables 2a and family/humanitarian categories. It seems reasonable to 2b). The proportion of 1996-2001 arrivals in select assume that such migrants would experience greater occupations was striking, most notably in Canada in difficulty securing appropriate work in Canada, given Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The the fields of IT (22 percent of the total IT workforce), that they did not undergo premigration screening by engineering (20 percent), and architecture and build- means of points-tested criteria. ing (16 percent). The suddenness of these inflows clearly posed some risk of “flooding the market,” as Temporary migration flows and domestic had occurred in Australia in the field of engineering employer preferences from 1986 to 1993 (Hawthorne 1994). The concentra- While this study is primarily concerned with employ- tions of professional migrants entering Australia were ment outcomes for landed immigrants (in both Canada somewhat lower, with key clusters located in the and Australia), it is important to acknowledge that fields of IT (14 percent), engineering (12 percent), rest most professional fields are also characterized by of management, commerce (11 percent), and medical strong temporary worker flows — a process that pro- studies (10 percent). vides insight into domestic employer preference. It is also important to note the high number of Between 1991 and 2003, 2,063,022 temporary fordegree-qualified arrivals in nonvocational fields — in eign workers reached Canada, including 443,799 in particular, there were 268,963 migrants with society 2001-03 alone. Teachers (66,435) and engineers and culture or creative arts degrees in Canada (all (38,572) dominated these flows, but there were also periods) and 126,077 in Australia.8 As we shall see, numerous arrivals in the field of management and possession of generic rather than vocationally linked commerce (65,505). While many professionals entered qualifications is consistently associated with inferior for relatively short stays, 2004 data provided by labour market outcomes for migrants, particularly in Human Resources and Social Development Canada the first five years after arrival (Birrell and (HRSDC) showed the planned arrival the following year Hawthorne 1997, 1999). of 7,437 additional sponsored foreign workers, including 2,545 doctors (34 percent), 2,362 engineers (32 per- The immigration category of recent migrant cent) and 890 nurses (12 percent). The 2005 data on professionals planned arrivals indicate that this momentum was sus- According to Citizenship and Immigration Canada, tained, particularly in the fields of medicine (2,926 85,363 engineers arrived in Canada between 1991 and workers), mechanical engineering/technology (1,498 2003 as principal applicants under the two primary workers), university professors (878 workers) and nurs- economic categories: 90 percent as “skilled workers” ing (738 workers) (HRSDC 2005, 2006). (equivalent to the “independent” category in From 2003 to 2004, the number of temporary workers Australia) and 10 percent as “assisted relatives” residing in OECD nations increased by 7 percent (about (equivalent to the “skilled Australia-linked” category).9 1.5 million people) (OECD 2006). In line with this, high Of the total 95,285 engineers who arrived in Canada levels of temporary skilled migration also prevail in during this period, just 10 percent (9,922) were accept- Australia, with demand for workers varying significantly ed under the non-economic family or humanitarian by field and period (McDonald, Khoo and Hugo 2005; programs. We see the same pattern in IT, with 91 per- Birrell et al. 2005). There were 40,124 long-stay visas cent of degree-qualified arrivals selected in points- issued to temporary workers for the period 2003-04 — a tested economic categories. In principle, if Canada’s rise of 6 percent over the previous year. Computing pro- economic selection strategy is effective, such migrants fessionals10 dominated in the employer-nominated cate- should have an excellent chance of securing work, gories (17 percent), followed by nurses (12 percent), particularly once they are established. managers (11 percent) and accountants (3 percent) By contrast, teachers, nurses and doctors often (Australia, Department of Immigration and Multicultural Hawthorne leyanne entered Canada through non-economic categories and Indigenous Affairs 2005, 67-8). More recent data from 1991 to 2003: 37 percent of teachers were in show 202,195 long-term arrivals in 2004-05, of whom economic categories and 63 percent in 158,311 were students and 48,000 were temporary work-

9 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 preferences; inCanada,asAustralia,theyare workforce shortages. 2,500 nursingtemporarymigrantstomeeturgent for example,Australiaselected5,500medicaland for short-termmigrationremainsstrong—in2006-07, Multicultural andIndigenousAffairs2005).Demand sions) (Australia,DepartmentofImmigrationand ers (withasubstantialnumberqualifiedintheprofes- oa ,9,0 ,4,0 7,9 2,916,304 107,699 575,696 17,438 1,046,001 39,118 1,294,607 51,143 10,509 17,741 434,293 2,120 2005. Canada, Immigration and Citizenship by provided 110,809 data arrivals immigrant landed on based author by Compiled Source: 304 Total Subtotal 186,009 4,578 5,961 137,476 3,812 11,477 84,664 36,561 Kong Hong China 25,711 12,680 applicants) (principal relative Assisted Subtotal 42,739 18,159 Total 16,215 5,723 2001-03 1996-2001 1991-96 China birth of Country/region India applicants) (principal worker Skilled Category 1991-2003 Arrival, Periodof and Birth of Country/Region by Canada, to Immigrants PermanentEconomic of Number 3 Table Intakes suchasthisdirectlyreflectemployers’ o ttd15136304 265 30 58 310 6 6,478 837 12,810 63 10,554 7,830 8 2 1,405 16 1,434 1,195 1,571 103 896 160 2,437 3,290 2,532 1,142 3,385 6,135 109 2,335 22 158 101 8 23 3,186 11,531 195 128 389 9,670 368 249 4,196 2,079 386 1,878 2,738 94 497 2,969 8,054 510 194 150 1,936 34 15 245 467 309 2,012 3,826 4,609 555 3,166 stated Not 1,067 42 Asia/Pacific Other 4,969 23,528 1,692 528 1,263 America 572 South/Central Other 3,489 1,136 523 1,582 East Africa/Middle Other 1,030 92,360 Europe Other 1,185 Indonesia 115 1,933 1,092 Zealand New 29,334 6,639 6,718 3,594 Australia 481 4,246 58,879 192 423 US 131 3,814 21,274 Iraq 2,216 9,764 7,700 220 Malaysia/Singapore Africa South 7,249 875 Vietnam 189 10,874 11,870 18,910 Lebanon 21,054 14,541 783 Taiwan 264 698 581 38,555 159 450 UK/Ireland 999 1,608 Pakistan 25,732 415 Philippines 9,588 5,937 1,995 India 252 556 2,395 351 24,429 32,531 428 1,560 133 283 698 1,683 3,928 6,256 551 12,498 15,541 stated Not 3,833 3,370 Asia/Pacific Other 4,653 12,666 America South/Central Other 1,556 4,409 East Middle and Africa Other 2,510 1,069 5,606 Europe Other Vietnam 6,042 Zealand New 2,432 9,537 Indonesia Iraq Australia 16,199 Malaysia/Singapore Africa South US Lebanon Taiwan UK/Ireland Kong Hong Pakistan Philippines meets asetofstandardcriteria.Employersrecruit workers inanyoccupationprovidedthatthejoboffer limits/quotas. Employersmayhiretemporaryforeign worker fromanemployer. Therearenonumerical HRSDC receivesarequestfortemporaryforeign employable. “Theprocessgenerallystartswhen the typesofmigrantstheydeemmostimmediately temporary workers, employerssignaltogovernment largely employer-driven(OECD2006).Inselecting Period of arrival of Period 10 foreign workers who are seen as appropriate candi- groups. By 2003-04, the UK/Ireland (22 percent), India dates for [the] company regardless of country of ori- (13 percent), China (9 percent) and South Africa (6 per- gin” (Aceytuno 2004, 9). cent) were Australia’s major source countries for eco- Over time, Canadian and Australian employers have nomic migration. By 2005-06, the figures were: India, demonstrated a marked preference for English- and (in 19 percent; China, 18 percent; the UK/Ireland, 16 per- the case of Quebec) French-speaking background pro- cent; and Malaysia, 4 percent (Birrell, Hawthorne and fessionals (“language” also being a proxy for perceived Richardson 2006; Australia, Department of Immigration Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The similarity in education systems). Between 1991 and and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs 2005). 2003, for instance, the primary source countries for the In contrast, Canada has recently selected minus- 2,063,022 temporary foreign workers selected to enter cule numbers of degree-qualified ESB migrants as Canada were the United States (14 percent), the landed immigrants: just 7 percent in 1991-96 and 5 UK/Ireland (4 percent), Australia (2 percent) and the percent in 1996-2001, compared to 25 percent a Philippines (2 percent),11 along with France and Mexico decade or more earlier (before 1991) (see table 4). The (the latter mainly providing agricultural workers). By extent to which Canada’s and Australia’s migration 2006, the US was supplying 16,841 (15 percent) of the systems have diverged on this score is worth high- total of 112,658 foreign workers selected, compared to lighting for select professional fields. From 1996 to the 13,933 (12 percent) supplied by Mexico, 8,681 (8 2001, for example, just 6 percent of doctors, 4 per- percent) by France, 8,529 by the Philippines (8 percent) cent of nurses, 2 percent of engineers and 2 percent and 7,442 (7 percent) by Australia. (The comparable of IT professionals migrating to Canada were derived 2005 figures were: the US, 17 percent; Mexico, 13 per- from ESB source countries. This was in contrast to, cent; the UK/Ireland, 8 percent; Australia, 8 percent; and respectively, the 30 percent, 43 percent, 22 percent France, 7 percent [Hiebert 2006, 2007].) Primary tempo- and 18 percent in these fields migrating to Australia. rary workers for Australian employers in recent years The latest indications suggest that the flow of have come from the UK/Ireland (35 percent), India (10 English-speaking migrants to Canada will remain percent), the US (7 percent) and South Africa and Japan slight (Hiebert 2006). (5 percent each) (Australia, Department of Immigration This poses a significant policy question. Are ESB and Multicultural and Indigenous Affairs 2005). professionals attracted to Australia rather than to As shown in table 3, there is now a major discon- Canada, or is there some current policy impediment nect between the top recent source countries of eco- to their selection that did not exist before 1991? It is nomic migrants and employer choice in Canada. From worth noting here that New Zealand’s economic 1991 to 2003, the main countries of origin of landed selection system now prioritizes ESB migration: the skilled workers in Canada were China, India, the UK is the source of 49 percent of all New Zealand’s Philippines and Pakistan (all of whom have experienced economic migrants; South Africa, 12 percent; and a relatively lower rate of success at securing profession- the US, 4 percent (Bedford 2006). Such professionals, al work). From 2001-02 to 2005-06, when the LSIC was by definition, migrate from nations that have terti- administered, the top three PA source countries were ary training systems and technological development China, India and Pakistan, while English-speaking- levels similar to those of Canada and Australia. They background (ESB) migration had decreased to negligi- encounter fewer barriers related to credential recog- ble levels (Schellenberg and Maheux 2007). nition, the relevance of past work experience or possession of host-country language ability for the The decline of English-speaking professional knowledge economy (a context where sophisticated migration to Canada communication is viewed as vital). In the past Australia differs markedly from Canada in maintain- decade, such issues have increasingly become the ing strong ESB migration (from the UK/Ireland, South focus of Canadian research as labour market out- Africa, New Zealand, the US and Canada) while also comes for economic migrants have deteriorated and expanding and more effectively screening its domi- critics have questioned the human capital model nant flows from China and India. After the propor- (see, for example, Picot and Hou 2003; Thompson tion of ESB migrants decreased from 38 percent to 20 and Worswick 2004; Sweetman and McBride 2004; Hawthorne leyanne percent in 1991-96, it reverted to 28 percent in 1996- Ferrer, Green and Riddell 2004; Reitz 2005; 2001 due to persistent evidence of the inferior labour Sweetman 2004, 2005, b; Hiebert 2006; Picot, Hou market integration rates secured by select NESB and Coulombe 2007).

11 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 high speed. systems andaperceivedcapacitytointegrateat host-country languageability, similareducation the strengthofemployerpreferenceforhigh-level patterns oftemporaryworker selectiondemonstrate hold work.Rightlyorwrongly, aswehaveseen, policy, employers retainthepowertoofferorwith- level dorecent arrivals secureworkineachcountry family andhumanitarian).How quicklyandatwhat fied migrants(inallimmigration categories—economic, T 2001 arrivals Labour marketintegrationratesfor1996- 2001 Census Degree-Qualified Migrants:The Employment Outcomesfor Vocational Field and Period of Arrival, Canada and Australia, 2001 Australia, and Canada Arrival, of Period and Field Vocational Select by Countries, (ESB) English-Speaking-Background from Immigrants Degree-Qualified of Proportion 4 Table 2 1 Statistics. of Bureau Australian and Canada Statistics (Canada), 2001Census Source: 1996-2001 1991-96 1991Before arrival of Period uss443 30 22 18 38 22 11 11 28 32,777 56 4 30 6 24 2 116,986 21 20 2 13,999 5 5 13 70,702 3 12,762 3 38 131,803 257,714 7 25 27 15 11,477 347,815 2 154,160 25 technology Information Nurses 136,280 Doctors Engineers fields All 537,565 technology Information Nurses Doctors Engineers fields All technology Information Nurses Doctors Engineers fields All UK/Ireland, South Africa, Canada and the US. the and Canada Africa, South UK/Ireland, US. the and Zealand New Australia, Africa, South UK/Ireland, While governmentsframeeconomicmigration ment sitesforotherwisecomparable degree-quali- similarity betweenCanadaand Australiaassettle- he 2001 Censusallowsassessmentofthedegree ereqaiidEB ereqaiidESB Degree-qualified ESB Degree-qualified mirnscountries immigrants NN aaaAustralia Canada •D e gtrained professionals(seetables5aand5bonpp.16-17): r erepresent highlycomparablesettlementsitesforforeign- e - aidentical economiccycles? n dwithin thefirstfiveyearsafterarrival,givenvirtually h i g h e r - d e g r e e - q u a l i f i e d m i g r a n t s •O v e r a l l ,•B y 2 9 2 . 0 8 0 1 p , e r 6 c 5•I e n n p t e g r e o c n f e e n r r t a e l c o , e f n d t d e e g d g r e r e e g e e r - - e q q e u u a - a l q l i u i f a f i l i e i e d f d i m e 1 i d 9 g 9 r 6 a - n 2 t 0 s 0 1 s e c u r e d p r o - diploma-level credentials—afindingthat in bothcountriesrelativetomigrantswith enjoyed asubstantiallabourmarket advantage In brief,thisstudyfoundthatCanadaandAustralia tions withinfive yearsofarrival,comparedto 31.4 migrants inCanada hadsecuredprofessional posi- Australia. compared to66percentofthese arrivalsin arrivals hadsecuredworkof somekindinCanada, what betterinAustralia. outcomes fordiploma-levelmigrantsweresome- of migrantswhowerediploma-qualified,although fessional employmentatdoubleormoretherate tion priorities. strongly affirmscontemporaryeconomicmigra- 1 % 12 mirnscountries immigrants NN 2 % percent in Australia. In Canada, 5.0 percent had were less likely to be out of the workforce. Canada’s switched to administrative or managerial work, com- awarding of bonus points for higher education is thus a pared to 7.6 percent in Australia; substantial numbers sound policy decision. However, possession of a graduate in both nations also clustered in lower-skill positions. degree had minimal influence on unemployment levels, •Unemployment was a greater problem in Canada and Canadian-born professionals with similar credentials than in Australia: 14.7 percent of 1996-2001 also outperformed migrants across all arrival periods.

degree-qualified Canadian arrivals remained out of Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The work, compared to 7.8 percent of Australian The significance of birthplace to immigrants’ arrivals. employment outcomes •Australia, by contrast, had larger numbers of recent To what extent does birthplace influence employment degree-qualified arrivals categorized as “not in the outcomes when migrants seeking host-country employ- labour force” (typically applying themselves to ment are degree-qualified? The Census provides unam- learning English or securing credential recognition): biguous insight on this question, strongly affirming 26.2 percent of 1996-2001 Australian arrivals, com- employer preferences as previously described in rela- pared to 20.4 percent of Canadian ones. This almost tion to temporary workers (see page 11). certainly reflects Australia’s sustained investment in The primary source countries for economic prin- language and labour market training programs cipal applicants to Canada in 2001-03 were: China, 22 since the mid-1980s — a strategy currently receiv- percent; India, 12 percent; Pakistan, 6 percent; and the ing impressive funding and attention in Canada Philippines, 5 percent. (To compare, the UK/Ireland (Reitz 2005; Orme 2007; Alboim and Cohl 2007; accounted for just 2 percent.) When major regions of Lemay 2007; Cardozo and Guilfoyle 2007). origin are also considered, the top eight source coun- •As noted earlier, migrants to both Canada and tries/regions for economic PAs in this period were: Australia holding trade/vocational qualifications also China, 21.7 percent; Northwestern Europe, 17.8 percent; performed well; their employment rates were similar Other Africa12/Middle East, 16.7 percent; India, 12.2 to those of degree-qualified migrants in every period percent; Other South/Central America, 6.5 percent; of arrival. For example, in Canada, 65 percent of Other Asia/Pacific, 6.3 percent; Pakistan, 6.1 percent; degree-qualified 1996-2001 arrivals had secured and the Philippines, 4.6 percent. work by 2001, compared to 62 percent of migrants As we shall see, recent changes in the source coun- with post-secondary diplomas. The outcomes for tries for immigrants (all categories) drawn on by both Australia were 66 percent employment within the Canada and Australia had a negative impact on employ- first five years for degree-qualified migrants, com- ment outcomes. Degree-qualified 1996-2001 arrivals to pared to an impressive 73 percent for those in skilled Canada from the following countries/regions were most vocational fields. This finding supports the contem- likely to have secured professional work by 2001: South porary policy decisions made in each country to ele- Africa (70 percent of migrants working in their own or vate the level of trades-qualified migration. another profession); Australia/New Zealand (over 66 per- Unlike the Australian Census, the Canadian Census cent); UK/Ireland (63 percent) and Northwestern Europe allows analysis of employment outcomes for recent (59 percent); and the US (58 percent) (see table 6a, p. 18). and long-established migrants by degree type. In brief, The rank order for 1996-2001 arrivals securing early highly superior outcomes were secured by migrants professional employment in Australia was virtually iden- holding a master’s degree or a Ph.D. in Canada in all tical: UK/Ireland (60 percent); South Africa (58 percent); arrival periods. By 2001, 61 percent of pre-1991 US/Canada, 48 percent; and Northwestern Europe arrivals with higher degrees had secured professional (46 percent) (see table 6b, p. 18). The corresponding rate positions, compared to 45 percent of arrivals with for New Zealand is 48 percent (not shown). bachelor’s degrees. The comparable rate for 1991-96 In both Canada and Australia, the likelihood of arrivals was 53 percent (versus 31 percent), and for recent degree-qualified migrants securing professional 1996-2001 it was 44 percent (versus 24 percent). These work within five years of arrival dropped substantially findings were reasonably similar to figures for the among other birthplace groups, with many arrivals at Canadian-born: 64 percent of those holding master’s risk of severe skills discounting (tables 6a and 6b). Hawthorne leyanne degrees or Ph.D.s had professional positions by 2001, Similar migrants faced the greatest level of disadvan- compared to 52 percent of those with bachelor’s tage in each country: those from Iraq, Taiwan and degrees. Furthermore, higher-degree-qualified migrants Other North and Southeast Asia ranked lowest in terms

13 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008

Table 5a Labour Market Outcomes of Canadian- and Foreign-Born Adults,1 by Educational Attainment and Period of Arrival, Canada, 2001 (percent)

Employment

Educational Professional Administrative/ Associate Employed Not in Foreign-born2 attainment managerial professional Other subtotal Unemployed labour force Total3 All (N)

Before 1991 Degree 49.0 9.5 5.8 18.3 82.7 4.1 13.2 100.0 552,971 Post-secondary with diploma 20.2 9.4 11.0 38.6 79.2 5.1 15.7 100.0 527,585 Post-secondary no diploma 8.7 8.5 5.7 52.2 75.1 6.3 18.7 100.0 496,080 High school or less 3.8 6.6 2.4 50.8 63.6 5.3 31.1 100.0 1,080,428

1991-96 Degree 36.4 7.4 7.1 25.8 76.7 7.9 15.4 100.0 159,059 Post-secondary with diploma 13.8 6.6 9.8 43.9 74.0 8.6 17.4 100.0 122,945 Post-secondary no diploma 5.1 5.0 5.1 49.5 64.7 11.0 24.4 100.0 133,181 High school or less 1.8 3.5 1.9 47.1 54.3 8.7 37.1 100.0 304,248

1996-2001 Degree 29.8 5.0 6.3 23.8 64.9 14.7 20.4 100.0 266,109 Post-secondary with diploma 10.3 5.1 7.1 39.0 61.5 13.0 25.5 100.0 108,059 Post-secondary no diploma 4.9 3.8 3.8 44.6 57.1 12.9 30.0 100.0 103,199 High school or less 1.6 2.4 1.4 39.5 44.8 10.6 44.6 100.0 249,514 14 Canadian-born4

Degree 53.8 9.4 5.1 16.5 84.8 3.8 11.4 100.0 2,395,918 Post-secondary with diploma 19.4 8.2 12.7 40.9 81.1 5.5 13.4 100.0 3,042,529 Post-secondary no diploma 7.6 6.8 5.8 55.4 75.6 8.5 16.0 100.0 3,215,110 High school or less 3.3 4.8 2.5 50.4 60.9 8.2 30.9 100.0 7,355,870

Source: 2001 Census (Canada) 1 Includes adults aged 15 to 64. 2 Excludes nonpermanent residents (those with employment authorization, student authorization or a minister’s permit, or refugee claimants). 3 Totals may not add up to 100 due to rounding. 4 Includes those born outside Canada to Canadian parents. )

N All ( 3 The Impact of Economic Selection Policy on Labour Market Outcomes for Degree-Qualified Migrants in Canada and Australia, by Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The to 10,000 to degree-qualified 10,000 New Zealanders arrived in Australia between 1996 and 2001. by Educational Attainment and of Period Arrival, Australia, (percent) 2001 2 Employment and Foreign-Born Adults, 1 DiplomaSkilled vocationOtherDiploma 3.5Skilled vocation 22.5Other 3.9Diploma 3.2Skilled vocation 6.3 15.7Other 8.4 3.5 3.6 3.9Degree 4.0 13.5 9.3Diploma 5.1 15.3Skilled vocationOther 3.4 2.1 6.8 4.0 9.1 4.9 56.4 3.2 11.2 55.1 31.4 25.0 2.2 4.1 42.1 3.7 9.3 75.5 62.4 77.6 38.9 7.4 7.3 11.9 9.0 3.7 56.7 37.4 5.0 78.7 56.1 4.6 4.2 70.9 30.8 8.4 9.3 17.0 5.4 19.2 47.1 31.2 18.0 6.0 73.0 6.6 6.8 56.6 12.1 63.1 30.6 36.8 0.3 8.5 14.8 40.5 0.1 22.2 7.8 8.2 45.6 87.5 82.9 81.6 1.0 43.3 100.0 0.4 100.0 8.7 19.0 0.3 34.9 60.7 2.1 4.3 291,548 189,987 3.3 100.0 1.1 49.4 100.0 0.4 100.0 0.3 1,379,682 6.3 12.6 10.2 14.9 26,637 100.0 28,817 1.3 100.0 100.0 32.1 0.1 0.2 179,632 0.1 34,603 100.0 51,379 0.8 100.0 100.0 100.0 271,269 1,198,252 1,167,578 663,727 100.0 5,736,370 leyanne Hawthorne leyanne 4 Excludes those born in New Zealand, although there is substantial two-way population movement between the two countries. Close Includes adults aged 15 to 64. Totals may not add up to 100 due to rounding. Excludes those for whom birthplace or year of arrival is unknown. Table 5b Labour Market Outcomes of Australian- Foreign-born Before 1991 Degree1991-96 Degree 48.91996-2001 DegreeAustralian-born 11.0 39.7 31.4 8.7 8.2 Source: Census 2001 (Australia). 1 2 3 4 7.6 15.5 8.4 84.1 6.2 22.3 3.1 20.7 78.6 12.7 65.9 5.1 0.1 7.8 16.0 100.0 26.2 0.2 370,659 0.3 100.0 73,776 100.0 126,470 Period ofarrival Qualification level Professional Administrative/ Associate managerial professional Employed Other subtotal Unemployed Not in labour force Not stated Total

15 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 important contribution to Australia’s skilled workforce. skilled Australia’s to contribution important reflected is movement 2001.This and 1996 between Australia reached Zealanders New 10,000degree-qualified to Close countries. Country/region of birth of Country/region awn81943. . 371,527 20,845 1,230 5,751 32.0 53.7 33.0 12,656 2,217 23.2 8.6 2,825 5.8 24.1 7,166 3,391 18.7 7,351 7.3 26.6 19,418 50.9 2,871 32.8 30.4 26.5 6,223 6,008 6,966 25.2 30.3 9.9 7.5 61.4 20.8 10.4 10.3 9.4 3.0 9.9 21.4 23.8 11.1 9.9 37.2 12.0 61.4 6.5 3.7 55.7 14.7 3.3 8.1 10.9 9.3 57.4 4.8 3.8 3 52.0 8.5 46.1 2 14.1 11.1 1 11.2 66.3 up. rounding to 100%due to up add not may Totals Note: 78.3 58.3 14.1 (Australia). 2001Census Source: 63.1 75.6 9.4 11.6 Australia 48.0 15.5 11.2 25.0 migrants Total 29.2 13.9 14.4 24.5 Other 24.9 11.3 14.1 Taiwan 12.4 Iraq 23.1 Philippines 30.6 18.0 America Central/South 21.7 33.5 Africa East/North Middle Other China 17.9 Asia South/Central Other Europe Eastern India Kong/Malaysia/Singapore Hong Europe Southeastern Europe Northwestern US/Canada UK/Ireland Africa South Birthplace, by Profession Own Their in Employment to According 1996-2001,Ranked in Australia in Arrived Who Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour 6b Table te 552. 501. 2922,010 2,116 17,869 7,955 29,059 22.9 28.7 13.8 40.6 15.7 35,659 14.8 20.7 31,622 9.1 5,696 6,710 14.5 4,219 16,059 12.8 65.0 11,803 23.0 8,701 50.6 1,992 15.7 77.1 18.6 16.1 44.9 6,436 855 11.3 22.2 71.5 21.6 16.6 18.1 15.5 12.1 13.8 10.3 8.2 5.3 16.7 18.0 21.2 5.5 23.8 18.9 15.5 12.1 60.5 13.8 8.8 7.9 70.5 8.3 4 67.3 5.2 76.1 10.3 3 56.6 11.2 2 83.2 12.2 6.3 16.8 1 68.1 (Canada). 2001Census Source: 22.6 80.0 20.1 31.0 Canada 86.6 19.1 65.1 37.3 11.5 migrants Total 80.0 19.0 17.7 33.8 Other 16.0 26.5 Philippines 30.5 14.3 Iraq 22.1 25.8 Taiwan 17.9 36.5 Asia South/Central Other 25.0 India Africa East/North Middle Other 39.5 China 19.1 Europe Southeastern 29.9 Europe Eastern America Central/South Kong/Malaysia/Singapore Hong Europe Northwestern UK/Ireland US Zealand Australia/New Africa South birth of Country/region Birthplace, by Profession Own Their in Employment to According 1996-2001,Ranked in Canada in Arrived Who Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour 6a Table Includes those born in New Zealand, who are not counted as migrants to Australia, although there is substantial two-way populat two-way substantial is there although Australia, to migrants as counted not are who Zealand, New in born those Includes unknown. is arrival of year or birthplace whom for those Excludes birthplaces. 15 top shows Table Includes those born outside Canada to Canadian parents. Canadian to Canada outside born those Includes claimants). refugee or permit minister's authorization, student authorization, (employment residents nonpermanent Excludes five. than fewer was sample the in observations unweighted of number the where cells original all Excludes birthplaces. 16 top shows Table 4 3 2 3 profession managerial subtotal Unemployed labour force All ( All force labour Unemployed subtotal managerial profession profession managerial subtotal Unemployed labour force All ( All force labour Unemployed subtotal managerial profession 412. 9025861,233,651 8.6 2.5 79.0 24.0 34.1 402. 49381. 2,295,198 11.4 3.8 84.9 29.6 34.0 Own profession/ Any work, Not in Not work, Any profession/ Own Own profession/ Any work, Not in Not work, Any profession/ Own 271. 02903. 10,541 32.6 9.0 50.2 11.0 12.7 492. 831. 3048,952 23.0 18.7 58.3 20.7 14.9 Other Other 1 1 2001(percent) 2001(percent) 16 2 in the table, given New Zealanders’ New given table, the in ion movement between the two the between movement ion 257,714 116,986 N N ) ) of work access, with the worst employment rates rankings suggest a substantial gulf between the calibre being experienced by the Lebanese in Canada and the of tertiary institutions in developed nations and in Vietnamese in Australia (not shown). Large numbers developing ones, correlated with length of academic tra- of degree-qualified migrants from the Philippines, dition and availability of resources. In 2006, for exam- India, Vietnam and Other South/Central Asia secured ple, the well-regarded Shanghai Jiao Tong University employment only by taking low-skill positions — a ranking system (viewed as relatively unbiased) catego- significant migration policy issue, given the scale of rized the top 500 world institutions. It identified: Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The current migration from these regions. •207 in Europe (overwhelmingly located in Northwestern Europe), including 43 in the UK and Differential tertiary training systems 40 in Germany While racism and systemic barriers seem certain to •196 in the Americas — 167 in the US, 22 in Canada influence these outcomes (Guo 2007; Goldberg 2007), it and just 7 in all of Central and South America is important to note that degree-qualified migrants (including 1 in the top 150) from Commonwealth nations with British-based educa- •92 in the Asia-Pacific — 32 in Japan, 16 in tion systems fared relatively well in both Canada and Australia, 14 in China (none ranked in the top 150, Australia. Professionals from Hong Kong, Malaysia and and with 2 of the top-ranked 4 institutions located Singapore, for example, had reasonable outcomes: in in Hong Kong), 9 in South Korea, 7 in Israel, 5 in Canada, they were far more likely to secure work in New Zealand, 5 in Taiwan, 2 in Singapore and 2 in their own professions than similarly qualified Indian India (neither ranked in the top 300) arrivals (19 percent versus 12 percent) (see figure 1). •5 in Africa — 4 in South Africa and 1 in Egypt; no There has been growing debate in Canada and other African or Middle Eastern country was listed Australia in the recent period concerning the presumed (Institute of Higher Education, Shanghai Jiao Tong neutrality of human capital, with a focus on the fac- University 2006) tors influencing the transferability of education and Very comparable patterns were evident in the Times other human capital attributes between radically dif- Higher Education Supplement Top-200 universities lists ferent systems (Sweetman and McBride 2004; Ferrer, (2005; 2006), and in the 2005 Top-100-Asia-Pacific Green and Riddell 2004; Sweetman 2004, 2005). It is University rankings (Institute of Higher Education, thus relevant to note that the latest available global Shanghai Jiao Tong University 2005). These data suggest

Figure 1 Employment Outcomes of Degree-Qualified Migrants Who Arrived in Canada in 1996-2001, by Country/Region of Origin, 2001 90 Own profession1 Other profession Administration/management 80 Associate profession1 Low-skilled employment

d 50

40 % employe

0 / / s d a a a a a a d q a a n a a i m a th n a a n st/ th/ US li a d UK/ u a a a Ir non u a rope pore l rope ysi rope stern iw stern In a l Asi a a Other u Other u u Chin Afric Afric So a a l a onesi a st Asi ga Irel E str E E T E le E a d a u Vietn Leb leyanne Hawthorne leyanne Americ the A In dd Sin u the Phillippines Centr u North Afric Other North/ Other So HK/M New Ze So Northwestern So Other Mi

Source: 2001 Census (Canada). 1 See note 1 in table 7.

17 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 ibre ofcurriculaandclinicaltraining,studentselection Minimal data,however, areavailableconcerningthecal- International MedicalEducationandResearch2005). them in10 countries(FoundationforAdvancement of Education Directory 1,981 courses werelistedbythe China andthePhilippines)Africa.ByMarch2005, globally inthepast30years,principallyAsia(India, 500. Inmedicine,forinstance,schoolshaveproliferated tions beingparticularlylow, withjust2listedinthetop Canada andAustralia—therankingofIndianinstitu- the contemporaryeconomicmigrantsourcecountriesof that thequalityofhighereducationishighlyvariablein 25.0 percentof NorthwesternEuropeanmigrants were formed betterin CanadathaninAustralia.For example, of recentlyarriveddegree-qualified migrantshadper- in Canada.Intermsofoutcomes bybirthplace,arange bachelor’s degreesand4.6percent withmaster’sdegrees or administrativework,compared to5.2percentwith arrivals inAustralia,7.6percenthadfoundmanagerial cent withmaster’sdegreesinCanada.Among1996-2001 cent ofmigrantswithbachelor’sdegreesand43.9per- profession by2001 inAustralia,comparedto23.5per- with degreeswereemployedintheirownorsomeother and Australia.Atotalof31.4 percentofrecentmigrants ly positivefordegree-qualifiedmigrantsinbothCanada the 2001 Censusanalysisconfirmedoutcomestobefair- well understood”(2007, 26). tectionism, orbroadersocietaldiscrimination,isnot market barrierscausedbyprofessionalassociationpro- credentials relativetodomesticqualifications,versus part offoreigncredentials,alowerquality skills recognised,alackofknowledgeonemployers’ lack ofknowledgeonnewcomers’parthowtohave to extent which credentialrecognitionproblemsresultfroma “The Li, and Thompson Kustec, to According and employerstypicallyadoptrisk-aversestrategies. 15). Indealingwiththeunknown,regulatorybodies deemed essentialbypractitionersinCanada”(2007, they possesstheskills,backgroundandapproach substantially fromourown.Thereisnoguaranteethat tic arrayofpractitionerswithtrainingthatmaydiffer increases, professionalbodiesarefacedwithaneclec- the numberofforeign-trainedprofessionalsinCanada ty ofincomingmigrants.Adams maintainsthat“[a]s despite theundoubtedintellectualandadaptivecapaci- the decisionofemployerstohireprofessionalstaff, degree programs(Bouletetal.2005). and thelengthoftraininginmanyAsianAfrican Despite suchbarriers,itisencouragingtonotethat influences powerfully quality educational Perceived across 170 nations,withhalfof International Medical South/Central Asia(comparedto10 percent),17percent for China(comparedto9percent),17percentOther Canada (comparedto12percentinAustralia),19 from OtherMiddleEast/NorthAfricawas21 percentin percent inAustralia.Theunemploymentrateformigrants native-born withdegreeswere4percentinCanadaand2 at atimewhennationalunemploymentratesforthe lower unemploymentlevelsinAustraliathanCanada migrants fromdisadvantagedbirthplacegroupsreported sis intensifiedthispattern(seetables6aand6b). other professionsormanagerialpositionsintotheanaly- than inCanada(12.2percent).Factoringemployment own professionwashigherinAustralia(15.5percent) degree-qualified migrantsfromIndiaemployedintheir pared to12.7percent).However, thepercentageof pared to11.2 percent),14.9percentfromChina(com- percent), 17.9percentfromCentral/SouthAmerica(com- from HongKong/Malaysia/Singapore(comparedto17.9 (compared to21.7 percentinAustralia),19.1 employed intheirownprofessionCanadaby2001 rial positions(compared to64percentofthe Canadian- high 71 percent wereoccupyingprofessional ormanage- ing, comparedto85percentof theCanadian-born,anda overall, with87percentofSouth Africanmigrantswork- South Africansrepresentedthe mostelitemigrantgroup equal orsuperiortotheCanadian-born. AsinAustralia, had achievedrepresentationintheprofessionsthatwas ESB migrantswhohadbeeninCanada10 yearsormore approximated hostcountrynorms.Forexample,by 2001 taged groups,whoseunemploymentratesmorenearly Encouragingly, thispatternincludedinitiallydisadvan- as resident10 yearsormoreinthehostcountry). qualified migrantsinbothCanadaandAustralia(defined outcomes wereachievedbylong-establisheddegree- In linewiththeresearchliterature,superioremployment Length ofresidenceandemploymentoutcomes credential recognition(Hawthorne2007b). by followingaprogramofstudyrelatedtoachieving or repositioningthemselvestoenterthelabourmarket seems fairtopresume,werelearningEnglishorFrench and Iraq.Substantialnumbersofthesemigrants,it other NorthandSoutheastAsia,Indonesia,Lebanon the labourforce—mostnotably, migrantsfromTaiwan, had highproportionsofmemberscategorizedasnotin for India(comparedto10 percent)(seetables6aand6b). Eastern Europe(comparedto10 percent)and13percent cent forTaiwan (comparedto6percent),14percentfor for SoutheasternEurope(comparedto11 percent),15per- Overall, however, newlyarriveddegree-qualified Many birthplacegroupsinCanadaandAustralia 18 born). Select Asian groups had also achieved representa- tials, lack of computer training, the need to acquire field- tion in the professions equivalent to the Canadian-born, specific English language terminology or lack of local including those from Vietnam and Hong Kong, industrial experience. Despite fewer economic migrants Singapore and Malaysia, with those born in Indonesia now requiring such courses, this level of funding has been and China also faring well. Good rates of access to the maintained (Australia, Department of Immigration and professions had been achieved by other visible minority Citizenship 2007b). groups, including migrants from Other Middle East/North Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The Africa — all had better representation in their own and The influence of domestic labour demand by other professions than migrants born in Eastern and field on absorptive capacity Southeastern Europe, India, other parts of Asia, Taiwan General employment patterns aside, to what extent and the Philippines. does supply and demand in specific professions influ- Contemporary research, however, challenges the per- ence labour market integration for recent degree-quali- sistence of this pattern in Canada in the future fied migrants? A number of immigrant-receiving (Thompson and Worswick 2004; Picot, Hou and nations affirm the value of factoring in domestic Coulombe 2007). Moreover, long-established degree- demand — for example, the US Independent Task Force qualified migrants in Australia have achieved higher on Immigration and America’s Future has recommend- levels of employment in their own professions than ed to Congress the introduction of “a new provisional those in Canada: most notably, those qualified in Hong category designed to allow workers meeting long-term Kong/Malaysia/Singapore (34 percent in Australia, com- labor market needs to transition from an initially tem- pared to 25 percent in Canada); Other South/Central porary to a permanent immigration status” (Migration Asia (27 percent, compared to 18 percent); India (26 Policy Institute 2006; Abraham and Hamilton 2006). percent, compared to 18 percent); Southeastern Europe Australia restored labour demand as a key selection (24 percent, compared to 20 percent); and Iraq (18 per- criteria as of 1999, following a decade of evidence show- cent, compared to 14 percent). This gives credence to the ing outcomes for skilled migrants to be strongly affected view that visible minorities experience greater disadvan- by domestic supply (Birrell and Hawthorne 1999). By July tage in Canada, despite the fact that 1996-2001 arrivals 2005, Australia’s Migration Occupations in Demand List from a range of such groups had less initial access to (MODL) had become the critical determinant of economic their professions in Australia. selection of migrants, including which principal appli- Australia’s lower unemployment rates may reflect cants could avoid regional entry and enjoy unconstrained major investment in language and employment settle- locational choice. Based on twice-yearly labour market ment services for disadvantaged groups — a strategy now analyses, 20 points are allocated to PAs in high-demand strongly endorsed by Canada, and supported by a very fields13 (one-sixth of the total points required). MODL impressive level of funding (Reitz 2005; Alboim and Cohl applications have risen dramatically as a consequence, 2007; Hawthorne 2007b). By the early 1990s, Australia from 9 percent of all skilled PAs in 2003-04 to 42 percent had developed the world’s most comprehensive settle- in 2004-05. Within the current environment this favours ment services for skilled migrants, located primarily in the selection of accountants, nurses, doctors and select Sydney and Melbourne (the major immigrant-receiving tradespeople — fields characterized by sustained labour sites). English courses were free, and migrants were paid undersupply (Birrell, Hawthorne and Richardson 2006). to take them, supported by immediate access to social Canada, by contrast, does not factor employment security benefits. The Australian government simultane- demand by field into its economic selection process, ously invested heavily in employment and credential reflecting: recognition bridging programs, supported by payment of •A national commitment to achieving 1 percent additional incentive allowances. As early as 1992-93, annual population growth (designed to nation-build $AUD99.7 million was being spent per year on specialist while offsetting an aging population) labour market programs for NESB professionals, in addi- •The time lags inherent in the immigrant selection tion to $AUD110.6 on English-language instruction, and and arrival processes a further $AUD42.2 million was channelled through the •The difficulty of accurately predicting labour market technical education sectors (Hawthorne 2005, 1994). Ten demand by field Hawthorne leyanne different models of bridging courses had been developed •The adoption of a human capital model of economic for engineers, addressing, for instance, specific labour immigration based on the presumed flexibility of skilled market disadvantages such as nonrecognition of creden- migrant workers (Beach, Green and Reitz 2003)

19 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 •T e a c h•A e c r c , o u•M e n e d t d u i i c n c•N a g a u t : l r i s o + s•E i n 3 t n n : 0 u g g d i : + p i n•I 2 e e e n - r s e f(see table7forCanada): 1 p c : r o e e i rin selectprofessionalfieldsbetween1996and2001 p r n + n m e c t 9 g atwo countriesinemploymentgrowthand/ordecline r e : t c n i p ithe differencesamongoccupationsandbetween e t n e + o n r 1 nexamined below. Itisimportanttoacknowledgehere t i C c 8 n a e tfied arrivals,asexemplified bythefivecasestudies i n n p e n C a t e cand employmentoutcomesforrecentdegree-quali- a d r h n a C i c ndefinite correlationbetweenlabourmarket demand a ; n a e o d n n lsis of2001 Censusdataforeachcountrysuggestsa a + C a t o ; 5 a d garranged employment”(2005,17).Eitherway, analy- n a i y - p a n ; :more pointsintheimmigrationsystemforpre- 1 e d 4 r a C + +the [selection]processby, forexample,allocating c ; a 3 5 p e n 8 9may liein“lettingemployershavegreaterinputinto e n - a r t 1 d p p - Alternatively, 7 asSweetmansuggests,thesolution a e e i ; r r n challenges ofpredictinglabourdemandareclear. p c c e - e e r 3 n n c 4 t t e n p i i t e n n r c C e a n n t a d a ; both are included in “engineering.”in included are both “assas categorized is nurse practising licensed a while “professional” as categorized is nurse registered A professional.” ate 2- a with (usually technologist a while “professional,” as categorized is qualification) 4-year minimum a has usually (who neer Associate professionals Associate Administration/management Professionals groups Occupational 1991-2001Canada, Group, Occupational Major Persons,by Employed of Number the in Change 7 Table 2 1 (Canada). 2001Census Source: Production and technical workers, labourers workers, technical and Production workers service and sales Clerical, Tradespersons T7,9 6,8 6,2 38 264,426 162,687 79,594 Engineering IT conig12221283117730 -1 24 2 9 13 161,797 25 16 236,213 54,766 557,157 57,745 469,446 112,893 928,443 238,071 63,307 41,741 548,788 52,573 409,989 102,222 693,153 239,833 53,152 37,228 520,944 50,910 352,895 666,905 57,467 sciences physical and Natural arts creative culture, and Society commerce and management of Rest Accounting education Teacher, Nursing studies Medical building and Architecture The 2001 Census distinguishes between computer engineers (included in “engineering”) and software engineers (“information techn (“information engineers software “engineering”)and in (included engineers computer between distinguishes 2001Census The codes ASCO and (Canada) codes NOC in occupations equivalent on based are “associateprofessional” and “professional” terms The cent inAustralia (seetable7) Australia in Australia Australia in Australia +61 percentinAustralia This policymaymeritreconsideration,thoughthe 2 1 15 1 14 ,7,5 ,0,4 ,3,7 17 3,030,278 2,504,848 2,272,752 ,8,0 ,5,8 ,2,9 0 11 5,126,599 2,063,760 5,151,787 1,833,422 4,888,605 1,929,099 ,0,7 ,9,7 ,3,2 18 1,330,424 1,095,475 1,108,973 ,1,7 ,1,5 ,4,6 8 1,643,668 1,516,659 1,516,770 6,6 3,4 ,9,0 24 1,092,200 833,049 862,662 9119 01(1996-2001) 2001 1996 1991 8561866132918 133,269 108,686 98,536 percent, compared to6percent),OtherMiddle cent and8percent,respectively, inAustralia), Iraq(16 employed inengineeringCanada, comparedto9per- neers fromIndiaandEastern Europe (19percentwere however, resultswereinferiorforrecentlyarrived engi- Reflecting thesignificanceofcountryqualification, the lightoflocalregulatoryhurdles(Lemay2007). recently arrivedengineers—aremarkableoutcomein rial workby2001, comparedto3951 percentofall cent hadsecuredsomeformofprofessionalormanage- recent ESBengineersarrivinginCanada,66to75per- terparts inAustralia,despitetheirlargenumbers.Of entrants toCanadaperformedfarbetterthantheircoun- their employment-relatedattributes. as economicmigrants,andthisinvolvedthescreeningof percent) of1991-2003 engineershadalsobeenselected decline thenevidentinAustralia.Thegreatmajority(90 ing positionsfrom1996-2001, inmarked contrasttothe there wasan18percentgrowthinprofessionalengineer- arrivals. Demandfavouredtheseengineers’employment; the primaryprofessionalfieldinCanadaforrecent migrated between2001 and2003,makingengineering workforce) (table8).Anadditional31,043 engineers 2001 (constituting19.8percentofthetotalengineering been acceptedbyCanada,including56,871 from1996to By 2001, 145,012 degree-qualifiedmigrantengineershad Engineering Within thisfavourablecontext,newlabourmarket 20 ociate professional.” ociate 3-year diploma) is categorized as “associ-as categorized is diploma) 3-year (Australia). For example, an engi- an example, For (Australia). ology”) while in 1991 and 1996 1991and in while ology”) % Change % Table 8 Labour Market Outcomes for Degree-Qualified Migrant Engineers Who Arrived in Canada in 1996-2001, by Country/Region of Birth (percent)

Employed

Own Other profession/ Other Not in Country/region of birth1 profession managerial work Subtotal Unemployed labour force All (N) Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The

UK/Ireland 25.2 48.7 12.6 86.5 ~ ~ 633 US 17.6 48.4 11.9 77.9 ~ ~ 392 South Africa 19.0 56.2 0.0 75.2 ~ ~ 215 Australia/New Zealand ~ 75.3 0.0 75.3 ~ ~ 81 Southeastern Europe 15.1 24.9 35.1 75.1 12.8 12.13 2,074 Eastern Europe 19.2 23.8 31.7 74.7 12.9 12.4 10,280 Northwestern Europe 17.4 53.1 13.9 84.3 8.2 4.55 1,110 India 19.0 30.9 33.0 82.9 9.6 7.49 4,933 Other South/Central Asia 15.9 22.3 31.2 69.4 17.1 13.53 7,632 Hong Kong/Malaysia/Singapore 16.7 29.3 17.2 63.2 11.7 20.9 817 China 12.0 24.4 23.5 59.8 21.0 19.17 15,234 Taiwan 8.3 20.8 18.8 47.9 16.9 31.38 1,020 Philippines 5.3 14.2 58.7 78.2 11.4 10.38 2,844 Iraq 15.6 27.0 17.6 60.2 14.4 17.6 572 Other Middle East/North Africa 14.9 23.7 24.2 62.8 22.1 15.09 3,566 Central/South America 20.5 30.4 28.3 79.2 9.3 11.54 2,190 Other 17.8 34.7 22.4 74.9 20.2 15.6 3,278

Total migrants 56,871

Canadian-born2 27.9 45.1 15.2 88.2 3.7 8.1 142,774

East/North Africa (15 percent, compared to 6 percent), them selected in the major economic categories. Until China (12 percent, compared to 8 percent) and the 2001, dynamic IT demand existed in both countries, Philippines (5 percent, compared to 6 percent). Many facilitating the swift absorption of most recent arrivals. such engineers had struggled to secure professional or In Australia, 9,528 degree-qualified IT professionals were subprofessional status — a serious issue, given the domi- accepted from 1996 to 2001. Over this period, in virtual- nance of migrants from these source countries in con- ly every birthplace group examined, the proportion of temporary Canadian flows (Canadian Council of recent IT migrants working in their own profession was Professional Engineers 2004). double or triple the standard employment outcome of As shown, outcomes were infinitely worse in recent degree-qualified migrants from the same source Australia, where a contracting employment situation countries in all fields. Clearly, employers willingly over- in engineering gave rise to a problem of labour over- looked perceived deficits in prior training or language supply similar to what had occurred a decade earlier. ability due to their need for IT workers (see figure 2). Within a low-demand context, employers became Very positive outcomes also prevailed for 1996-2001 highly discriminatory toward migrant engineers, par- arrivals in Canada in the IT sector: 57 percent of recent ticularly those trained in parts of the Middle East and immigrants from Eastern Europe had secured professional Asia (Hawthorne 1994). work in their fields by 2001 (compared to 63 percent in Australia); 49 percent of those from Southeastern Europe Information technology (compared to 68 percent); 43 percent of those from Hong In information technology, 55,630 degree-qualified Kong/Malaysia/Singapore (compared to 27 percent); 37 per- workers had migrated to Canada by 2001. Those who cent of those from India (compared to 34 percent); 41 per- arrived between 1996 and 2001 represented 22.1 percent of those from China (compared to 36 percent); 38 cent of the total IT workforce (24,192) (table 9); in percent of those from Other Middle East/North Africa (com- Hawthorne leyanne Australia, the corresponding figure was 14.2 percent pared to 37 percent); 37 percent of those from (see table 2b). An additional 9,320 IT professionals South/Central Asia (compared to 46 percent); and 32 per- reached Canada between 2001 and 2003, 91 percent of cent of those from the Philippines (compared to 42 percent).

21 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 rq~000000~~116 1,506 ~ 16.2 664 531 991 8,109 ~ 16.1 29.5 1,802 9.5 13.7 10.6 169 85 70.2 0.0 22.0 15.5 446 14.9 718 35 3,710 20.3 2,399 14.6 308 ~ 13.6 ~ 12.4 46.4 0.0 66.2 8.8 ~ 10.8 7.5 65.9 69.4 ~ ~ 70.9 ~ 13.3 25.3 ~ 27.4 15.9 4.6 11.3 14.4 0.0 13.8 ~ ~ ~ 22.7 69.2 72.4 4.6 0.0 31.4 81.2 7.0 80.9 60.3 10.6 2 10.4 ~ 0.0 1 excluded. therefore is and five 70.3 than fewer is observations) (unweighted sample in observations of number ~ 0.0 11.0 (Canada). 2001Census Source: 23.2 14.1 9.0 0.0 0.0 28.5 31.8 Canadian-born 40.9 45.2 0.0 0.0 migrants Total 37.2 28.7 12.3 9.7 Other 25.6 0.0 11.4 America Central/South Other Middle 0.0 East/ 12.4 Iraq Philippines 40.6 37.0 Taiwan 57.4 46.4 ~ 48.9 China Hong Kong/Malaysia/Singapore 57.9 ~ Asia South/Central Other India Europe Northwestern Europe Southeastern Europe Eastern Zealand Australia/New Africa South US UK/Ireland (percent) Birth of Country/Region 1996-2001,by in Canada in Arrived Who Technology Information in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour 9 Table Country/region of birth of Country/region Fields, by Country and Region of Birth, Australia Birth, of Region and Country by Fields, Recent of Rates Employment Own-Profession 2 Figure 1 (Australia). 2001Census Source: Includes those born outside Canada to Canadian parents. Canadian to Canada outside born those Includes claimants). refugee or permit minister's authorization, student authorization, (employment residents nonpermanent Excludes 1996-2001arrivals.

% employed 100 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 0

SE Europe 2 ot fia3. 76776. 061. 1,783 14.6 20.6 63.7 7.7 17.6 38.4 Africa North UK/ Ireland

S Africa 1 profession managerial work Subtotal Unemployed labour force All ( All force labour Unemployed Subtotal work managerial profession E Europe 493. 418. . . 53,613 6.6 4.1 89.3 14.1 30.4 44.9 Own 271. 937. 101. 819 13.4 11.0 72.4 19.3 10.4 42.7

Other Americas

New Zealand profession/ Other

USA/ Canada 1

Philippines All and Technology Information in Immigrants Degree-Qualified Employed

Middle East/ N Africa

Other in Not Other Africa

China Employment r

Lebanon a te inIT 22 India

HK/Mal/ Sing

Iraq Employment r

Other SE Asia a te in Vietnman a ll professions

Indonesia

Taiwan 24,192

Other N

Asia ) Nursing fessionally employed within five years of arrival (in Sustained demand had a similarly beneficial impact marked contrast to typical employment outcomes for on employment outcomes for recently arrived nursing degree-qualified Chinese migrants). and medical professionals in Australia, despite the The contrast with outcomes for internationally edu- existence of significant regulatory barriers in both cated nurses in Canada was stark, in a context where professions. Currently, 5,500 internationally educated 4,462 degree-qualified nurses had migrated in the previ- nurses are brought in by Australia each year (half as ous five years, but growth in professional degree-quali- Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The landed immigrants, and half as temporary workers), fied positions was minimal (-1 percent) (table 10). along with 6,500 medical graduates (5,500 of them Labour market barriers in Canada were severe, exacer- on a temporary basis in order to meet regional work- bated by the selection of 62 percent of these nurses in force shortages). Demand constantly outstrips supply non-economic categories. Just 22 percent of recently (Hawthorne, Hawthorne and Crotty 2007; Hawthorne arrived Indian nurses had found work in their field by 2001, 2002). 2001 (compared to 66 percent in Australia), 22 percent By 2001, virtually every category of the 3,100 per- of Filipino nurses (compared to 35 percent), and 32 permanent migrant nurses arriving in 1996-2001 had cent from Northwestern Europe (compared to 45 per- performed well in Australia — a process greatly facili- cent). Large numbers of nurses arriving from China in tated by the provision of free government-supported 1996-2001 remained unemployed (28 percent) or cate- credential recognition bridging programs (Hawthorne gorized as not in the labour force (25 percent). These 2002). A very high proportion of UK/Ireland nurses outcomes are a serious concern, given the scale of nurse (73 percent) had secured professional nursing work, arrivals to Canada from such countries in recent years together with an extraordinary 66 percent of nurses (the Philippines dominating with 2,160 nurses).

Table 10 Labour Market Outcomes for Degree-Qualified Migrant Nurses Who Arrived in Canada in 1996-2001, by Country/Region of Birth (percent)

Employed

Own Other profession/ Other Not in Country/region of birth1 profession managerial work Subtotal Unemployed labour force All (N)

UK/Ireland ~ 0.0 0.0 0.0 ~ ~ 56 US 31.3 0.0 0.0 31.3 ~ ~ 135 South Africa ~ 0.0 0.0 0.0 ~ ~ 26 Australia/New Zealand ~ 0.0 0.0 0.0 ~ ~ 28 Southeastern Europe ~ 0.0 0.0 0.0 ~ ~ 103 Eastern Europe 8.7 0.0 0.0 8.7 ~ ~ 49 Northwestern Europe 32.2 0.0 0.0 32.2 ~ ~ 81 India 22.2 0.0 25.4 47.6 ~ ~ 178 Other South/Central Asia 13.5 0.0 31.2 44.7 14.0 35.1 460 Hong Kong/Malaysia/Singapore ~ 0.0 0.0 0.0 ~ ~ 30 China ~ 0.0 0.0 0.0 28.1 24.6 182 Taiwan ~ 0.0 0.0 0.0 ~ ~ 126 Philippines 21.8 2.7 51.2 75.6 7.6 15.1 2,160 Other Middle East/ North Africa ~ 0.0 0.0 0.0 ~ ~ 58 Central/South Americas ~ 0.0 34.3 34.3 ~ ~ 189 Other 27.2 2.7 51.2 81.0 7.6 15.1 600

Total migrants 4,462

Canadian-born2 56.3 16.9 12.1 85.3 2.3 12.4 69,987

Source: 2001 Census (Canada). ~ number of observations in sample (unweighted observations) is fewer than five and is therefore excluded. 1 Excludes nonpermanent residents (employment authorization, student authorization, minister's permit or refugee claimants). 2 Includes those born outside Canada to Canadian parents. from India and from Hong Kong/Malaysia/Singapore, Medicine Hawthorne leyanne 63 percent from South Africa, and 49 percent from International medical graduates (IMGs) in Australia Other South/Central Asia. This pattern applied even also achieved extremely positive outcomes, in the con- to nurses qualified in China — 52 percent were pro- text of growing labour force undersupply. (The 2001

23 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 confirms, 78percentofrecentlyarrivedIMGswere in Australia—asthemostrecentstudyonthisissue demand hasinfactsubvertedcredentialrequirements Within thepastdecadestrengthofworkforce despite littlegrowthinpermanentmedicalpositions.) bring in6,500temporaryresidentdoctorseachyear, level ofdemand,giventhatAustraliawashavingto number ofmedicalpositionsunderestimatesthereal Census datashowinga17percentdeclineinthe 5 percentwere workinginmedicineby2001), while arrived China-qualified doctorsfaredappallingly (just in thefirstfiveyearsofarrival. Bycontrast,recently percent) hadsimilarlyhighmedical employmentrates Kong/Malaysia/Singapore (59 percent)andTaiwan (57 Doctors qualifiedinIndia(66 percent),Hong preregistration examspresentedminimalbarriers). those ofAustralian-bornmedicalgraduates(thethree of professionalemploymentcameclosetoorexceeded seamlessly intomedicalworkinAustralia.Theirrates from SouthAfricaandtheUK/Irelandhadmoved Hawthorne andCrotty2007). cent hadsecuredfullaccreditation(Hawthorne, employed inthemedicalfield,thoughonly41 per- Country/Region of Birth (percent) Birth of Country/Region 1996-2001,by in Canada in Arrived Who Graduates Medical Migrant for Outcomes Market Labour 11 Table te 431. 876. 323. 1,031 232 500 30.5 1,612 50.2 717 3,587 13.2 1,604 15.7 31.7 25.6 30.7 29.6 330 64.7 22.6 6.9 9.7 388 2,137 10.9 477 12.6 3,052 16.5 272 49 419 ~ 38.7 13.0 77.4 55.8 23.0 ~ 56.6 0.0 32.0 13.0 46.8 ~ ~ 59.5 32.4 ~ 67.2 11.7 16.8 23.0 26.8 17.0 6.3 19.6 ~ 0.0 ~ 31.5 16.6 ~ 54.0 70.5 51.0 7.3 14.3 27.7 73.6 25.5 80.6 2 15.0 1 10.9 43.5 excluded. therefore is and five than fewer 73.8 is observations) (unweighted sample in observations of number ~ 60.4 9.1 31.5 0.0 (Canada). 2001Census Source: 25.9 14.2 0.0 11.2 3.0 4.3 Canadian-born 12.2 21.7 0.0 0.0 migrants Total 14.5 18.9 24.8 12.7 Other 23.5 0.0 America Central/South 11.6 Other Middle East/ 26.3 0.0 Iraq 8.0 Philippines 45.6 12.4 Taiwan 35.8 China 80.6 10.3 Hong Kong/Malaysia/Singapore 47.5 Asia South/Central Other 60.4 India Europe Northwestern Europe Eastern Europe Southeastern Zealand Australia/New Africa South US UK/Ireland Country/region of birth of Country/region Includes those born outside Canada to Canadian parents. Canadian to Canada outside born those Includes claimants). refugee or permit minister's authorization, student authorization, (employment residents nonpermanent Excludes By 2001, themajorityofIMG1996-2001 arrivals 2 ot fia1. 391. 431. 611,714 36.1 18.0 44.3 15.4 13.9 15.0 Africa North 1 profession managerial work Subtotal Unemployed labour force All ( All force labour Unemployed Subtotal work managerial profession 571. . 872222134,659 2.2 2.2 88.7 9.9 13.1 65.7 Own 071. 205. 271 ~ ~ 56.2 12.0 13.5 30.7 16 Other profession/ Other Employed Other Not in Not Other experienced farmorenegativeoutcomes(although requirements, foreign-borndoctorsinCanada lower demandandmorerigorousregulatory temporary physiciansperyear. Inthecontextof South/Central Asia(39percent)faredsomewhatbetter. Other MiddleEast/NorthAfrica(36percent)and Philippines (33percent),SoutheasternEuropeand doctors fromEasternEurope(24percent),the Asia (table11). China and3,052 werefromOtherSouth/Central within thepreviousfiveyears, 3,587werefrom was severe:ofthe21,799 IMGswho hadmigrated Malaysia/Singapore. Thelevelofmedicalskills discounting inCanada Kong/ Hong from percent 31 dominantly Pakistan), 19percentfromIndiaand cent fromOtherSouth/CentralAsia(probablypre- from EasternEurope,11 percentfromIraq,12per- 2001, comparedto4percentfromChina,8 of Filipinodoctorshadsecuredmedicalworkby through non-economiccategories.Just3percent by thefactthat42percentofIMGswereselected IMGs inAustralia).Thisproblemwasexacerbated those resident10 yearsormoredidaswell As noted,Australianeedstobringin6,500 24 18,392 N ) It is important to acknowledge that C$75 million percent risk of subprofessional employment if qualified in has recently been allocated by Health Canada to society, culture and creative arts, compared to a 15 per- bridge 1,000 medical migrants and 800 nursing cent risk in engineering, 12 percent in IT, 11 percent in migrants into employment. The aim is to offset the nursing and 9 percent in medicine. Comparable rates of wastage and professional disadvantage afflicting the subprofessional employment for pre-1991 arrivals from 21,799 migrant doctors who arrived in the 1996-2001 China were 40 percent if qualified in society, culture and

Census period (Baldacchino, Chandrasekere and creative arts, compared to 21 percent in IT or engineer- Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The Saunders 2007; Bourgeault 2007; Dauphinee 2007). In ing, 18 percent in nursing and 19.5 percent in medicine a period of growing health workforce migration (table 12). Substantial numbers of migrants qualified in (OECD 2007), this is a timely investment in immigrant society, culture and creative arts as well as in manage- labour market integration. ment and commerce had slipped into clerical, sales or

Table 12 Proportion of Degree-Qualified Migrants in Subprofessional1 Employment in Canada, by Country/Region of Birth, Vocational/Credential Field and Period of Arrival (percent)

Vocational/ Hong Kong/ Period of credential UK/ South Malaysia/ Eastern arrival field Ireland Africa India Singapore China Philippines Europe

Before 1991 Information technology 12.2 19.0 20.3 17.2 20.9 25.9 15.3 Engineering 15.2 14.5 29.3 17.4 21.4 60.4 32.4 Medicine 8.8 5.6 14.4 8.3 19.5 65.1 19.6 Nursing 11.4 23.4 32.9 17.9 18.1 28.2 27.8 Society, culture, creative arts 26.8 26.3 55.5 40.0 40.4 55.6 38.3

1991-96 Information technology 10.7 9.5 26.3 20.0 12.5 41.9 8.3 Engineering 12.0 26.3 34.2 20.1 24.3 71.8 30.8 Medicine 6.2 3.7 37.6 20.0 43.4 74.2 33.1 Nursing 16.2 20.3 29.0 16.1 30.4 52.5 36.8 Society, culture, creative arts 31.4 31.9 67.9 43.9 36.5 62.1 42.7

1996-2001 Information technology 17.0 28.5 28.3 22.3 16.7 37.1 15.2 Engineering 17.2 18.2 35.7 27.2 29.0 65.5 40.0 Medicine 16.6 8.6 41.9 28.6 38.7 79.7 39.6 Nursing 27.3 0.0 55.3 44.1 41.5 60.8 30.6 Society, culture, creative arts 28.6 21.1 63.2 39.4 39.5 69.6 39.6

Source: 2001 Census (Canada). 1 Subprofessional employment refers to all work classified as other than professional and managerial.

Generic degrees service positions (22 percent). Less than half had secured To what extent does possession of a generic rather any form of professional or managerial work (44 per- than a vocational degree affect employment out- cent), compared to 61 percent of doctors, 59 percent of IT comes at a time when substantial numbers of such professionals, 50 percent of engineers and 48 percent of degree holders are being selected? The figures for nurses. While there appeared to be less risk of skills dis- 1996-2001 include 57,556 migrants to Canada quali- counting for immigrants qualified in the natural and fied in society, culture and creative arts (compared to physical sciences, far fewer were employed in any profes- 28,377 to Australia); 30,591 qualified in the natural sion than was the norm in vocational fields. This phe- sciences (compared to 11,927); and 29,234 qualified nomenon similarly influenced the level of opportunity for in management/commerce (compared to 22,926). the Canadian-born with generic qualifications; the Regrettably, inferior labour market outcomes were Australian data showed identical trends. Hawthorne leyanne experienced by degree-qualified migrants holding Policy-makers should be aware that disproportionate generic degrees in both countries. In Canada, for numbers of generically qualified migrants will fail to instance, even pre-1991 UK/Ireland arrivals had a 27 secure professional or managerial work, despite their pos-

25 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 tionally “male”fieldssuchasengineering(OECD2008). tion andtheirdisproportionatequalificationintradi- the growingparticipationofwomenineconomicmigra- Canada andAustralia?Thisisasignificantissue,given migrants influenceemploymentoutcomesinboth degree-qualified of gender the does extent what To outcomes The impactofgenderonemployment and thosefromnon-English-speakingbackgrounds. outcomes fordegree-qualifiedfemales,oldermigrants ment. Thisformofcredentialalsosignificantlyworsens session ofdegrees,andregardlesslengthsettle- pared tomen. It isthusessentialtoexamine this had securedvery differentemploymentoutcomes com- study confirmedthatdegree-qualified migrantwomen 1998; Hawthorne1996,2001). et al.1994;Zlotnik1995;Lee 1996;Yeoh andKhoo 1992a, 1992b;Boyd,DeVries andSimkin1994;Fincher growing interest(see,forexample,Hugo1990;Boyd a demonstrated have academics though outcomes, ket tion ofskilledmigrationflowsintermslabourmar- Few governmentstodatehaveexaminedthisfeminiza- workers or“trailingspouses”(LimandOishi1996, 26). despite thepersistentimageofwomenasunskilled teachers andsecretaries—thefeminizedoccupations,” East andselectWestern countriesas“nurses,doctors, have soughtemploymentthroughoutAsia,theMiddle Thailand). Anincreasingproportionofsuchwomen those fromthePhilippines,Indonesia,SriLankaand of Asiantemporarymigrantsbeingfemale(particularly labour movementswaspronounced,withthemajority female. Bytheearly1990s,feminizationofAsian workers wholefttheircountriestoworkoverseaswere 1976, fewerthan15percentofthe146,400Asian establishment ofnondiscriminatoryentrypolicies.In contraception, aswellimmigrant-receivingnations’ tated bywomen’saccesstoeducation,employmentand participation ineconomicmigration—aprocessfacili- the patriarchalstate”(Fincheretal.1994,150). were “theappendagesofeitherprotectivemalesor there wasa“taken-for-granted view”thatwomen participants inmigration”(Lee1996,6-7).Indeed, viewed asdependentsofmalemigrantsorpassive because whenwomenmigrated,theywereroutinely contributions wereconsideredtrivialornon-existent largely unrecognised...[Their]economicandsocial the “roleofwomenininternationalmigrationwas The analysisofthe2001 Censusundertaken forthis The pastdecade,however, hasseenrisingfemale 1980s, the until study, mid-1990s a to According even worseformigrantwomenholdinggeneric 68, 83and87percent.Employmentoutcomeswere and 93percent;foraccounting,54percentversus and 83percent;formedicine,62percentversus81, 87 for architectureandbuilding,45percentversus58,74 neering were51 percentversus62,72and80percent; males (table13a).Thecomparablefiguresforengi- of Canadianfemalesand81 percentofCanadian compared to71 percentof migrant males,78percent secured professionalormanagerialworkby2001, percent ofrecentmigrantfemaleITprofessionalshad the Canadian-bornofeithergender. Forexample,66 males inthesameagegroupandfieldworsethan egories) performedsignificantlyworsethanmigrant ures forAustraliaare25percentand27percent). compared to41 percentofmales(thecomparablefig- Canada from1996to2001 weredegree-qualified, briefly, given that33percentofallfemalemigrantsto Table 13a Table conig4 77 78 95 71 89 75 67 87 67 49 72 (Australia). 2001Census Source: 57 and Management 38 Accounting Medicine and Architecture Engineering Information 87 93 83 87 80 2001(percent) Australia, VocationalField, and Gender by Immigrants Recent among Employment Professional/Managerial 68 81 72 13b Table 54 62 (Canada). 2001Census Source: 62 and Management 51 Accounting Medicine and Architecture Engineering Information 2001(percent) Canada, VocationalField, and Gender by Immigrants Recent among Employment Professional/Managerial il eaeMl eaeMale Female Male Female field Vocational Male Female Male Female field Vocational omrena ..na n.a. 68 n.a. 65 78 n.a. 58 n.a. 67 47 67 commerce 57 building technology 73 83 68 74 61 81 58 49 78 45 71 commerce 66 building technology In Canada,femalemigrants(inallimmigrationcat- 26 9620 Australian-born 1996-2001 Canadian-born 1996-2001 Immigrants Immigrants degrees. In management and commerce, for instance, performing the older age group (45 to 64 years) and doing 49 percent of migrant females had secured profession- infinitely better than newly arrived young graduates (aged al or managerial work, compared to 61 percent of 15 to 24 years; see the next section). Of the recently migrant males, 68 percent of Canadian females and arrived 25-to-44-year-old male graduates from UK/Ireland 73 percent of Canadian males. in Canada, for example, 75 percent had secured work in Highly comparable trends were evident for women their own or another profession by 2001, compared to 57 who had recently migrated to Australia. For example, percent of 45-to-64-year-olds (the comparable figures for Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The 57 percent of migrant female IT professionals had Australia were 74 percent and 67 percent). secured professional or managerial work, compared to A recent OECD analysis confirmed that young, over- 67 percent of migrant males, 67 percent of Australian seas-qualified graduates, by contrast, faced catastrophic females and 78 percent of Australian males. The figures levels of labour market rejection if they did not come for engineering were 38 percent (far worse than in from ESB source countries (OECD 2006). For example, Canada) versus 57, 67 and 75 percent; for architecture just 9 percent of young foreign-born accountants had and building, 47 percent versus 58, 65 and 68 percent; found work in their field in Canada within the first five for medicine, 72 percent versus 87, 89 and 95 percent; years of arrival, compared to 8 percent of engineers, 11 and for accounting 49 percent, versus 67, 71 and 78 percent of commerce graduates, 16 percent of teachers percent. As in Canada, outcomes were inferior for and 22 percent of IT professionals (table 14). The com- migrant women qualified in generic fields (table 13b). parable figures for Australia were: accounting, 20 per- On a more positive note, the study found that cent; teaching, 26 percent; commerce, 5 percent; and IT, young, recently arrived migrant women in Australia 16 percent. Given a choice between degree-qualified had approximated or exceeded male migrants’ profes- locals or new migrant graduates of identical age, sional integration rates across a range of fields. Canadian and Australian employers emphatically pre- Furthermore, they had achieved higher professional ferred the former — this at a time when Canada was or managerial employment levels than comparable characterized by a more difficult employment context males in the natural and physical sciences, medicine, for young graduates. nursing, education, and management and commerce, with near equivalence in all other fields examined. The value of host-country degrees to Within this context, gender-related outcomes merit employment outcomes careful policy monitoring by the Canadian and The Census confirmed that it is highly advantageous Australian governments. for young, degree-qualified migrants to possess host- country rather than overseas degrees. This finding The impact of age on employment outcomes affirms Australia’s growing selection of “onshore” (that To what extent does age at time of migration affect is, former international student) applicants (Birrell, employment outcomes for recent degree-qualified Hawthorne and Richardson 2006; Birrell 2008). Length professionals? Australia awards no economic points of residence in the host country mattered, however, as for applicants older than 44, while Canada deducts employers sought a high degree of acculturation. two points per year for PAs who are 50 and over. Is Young migrants with local degrees residing in this policy decision justified by the Census analysis Australia between 5 and 10 years achieved less positive (in all immigration categories)? The answer is yes. outcomes than those residing in Australia 10 years or Age significantly influenced employment outcomes more. For example, 77 percent of Australian-born new for 1996-2001 degree-qualified arrivals, although this accounting graduates had secured work in 2001 com- pattern was mediated by level of demand by field. In pared to 70 percent of overseas-born local graduates both Canada and Australia, native-born recent graduates resident 10 years or more, and just 55 percent of 1991- enjoyed greater access to work in every profession 96 arrivals. Overall employment rates for 1991-96 examined than 1996-2001 migrant arrivals (of all ages). arrivals with Australian degrees were 34 percent for Outcomes by age and gender were most similar to youth born in UK/Ireland, 39 percent for those born in native-born workers for migrants from ESB source coun- Eastern Europe, 38 percent for Other Middle East/North tries (UK/Ireland, US, Australia/New Zealand, Canada Africa, 34 percent for Northwestern Europe, 31 percent Hawthorne leyanne and South Africa), in addition to those from for India and Other South/Central Asia, 28 percent for Northwestern Europe. Degree-qualified male migrants the Philippines, 26 percent for Hong Kong/Malaysia/ aged 25 to 44 fared best in Canada and Australia, out- Singapore and 19 percent for China.

27 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 applicants (thelatterhad82percentemploymentrates). work, comparedwith63percentofolderoffshore immediately usingtheirprofessionalcredentialsto rate. However, just46percentofyounggraduateswere cent hadfoundworkwithinsixmonths—anexcellent per- migrants withAustraliandegrees(inallfields),83 Australian data(May2006).Ofrecenteconomic of the analysis, in particular for 1996-2001arrivals.) for particular in analysis, the of A and Canada both for sizes cell that note (Please origin. of country their country,than host rather their in degrees their ed Labour Market Outcomes of Recent Canadian- and Foreign-Born Graduates, Foreign-Born and Canadian- Recent of Outcomes Market Labour 14 Table 1 (Canada). 2001Census Source: physical and Natural management of Rest and Society,culture building and Architecture Engineering technology Information Unemployed studies/medicine Medical employment Any profession Own arrival of Period Accounting Teaching Origin Nursing field Vocational Vocational Field, 2001 (percent) 2001 Field, Vocational sciences commerce and arts creative For methodological purposes it is assumed here that 15-24-year-old degree-qualified migrants who arrived in Canada and Australi and Canada in arrived who migrants degree-qualified 15-24-year-old that here assumed is it purposes methodological For This trendisconfirmedbythemostrecent aainbr 96 14 20 14 68 13 33 13 67 11 29 58 9 33 71 7 22 65 7 20 58 7 1991 Before 40 48 9 38 79 1991 Before 10 Foreign-born 25 75 Canadian-born 9 16 80 1991 Before Foreign-born 46 67 Canadian-born 44 82 1991 Before 53 Foreign-born 30 Canadian-born 19 1991 Before Foreign-born 17 Canadian-born 1991 Before Foreign-born Canadian-born 1991 Before Foreign-born Canadian-born Foreign-born Canadian-born aainbr 513 11 12 65 11 60 13 75 17 6 70 6 73 17 61 15 1991 Before 10 6 1991 Before Foreign-born Canadian-born 1991 Before Foreign-born Canadian-born Foreign-born Canadian-born 9620 63 13 38 35 67 41 9 16 1996-2001 1991-95 1996-2001 1991-95 9620 018 15 12 15 40 57 16 17 53 52 2 20 50 55 11 11 19 1996-2001 19 33 1991-95 32 4 3 19 1996-2001 18 44 1991-95 49 17 18 101996-2001 1991-95 50 55 8 20 16 101996-2001 1991-95 51 22 33 1996-2001 41 1991-95 60 17 1996-2001 1991-95 9 33 1996-2001 1991-95 1996-2001 1991-95 (Birrell, HawthorneandRichardson2006). compared to57percentofrecentoffshoremigrants) cent offormerinternationalstudentsliked theirwork, to AUD$1,015), andjobsatisfactionwasless(44per- ings werecorrespondinglylower(AUD$641, compared AUD$33,000, comparedtoAUD$52,500).Weekly earn- less thanoffshoremigrants(drawingannualsalariesof New graduateswithAustraliandegreeswerealsopaid 28 1 by Period of Arrival and Arrival Periodof by ustralia are sometimes very small in this part this in small very sometimes are ustralia a prior to 1996 would have complet- have would 1996 to prior a The Canadian data confirmed the existence of a foreign training and minimal work experience sharply tougher overall entry market for new graduates. For reduced local employer interest. each cohort of young migrant graduates examined, the level of professional employment was lower than it was The impact of location on employment for those who had resided in the country longer, despite outcomes possession of a Canadian degree,17 which conferred a The impact of location on employment outcomes was found definite advantage (table 14). For example, 46 percent of to be minimal in the 2001 Census analysis. Toronto attracted Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The recent Canadian-born accounting graduates had found by far the largest number of degree-qualified immigrants work in their field, compared to 44 percent of foreign- arriving in Canada between 1996 and 2001 — 381,232 (com- born residents who had graduated in Canada and who pared to 141,245 for Vancouver, 112,234 for Montreal, had resided in the country for 10 years or more, and 33 56,911 for Quebec City, 52,020 for Ottawa-Hull and 257,816 percent of those who had lived in Canada between 5 for the rest of Canada) — although Vancouver had received a and 10 years. As was the case in Australia, far lower disproportionate number of skilled migrants in terms of employment outcomes were experienced by newly overall population share (see Schellenberg 2004). arrived young graduates qualified overseas. Just 6 per- In virtually every census metropolitan area (CMA) cent (not shown) of such migrants qualified in medicine examined, the best labour market integration rates were or medical science found work in their fields in Canada secured by 1996-2001 migrants from source countries in the first five years, compared to 8 percent of those in favoured by Canadian employers when selecting tempo- engineering, 9 percent of those in accountancy, 22 per- rary foreign workers: degree-qualified arrivals from the cent of those in IT and 4 to 11 percent of those in gener- UK/Ireland, the US, South Africa, Australia/New Zealand ic fields. As in Australia, the combination of recent and Northwestern Europe (table 15a).

Table 15a Birthplaces of Degree-Qualified Migrants with Employment Rates of 75 Percent or More, by Select Census Metropolitan Area, 1996-2001 Arrivals, Canada, 2001 (percent)

Quebec Ottawa- Rest of Country/region of birth Toronto Vancouver Montreal City Hull Canada

UK/Ireland 86 85 81 84 82 Northwestern Europe 86 82 84 77 81 83 Australia/ New Zealand 82 79 78 79 South Africa 85 84 87 US 85 84 80 82 80 82 Central/South America 84 76 75 81 81 Philippines 83 79 83 Hong Kong/Malaysia/Singapore 79 85 81 India 79 79 77 77 Eastern Europe 80 76 75 77 78 Southeastern Europe 80 75 77 79

Source: 2001 Census (Canada).

Table 15b Birthplaces of Degree-Qualified Migrants with the Lowest Employment Rates,1 by Select Census Metropolitan Area, 1996-2001 Arrivals, Canada, 2001 (percent)

Quebec Ottawa- Rest of Country/region of birth Toronto Vancouver Montreal City Hull Canada

India 31 Other South/Central Asia 70 68 38 68 China 68 63 49 37 Taiwan 64 47 48 63 55 Eastern Europe 52 Iraq 71 30 50 39 64 Other Middle East/North Africa 72 67 leyanne Hawthorne leyanne Australia/New Zealand 50 South Africa 66

Source: 2001 Census (Canada). 1 The table shows the four birthplaces with the lowest employment rates.

29 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 •T o1996-2001: r o nbelong tothetop-fourarrivalgroupsforeachlocationin t obe employedinthestatedCMA,butalsohappenedto —tance ofsomegroupswhowereamongtheleastlikely to poor of OCanada). Itisimportanttonotethenumericalimpor- risk tlower a had hthey employment outcomesinToronto andtherestof e(although rVancouver Sfor selectbirthplacegroupsinMontreal,QuebecCityand o uexamined, withstrikinglypooremploymentoutcomes t hlikely tohavefoundanyformofworkintheCMAs / Crecently arriveddegree-qualifiedmigrantsweretheleast e n t r a l A s i a ( 4 2 , 2 6 4 ) a n d •T h e “ a s s i s t e d r e l•T a h t eanalysis; botharepoints-tested: i v “ly equivalentsubcategorieswereselectedforalldata e s s kstudy, thetwonumericallydominantandmostdirect- ” i lterms andconditions.Forthepurposesofcurrent c l a egrams includearangeofsubcategories,withvariable t d e g w o oresulted inimprovedeconomicoutcomes. r r y khuman capitalmodelofeconomicselectionhad e f rthe extenttowhichAustralia’sdivergencefrom o ” r all immigrationcategories),thisstudywillnowassess c C adegree-qualified migrantstoCanadaandAustralia(in a t n eH a g d o a r y a n f d o rThe migrationcontext CEconomic PrincipalApplicants a n aEmployment Outcomesfor d a a n dtion onemploymentoutcomesinAustralia. t h e •M o n•V t a r n e c a o l u v — e r C h — i n C a h i ( n 9 a , 3 ( 9 1 0 7 ) , 8 5 7 ) a n d T a i w a n ( 1 1 , 5 5 4 ) As table15bshows,certainbirthplacegroupsof lower pointsfor eligibility, givenselectiononthe category forAustralia—where PAs requireslightly the “concessional family/skilledAustralia-Linked” age, etc);and such asqualificationlevel,priorworkexperience, level (pointsallocatedonthebasisofattributes the potentialtousetheirskillsatanappropriate capacity forlabourmarket integration,including are selectedwhollyonthebasisoftheirperceived “independent” categoryforAustralia—wherePAs Canada’s andAustralia’seconomicmigrationpro- Identical trendswerefoundintheimpactofloca- China (33,887) employment outcomesformostrecent analysis thatthereareminordifferencesin aving demonstratedwiththe2001 Census •T h e L o n g i t u•T d h i e n a L l o n I g m i m t i u g d r i a n t a•T i l h o e n S u L D r o a v t e n a y g b i a o t s f u e I d C m i a m n n i a a g l d r a a n S t u s r v t e o y C a o n f a d a I m m i g r a n t s t o the sourcecountries wererapidlydiversifying, there where immigrants’ educationlevelswerehigher but 46 percentto69percent).By contrast,inCanada, dent fortheconcessionalfamily category(risingfrom increased. Excellent employmentgainswerealsoevi- had dropped,andlabourmarket participationrateshad 1993-95 to81 percentin1999-2000.Unemployment six monthsofarrivalhadsurgedfrom57percentin 1999, independentmigrants’employmentrateswithin selection criteriathatwereintroducedinAustralia greatly improved by1999-2000 1990s, butonlythoseofAustralianeconomicPAs had Canada andAustraliawerecomparableinthemid- Employment outcomesforeconomicmigrantsto months ofresidenceinCanadaandAustralia recently arrivedeconomicPAs intheirfirst6to12 sis aresummarizedinturnbelow. and Richardson2006).Keyfindingsfromthisanaly- dictive oflonger-termoutcomes(Birrell,Hawthorne through 2001 Censusdata,andonethatishighlypre- more immediatetimeframethanthataccessible year offiling.Forthisstudy, analysisofdatafor vidual migrantsthroughtaxreturnsfromtheirfirst (IMDB), asemilongitudinaldatabasethattracksindi- after arrival(LSIC 1wasadministeredin2000-01) conducted sixmonths,twoyearsandfour sentative sampleofmigrantsandrefugeestoCanada (LSIC), basedonrecurrentinterviewswitharepre- Three longitudinaldatasourceswereused: ty forlabourmarket integration. points (asabove)relatedtotheirperceivedcapaci- in thehostcountry, inadditiontotheallocationof basis ofrelationshiptofamilymembersestablished Following thesignificantchangestomigration The researchassessedemploymentpatternsof IMDB providesindicativeratherthanidenticaldata. tages ofdegree-qualifiedmigrants.Bydefinition,the ison withLSIA 1andLSIA 2dataforsimilarvin- to ayearafterarrival)wasused,facilitatingcompar- their firstreturnsin1994-95and1999-2000(up recently arrivedeconomicmigrantswhohadfiled 2000 andLSIA 3inOctober2005) three times(LSIA 1in1993-95,LSIA 2in1999- refugees enteringAustralia,administeredtodate resentative sample(5percent)ofmigrantsand commencing sixmonthsafterarrival,witharep- Australia (LSIA), basedonrecurrentinterviews, 30 18 — afar appeared to have been a slight decline in employment (the latter were far more likely to be working in less- rates for skilled workers (from 64 percent in 1994-95 skilled positions, given their new graduate status). to 60 percent in 2000-01, with assisted relatives faring Data categorizing the type of positions secured by much worse (dropping from 57 percent in 1994-95 employed economic PAs in Canada were not provided in [IMDB approximation] to just 36 percent in 2000-01). LSIC 1. However, IMDB data suggested that positive Outcomes have continued to improve for PAs in trends occurred from 1994-95 to 1999-2000: 32 percent both economic categories in Australia in the past five of skilled workers had managerial or professional work Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The years: LSIA 3 data for 2005 confirm that 83 percent of by the mid-1990s, compared to 54 percent by the end of independent PAs have found work within six months the decade. Growth in professional/managerial positions (as have 72 percent of comparable Australian-spon- from 22 to 36 percent also occurred for assisted relatives. sored migrants); 12 percent of economic PAs were The IMDB does not provide job satisfaction data; howev- unemployed, and just 5 percent were not in the labour er, LSIC 1 demonstrated that 73 percent of skilled workforce — a marked improvement since 1999-2000, ers in Canada were “positive” about their employment by when the corresponding rate was 15 percent. 2000-01, along with 70 percent of assisted relatives. LSIC data confirmed that two years after arrival, 84 percent of Levels of employment and job satisfaction had those in work were satisfied with their employment. substantially improved for economic PAs in Australia since the mid-1990s; select outcomes were also Salaries had risen markedly for economic PAs in improving in Canada Australia by 1999-2000, but not for those in Canada In line with Australia’s generally superior employ- In Australia, weekly earnings also greatly improved for ment outcomes, professional/managerial positions employed independent PAs between 1993-95 and 1999- proved more accessible to independent migrants in 2000: 57 percent earned AUD$674 or more, compared to Australia, the rates rising from 55 percent in 1993-95 just 39 percent six years earlier. By 1999-2000, 76 percent to 60 percent by 1999-2000. Concessional family of employed independent migrants were earning more rates, however, remained comparable to those in than the median wage (AUD$154), along with 63 percent Canada (reflecting these migrants’ lower points of concessional family migrants. Growth in income was requirement): just 32 percent of the employed found also positive for concessional family workers, with the high-skilled positions by 1999-2000. At that time, 85 proportion of PAs in this category earning above the percent of employed independent PAs also stated they median wage rising from 23 to 34 percent. While trend were actively using their credentials within six data for Canada were not available, earnings at the time months, compared to just 64 percent of concessional of LSIC 1 (2000-01) were significantly lower in Canada family workers (a modest improvement over 1993-95). than in Australia: 33 percent of skilled economic migrants The latest available Australian data, for 2005, con- were paid C$618 or more per week, compared to just 11 firm that 63 percent of all independent arrivals were percent of employed assisted relatives. using their qualifications to work, compared to 49 per- Australian data for 2005 reveal that income levels cent of the Australian-sponsored. This is a positive out- rose even higher after 1999-2000 (in stark contrast to come, given that the figures now include substantial the trend now evident in Canada): 65 percent of inde- numbers of recently graduated international students. pendent PAs were earning over AUD$674 per week; their (Comparable data were not available for Canada.) average weekly wage was an extraordinary AUD$1,015. The data confirmed job satisfaction to be good but This compared to 46 percent of offshore Australian- static for concessional family PAs in Australia — about sponsored PAs (who earned an average weekly wage of 45 percent for both 1993-95 and 1999-2000. By con- AUD$779) and 40 percent of onshore former interna- trast, independent PAs had become increasingly satis- tional students, who were new graduates lacking profes- fied with their positions: in 1999-2000 61 percent sional experience (they averaged AUD$641 per week, but claimed to “love or really like” their work, compared to this will likely increase over time). 50 percent six years earlier. Data for 2005 confirmed this generally positive result: 57 percent of independ- Employment outcomes had also improved for economic ent migrants liked their work and 31 percent consid- PAs in Australia for all birthplace groups, including Hawthorne leyanne ered it “okay,” compared to 50 and 37 percent, those that were typically disadvantaged respectively, of offshore Australian-sponsored migrants As established by the Census data analysis, select and 44 and 40 percent of former international students developing-country birthplace groups were at risk of

31 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 however, confirmedtremendousgainsinearly (in allimmigrationcategories).TheAustraliandata, severe labourmarket disadvantageinbothcountries Post Immigration Reform, Immigration Post and Pre- Applicants, Economic Principal Arrived hn 561 73 72 76 45 79 89 56 86 2 1 83 (1999-2000). LSIA2 and (1993-95) LSIA1 Sources: 42 57 Central 31 Southeast, North, Africa East/North Middle 76 85 China 1999-2000 73 Kong/Malaysia/ Hong (%) arrivals India 1993-95 Philippines Europe Eastern (%) arrivals Europe Northwestern Africa South UK/Ireland birth of region Country/ Rates Employment Short-Term 16a Table Years, Canada (percent) Canada Years, te saPcfc5. 134. 50.3 34.8 49.7 15.9 52.0 34.2 65.2 45.2 55.3 23.9 41.3 84.1 48.0 53.7 33.3 38.6 65.8 54.8 37.5 44.7 76.1 75.3 58.7 16.8 42.7 46.3 66.7 61.4 42.4 40.4 62.5 41.2 23.7 24.7 83.2 57.3 47.5 17.0 33.3 57.6 59.6 32.3 58.8 18.4 78.9 62.5 11.3 22.0 27.1 46.9 0.0 52.5 83.0 Asia/Pacific Other 66.7 Europe Southeastern 67.7 43.5 81.6 28.2 Europe Eastern Europe Northwestern 37.5 88.7 78.0 72.9 53.1 Europe Other 10.5 100.0 East Africa/Middle Other Morocco 56.5 23.3 71.8 Korea South 13.1 Lanka Sri 61.5 15.4 89.5 Russia Romania 76.7 Iran Iraq 86.9 38.5 Lebanon 84.6 Indonesia Vietnam Philippines Taiwan China Kong/Malaysia/Singapore Hong Pakistan India Zealand Australia/New Africa South US UK/Ireland Outcomes Employment Short-Term 16b Table oa 423. 2038.0 60.0 62.0 40.0 35.8 25.9 75.0 64.2 74.1 25.0 25.5 74.5 1 LSIC. and IMDB Source: Total stated Not countries Other America South/Central Other onr/eino it mlydOhrEpoe te mlydOther Employed Other Employed Other Employed birth of Country/region sa4 77 68 40 53 Asia Singapore The reforms were introduced in 1999. in introduced were reforms The arrival. of months six within employment of Rate Employment status within six months of arrival. of months six within status Employment 2 by Birthplace, Australia Birthplace, by 1 among Newly among 1 of Newly Arrived Principal Economic Applicants, by Birthplace, Select Birthplace, by Applicants, Economic Principal Arrived Newly of 9419 2000-01 1999 1994 Singapore, 61 percentfromChina,and79 Africa, 68percentfromHongKong/Malaysia/ from India,72percenttheMiddleEast/North ing withinsixmonths,comparedto73percent percent ofNorthwesternEuropeanPAs werework- percent ofUK,89SouthAfricanand83 Australian disadvantagegaphadlargelyclosed:86 Eastern Europe(table16a).By1999-2000,this the MiddleEast/NorthAfricaand31 percentfrom Singapore, 45percentfromChina,42 India, 53percentfromHongKong/Malaysia/ pared to56percentofeconomicmigrantsfrom employed withinsixmonthsofarrival.Thiscom- Northwestern Europeaneconomicmigrantswere percentofSouthAfrican and73percentof 76 parts. Thiswasaveryencouragingfinding. employers thantheirpreviousbirthplacecounter- recent economicPAs provingfarmoreacceptableto screened bythenewselectioncriteria,withmore employment outcomesforsuchmigrantswhen In 1993-95,forexample,85percentofUK, 32 2667.4 36.4 30.1 50.8 32.6 63.6 69.9 49.2 1538.5 61.5 18.7 81.3 from Eastern Europe (the improved outcomes for percent). By contrast, female economic PAs in Canada Eastern European arrivals are particularly notable). appeared to have experienced employment decline in In Canada, improved labour market integration this period (assuming comparability between the LSIC rates were also achieved by economic PAs from the UK and the IMDB). The 2000-01 employment rate for (87 percent in 1994-95, rising to 89 percent in 1999- female immigrants six months after arrival was 55 per- 2000 based on IMDB data), from the Philippines (78 cent, compared to 63 percent in 1994-95. For male percent, rising to 84 percent in 2000-01), from India immigrants, the rates were 62 and 65 percent. This Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The (72 percent, rising to 76 percent) and from Pakistan finding is problematic, given the increasing flow to (57 percent, rising to 66 percent). However, far more Canada of female immigrants with relatively high qual- variable labour market integration rates remained the ifications, as demonstrated in the previous analysis norm for other economic PA groups: 53 percent from (OECD 2008). Hong Kong/Malaysia/Singapore were employed in Age-related selection changes have also been beneficial 1999 (compared to 39 percent in the mid-1990s) and to Australia. By the late 1990s, older migrants (44 years 48 percent from China in 2000-01 (apparently declin- and older) were receiving no economic category points for ing from 73 percent). These outcomes almost certainly age at all. This change is associated with very positive reflected nonrecognized credentials, as well as outcomes (older applicants are now obliged to score high Canadian employer wariness regarding the calibre of on other employment-related measures). By 1999-2000, foreign training systems and applicants’ ability to 77 percent of 25-to-44-year-old economic PAs had speak French or English (see table 16b). secured work in Australia within six months, compared to 70 percent of 15-to-24-year-olds and 59 percent of 45-to- Australian labour market integration rates had 64-year olds. These results for older workers are notewor- markedly improved for both male and female thy: their employment rate nearly doubled within six economic PAs, as well as across all age groups years (reflecting their premigration screening for creden- Australia’s changed economic selection criteria tial recognition, English-language ability and other have diminished both female and male economic employer-desired attributes that offset the disadvantage migrants’ disadvantage to a high degree: employment typically associated with older age) (see table 17). rates for female PAs rose from 49 to 71 percent Canada continued to accept substantial numbers of between 1993-94 and 1999-2000; comparable male economic PAs over 45 years of age from 1991 to 2003, rates were only slightly higher (rising from 53 to 78 despite some decline in this trend. However, Canadian

Table 17 Short-Term Employment Outcomes1 among Newly Arrived Economic Principal Applicants, by Age, Select Years, Canada and Australia (percent)

Canada

1994 1999 2000-01

Age group Employed Other Employed Other Employed Other

15-24 years 78.8 21.2 76.4 23.6 80.4 19.6 25-44 years 64.9 35.1 62.5 37.5 60.7 39.3 45-64 years 51.6 48.4 50.3 49.7 50.2 49.8 All 64.4 35.6 62.1 37.9 60.0 40.0

Australia

1993-95 1999-2000

Unemployed/ Unemployed/ Age group Employed not in labour force Employed not in labour force

15-24 years 54.7 45.3 69.6 30.4 25-44 years 53.3 46.7 77.1 22.9 45-64 years 32.1 67.9 59.4 40.6 Hawthorne leyanne All 51.9 48.1 75.8 24.2

Sources: Canada — IMDB and LSIC: Australia — LSIA. 1 Employment status within six months of arrival.

33 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 the host-countrylanguage(s)isacriticaldeterminant outcomes screening wasassociatedwithgreatlyimproved work Externally validatedhost-countrylanguage policy issuemaybeworthexamining. of 45-to-64-yearolds(comparedto52percent).This 44-year-olds (comparedto65percent)and50percent compared to79percentin1994),61 percentof25-to- year-olds wereemployedin2000-01 (inallfields, all threeperiodsexamined:80percentof15-to-24- employers stronglyfavouredyoungskilledworkers in demonstrating thatthehigheranimmigrant’s offi- systematically deteriorate[d]” (Wooden 1994,230). position ofimmigrantsvis à vistheAustralian-born as theeducationlevelincreased, “thelabourmarket Australian evidenceupto1994 demonstratedthat Multicultural Affairs1989,39).Moreover, the life cycleinAustralia(Australia,Officeof astating barrier”ateverystageoftheemployment was consideredtorepresent“an awesomeanddev- 1986, 86).By1989,poorEnglish-languageability gained (Australia,BureauofLabourMarket Research and countryinwhichformalqualificationshadbeen ability, birthplace,periodofresidenceinAustralia ployment predictorsincludingEnglish-language bility of[males]beingunemployed”;withunem- English-language competence“doubledtheproba- By 1981, ithadbeendemonstratedthatpoor they werequalifiedandsecuringadequateearnings. tus work,locatingthisworkinthefieldsforwhich converting overseascredentialsintoappropriate-sta- ble intermsofemployment.Theyhaddifficulty with recessionsrenderingthemparticularlyvulnera- NESB workers securedworseoutcomesateveryage, their possessionofgenerallyhigherqualifications. ment outcomesachievedbyNESBmigrants,despite nomic migrantshaveconfirmedtheinferioremploy- Australia. Aseriesoflabourmarket reportsoneco- Hiebert 2006).Anidenticaltrendisevidentin opportunities” (ThompsonandWorswick 2004; bility, thegreateremploymentandearnings “the higher…animmigrant’sofficiallanguagecapa- human capitalthatseemstomattermost,”while country languageabilityis“theparticularformof notorious unreliabilityofself-reporting. issue notexaminedwith2001 Censusdata,giventhe of employmentoutcomesinknowledgeeconomies,an As hasbeenestablishedbymanyreports,facilityin Comparable trends areevidentinCanada, host- studies, Canadian recent two to According 19 cannot take theirplaceintheknowledgeeconomy national data,arecentCanadianstudystatedthat effect oflanguageliteracyonearningsbased Chiswick andMiller2000a,2000b).Analyzingthe example, CitizenshipandImmigrationCanada1998; employment andearningsopportunities(see,for cial-language capability, thegreaterthatperson’s Australia had matched orexceeded comparablemales grants bygender. FemaleeconomicPAs selectedby to assessEnglish-languageability forrecentimmi- cent ofthelatter(table18).The LSIA furtherallowsus of theformersecuredwork, compared tojust41 per- level Englishwasalsovastby 1999-2000:73percent gap betweenimmigrantswithhigh-levelandlow- pared to73percentin1999-2000).Theemployment very wellinAustralia(45percent1993-95,com- proportion ofeconomicPAs usingEnglishwellor for allow to English/French self-assessment? continues Canada while PAs migration English-languageassessmentforeconomic Australia hasmandatedexternallyvalidatedpre- confirmed bythelongitudinaldataanalysis,nowthat entry requirementforprofessionalpractice. English/French languageabilityasanessential example, havenowallidentifiedhigh-level nursing andengineeringregulatorybodies,for Language Benchmarks2002).Canada’smedical, Canadian for Centre 2000; Pawlikowska-Smith critical (see,forexample,HawthorneandToth 1996; nursing, teachingandengineering,itisregardedas and incommunicativeprofessionssuchasmedicine, such asgender(Boyd,DeVries andSimkin1994); also interactswithotherlabourmarket attributes, country language(s).Host-countrylanguagefacility without spoken andwrittenfluencyinthehost- Increasingly, theargumentismadethatmigrants The LSIA showedamarked recentincrease inthe findings language-related these are extent what To Green andRiddell2004,3) but isnotthedominantexplanation.(Ferrer, immigrant-native bornearningsdifferentials is animportantinputtounderstanding ences. Thus,lowliteracyamongimmigrants low returnsarenotrelatedtoliteracydiffer- larger impactinthedifferentialandthose returns toforeignacquiredexperiencehavea educated native-bornworkers. However, low versity educatedimmigrantsandsimilarly one-half oftheearningsgapbetweenuni- falls inliteracycanaccountforabout born earningsdifferentials.Immigrantshort- discrimination explanationforimmigrant- skills. We arguethatthisdoesnotsupporta obtain thesamereturnfortheirliteracy immigrants andthenativebornappearto 34 20 Table 18 Short-Term Employment Outcomes among Newly Arrived1 Principal Economic Applicants, by Language Ability, Various Survey Years, Canada and Australia (percent)

Canada

1994 1999 2000-01 Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The

Language Level Employed Other Employed Other Employed Other

English 64.6 35.4 62.9 37.1 French 65.6 34.4 62.3 37.7 English and French 64.7 35.3 62.9 37.1 Neither 62.3 37.8 52.9 47.1 English and/or French Knows very well/well 61.5 38.5 Knows not well/ not at all 50.8 49.2 All 64.5 35.5 62.2 37.8 60.0 40.0

Australia

1993-95 1999-2000

Unemployed/ Unemployed/ Category Level Employed not in labour force Employed not in labour force

English Knows very well/well 44.5 55.5 73.1 26.9 Knows not well/ not at all 28.1 71.9 40.9 59.1 All 39.8 60.2 71.1 28.9

Sources: Canada — IMDB and LSIC: Australia — LSIA. 1 Employment status within six months of arrival. in terms of host-country language ability: 93 to 98 Improved employment outcomes for economic percent of female independent PAs spoke English well migrants were found in major migration settlement or very well, despite somewhat lower rates in the con- locations in both countries cessional family category. This seems certain to have In line with the 2001 Census data, employment outcomes contributed to the positive employment outcomes for economic PAs varied across the Australian locations reported by females. analyzed: by 1999-2000, 81 percent had secured work with- Australia’s 2005-06 skilled migration review con- in six months of arrival in Sydney, compared to 73 percent firmed the critical association between independently in other Australia and 70 percent in Melbourne; there were assessed English-language ability and the speed with markedly better outcomes in each location than there were which migrants integrated into the labour market: 89 in 1993-95. Similarly, analysis of the longitudinal data con- percent of economic PAs with English as their “only firmed that economic PAs located in Toronto (65 percent) or best” language were employed within six months and in other Canadian CMAs (69 percent) had better imme- of arrival, compared to 86 percent of those who spoke diate employment outcomes than migrants settling in English “very well,” 76 percent of those who spoke it Vancouver (56 percent) or Montreal (just 38 percent). “well” and 59 percent of those who spoke it “not well.” PAs with the best command of English were Welfare dependence had also declined among also the most likely to be using their professional economic PAs in both countries qualifications to work (61 percent, compared to 60, Welfare dependence had virtually disappeared in 44 and 37 percent), and they were most likely to be Australia for independent and concessional family immi- employed in professional or managerial positions. grants by 1999-2000, reflecting government policy barring The LSIC data confirmed that migrants with access to welfare in the first two years of arrival. While in knowledge of English and/or French were highly 2005, 12 percent of economic PAs were categorized as advantaged in terms of access to employment. Given unemployed after six months of arrival, these people would Hawthorne leyanne the lack of language levels for LSIC and IMDB data, have been ineligible to receive benefits. In Canada, reliance however, it was not possible to make more meaning- was also very low for other skilled worker and assisted rela- ful comparisons in relation to this over time. tive PAs in 2000-01 (just 8 percent of households).

35 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 their counterpartsinCanada,fargreaterpropor- Hawthorne andRichardson2006).Comparedto longer-term labourmarket integrationrates(Birrell, months ofarrivalarealsostronglycorrelatedwith in Australia:theiremploymentoutcomeswithinsix economic immigrantsperformindisputablybetter migrants (inallimmigrationcategories).However, A Conclusion migration screening bytherelevantAustralian regulated fieldshavebeenrequired toapplyforpre- In termsofcredentialrecognition, PAs qualifiedin ity toproceedwitheconomic migrationtoAustralia. perceived “employability” hasdeterminedPAs’ capac- market demand). qualification infieldsassociatedwithbuoyantlabour English-language ability, recognizedcredentialsand omy attributesemployerssought(sophisticated flawed: itdeliveredPAs lackingtheknowledgeecon- The previousmodelofselectionhadproventobe employers retainthepowertoofferorwithholdwork. given thatinAustralia,governmentframespolicybut tion programwasviewedaslegitimateandessential, programs, andeventhiswasinadequate). dential recognitionandEnglish-languagebridging lion ofannualfederalfundingforemployment,cre- the mid-1990s,thisamountedtosomeAUD$250mil- to supporttheirlabourmarket adjustmentneeds(by reduce thelevelofgovernmentinvestmentrequired reduce skillswastageamongrecentarrivalsandto place inthelabourmarket. Parallel goalswereto economy byemployingtheirskillsatanappropriate who canmake animmediatecontributiontothe gram’s originalintent:toselecteconomicmigrants 1999, theAustraliangovernmentaffirmedpro- fits ofrecentpolicyrefinements. (released inMay2006)confirmtheongoingbene- groups. ThelatestavailableAustraliandata with selectbirthplace,language,ageandgender the labourmarket displacementtypicallyassociated In theprocess,unprecedentednumbersareavoiding earn highsalariesandusetheircredentialstowork. tions fast,gainprofessionalormanagerialstatus, tions ofnewimmigrantsinAustraliasecureposi- Since 1999,inconsequenceofresearchfindings, The transformationofAustralia’seconomicmigra- In redesigningitseconomicselectioncriteriain Canada andAustraliaarehighlycomparable s establishedbytheCensusdataanalysis, settlement sitesfordegree-qualified Opportunity 2007). munication inownfield”(EnglishforInternational many mistakes. Shouldbeabletohandlebasiccom- meaning inmostsituations,thoughislikely tomake tial commandofthelanguage,copingwithoverall mum foreconomiceligibilityisdefinedas“Haspar- modest fee.Thestandardisnotdraconian:themini- tionally andmonthlybytheBritishCouncilfora (or anapprovedequivalent),administeredinterna- tered InternationalEnglishLanguageTesting System higher-level scoresontheindependentlyadminis- didates havebeenrequiredtoachievevocational-or the importanceofhost-countrylanguageability, can- associated withbeneficialoutcomes.Inrecognitionof qualified inhigh-demandfields,ameasureclearly ed andupto20bonuspointsawardedapplicants niche economies,priorityprocessinghasbeengrant- to nonrecognitionofskills.Giventheexistence avoid yearsofforcedlabourmarket displacementdue month postalprocess).Thisstrategyisdesignedto national orstatelicensingbodies(typically, athree- Europe hadfound workwithinsixmonths ofarrival 79 percentof economic PAs arrivingfromEastern the scaleofchangehadbeen dramatic.Forexample, East/North Africa,India,the PhilippinesandChina, economic PAs fromEasternEurope,theMiddle countries hadimprovedby1999-2000, inthecaseof market integrationofeconomicPAs fromallsource vantaged groups(seetable16a).Whilethelabour employment gainsachievedbytraditionallydisad- work, itisimportant,finally, tohighlightthepositive effectively screened. criteria haveresultedinapplicantsbeingfarmore ing ethnicdiversity, Australia’schangedselection cent) andSingapore(2percent).Ratherthandiminish- Kong (3percent),KoreaSriLankaper- Philippines (3percent),IndonesiaHong percent), theUK(16Malaysia(4 er, thetop10 wereIndia(19percent),China(18 cent) andthePhilippines(3percent).Twoyearsearli- India (15percent),China(11 percent),Malaysia(4per- the topfivesourcecountrieswereUK(18percent), ethnic diversityhavebeenmaintained:in2006-07, target hassincebeenraisedto102,500. Racialand were athirdthatlevelinthemid-1990s);2007-08 to 97,500in2005-06from77,8002004-05(they Australia. Intakes ofeconomicimmigrantsincreased couraged ordistortedskilledmigrantflowsto impact, thesepolicychangesfrom1999havenotdis- In termsofAustralia’schangedselectionframe- It isessentialtonotethatintermsofoverall 36 by 1999-2000, compared to 31 percent in 1993-95. IELTS 7 or above), now a major determinant of selec- The comparable rate for the Philippines was 76 per- tion. The practices of education providers will be better cent (versus 57 percent), with further gains being monitored — in particular, those providers operating in reported by the time the LSIA 3 was conducted in the fast-growing, migration-driven vocational training October 2005. Impressive employment rates had also sector. More migration points will be awarded to gradu- been achieved by other at-risk groups, including ates of Australian institutions who have completed women of all ages and older skilled migrants. postgraduate programs: most notably, those possessing Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The Many former international students had become doctoral degrees (25 points) or three-year qualifications economic migrant program participants by 2005 (15 points) (Australia, Department of Immigration and (accounting for 52 percent of the total). By definition, Citizenship 2007a). such migrants had paid out of their own pockets to Such steps are viewed as essential to maintaining meet Australian employers’ English-language and the integrity of Australia’s skill migration program. In credential needs, thus supporting the development of terms of language measures, they are justified by the the country’s education export industry. Their selec- review’s finding that English-language ability is the tion as economic migrants was not viewed as ethical- major determinant of professional employment out- ly problematic, despite the international debate on comes: “We conclude that in most dimensions of labour this issue. Parents, rather than source countries, had market success, the key is to have a level of English financed these students’ tertiary education, with language competence that enables the respondent to scholarship holders systematically excluded from report that they speak English at least ‘very selection. From an ethical perspective, the recruit- well’...[Those who do not] were much more likely to be ment of mature-age professionals who have been unemployed; about half as likely as those with better fully trained abroad could seem less defensible, even English to be employed in a job commensurate with though this has been the recruitment norm in Canada their skills; and about twice as likely to be employed in and Australia for many years. Finally, it is important a relatively low skilled job” (Birrell, Hawthorne and to acknowledge that Australia’s skilled migration Richardson 2006, 86-7). review uncovered emerging problems in relation to It is beyond the scope of this paper to conclude with international student flows, most notably a degree of policy recommendations, since the mandate of the institutional compromise on training quality and report on which it is based (as commissioned by acceptable English-language standards (Birrell, Citizenship and Immigration Canada, Statistics Canada Hawthorne and Richardson 2006; Hawthorne 2007b; and Human Resources and Skills Development Canada) Birrell, Healy and Kinnaird 2007; Watty 2007). was to compare labour market outcomes for degree- Since September 2007, decisive steps have been qualified professionals in Canada and Australia based taken to address this issue. Former international stu- on the available statistical evidence. At the same time, dents are no longer exempt from English-language the study demonstrates the extent to which labour mar- testing because it is impossible for the Department of ket outcomes are amenable to influence by policy Immigration and Citizenship to police education change, given the sustained benefits flowing to providers’ academic entry and progression standards. Australia, following its skilled migration reform under- For all economic migrants, the International English taken in 1999.22 Language Testing Scheme (IELTS) band 6 has been The impact of Canada’s Immigration and Refugee declared the threshold competence score in the four Protection Act will be assessed at a later date. language skills — significantly up from band 521 (there Important Canadian initiatives are also underway in are 9 bands in all). Liberalized access to postcourse relation to foreign credential recognition, the transition visas will allow former international students an addi- of former international students and temporary workers tional 18 months’ stay (if required) to gain work expe- to economic migration (the “Canadian experience” rience, improve their English-language skills or class) and the growth of the Provincial Nominee undertake a “professional year” related to their field of Program (Citizenship and Immigration Canada 2008; study. Only passport holders from the UK, Ireland, the Hawthorne 2007b). Major sums are currently being US, Canada and New Zealand will be exempt from invested to address labour market barriers for skilled Hawthorne leyanne English testing on transition to economic migration. migrants, including well-targeted language and labour Significant bonus points will also be awarded to profi- market interventions. Alongside such measures, intro- cient English speakers (25 points for candidates rated duction of mandatory premigration English/French-

37 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 wastage. degrees, itseemsessentialtoredressthisskills twice aslikely astheCanadian-borntopossess Hou andCoulombe2007, 5-6). had degrees(upfrom13%intheearly1990s)”(Picot, one-half wereintheskilledeconomicclass,and41% of thechronicallypoorimmigrant;bylate1990s highly educatedrose.Whatdidchangewastheface had largelydisappearedby2000,asthenumberof over, say, thehighschooleducatedinearly1990s the universityeducatedenteringimmigrantshad ily classcounterparts,andthesmalladvantagethat income andbeinchroniclow-incomethantheirfam- Canada] wereactuallymorelikely toenterlow- early 2000s,skilledclassenteringimmigrants[to dramatically tobelow10 percent.”However, “bythe the likelihood ofentryinsubsequentyears[willfall] “If immigrants[escape]lowincomeintheirfirstyear, As establishedbyarecentStatisticsCanadareview, remain highforbotheconomicmigrantsandCanada. support nationaldevelopmentgoals,thestakes will where governmentspromoteeconomicmigrationto to employers’needs. applicants withskillsandexperiencethatcorrespond tions toofficersenablerapidacceptanceof ity toidentifypriorityoccupationsandissueinstruc- proposed changes,theministerwouldgetauthor- sive toCanada’slabourmarket needs.Underthe ize theimmigrationsystemandmake itmorerespon- Immigration andRefugeeProtectionAct the federalgovernmentproposedchangesto ket] entrant earnings” (Sweetman 2005, 8). 2005, (Sweetman earnings” entrant ket] experience, and(3)ageneralfallinnew[labourmar- fall inthereturntopre-Canadianlabourmarket and Frenchlanguageskillsdiscrimination,(2)a composition andassociatedfactorsincludingEnglish combination of:(1)achangeinthesourcecountry entry earningssincethe1980scanbeexplainedbya text where“[v]irtuallyallofthedeclineinimmigrant allocated topremigrationworkexperienceinacon- make sensetore-evaluatetheproportionofpoints test resultsexternallyvalidated.Furthermore,itcould nomic PAs, withthresholdlevelsofabilitysetand language assessmentmayseemwarrantedforeco- Given thatnewlyarrivedmigrantsaremorethan In anincreasinglycompetitiveglobalenvironment to modern- 23 Recently, 38 5 The Impact of Economic Selection Policy on Labour Market Outcomes for Degree-Qualified Migrants in Canada and Australia, by Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The schools (65 points) assessed based on equivalency to the above UK qualifications (TBA) ability as “good-vocational” or “very good/competent” on the eligibility assessment form, but no advice is given on how such information might be used (if at all) cation level, age of applicant and calibre of experience (25-50 points) •MBA from one of the world’s top 50 be top to world’s the of qualifications, one points) points) points) from (25 (30 (15 •MBA professional •Ph.D. or •Master’s •Bachelor’s points •Trades English 5 28: their •Under rate to asked are No points qualifi- •Applicants on depending – n.a. job •Graduate-level points) (25 •Exceptional •Significant (15 points) (15 •Significant is a prerequisite for skill PAs points) (10 (30 points) •Trade/tertiary (50 points) points) (55 points) (50 Ph.D. or Only for officially recognized credentials •Master’s •Trade/tertiary points) average points) (30 6.5 points) Points(25 only awarded to thosepoints) aged•20-29 (20 18-55IELTS •30-39 (10 points) •40-44 (5 2002, Zealand •45-49 New •50-55 in November No points study •Since of years 2 points) points) least (60 •At (50 points) experience months (50 12 months work 12 offer than Skilled work experience than job •More relevant •Less of •Current points) Plus years points) (25 •10 points) (20 points) years (15 •8 years (10 •6 years •4 years •2 n.a. 3 6 average 2 4 (50 points) (20 points) (15 points) (40 points) (5 points) point occupation points) (10 point occupation (5 points) depending on specific skill category with recent Australian qualifications •Vocational English, IELTS 5 average 5 IELTS points) English, (10 degree •Vocational points) honours or (15 •Ph.D. •Master’s •Occupation-specific training (60 points) (60 training occupations occupations professional skilled Only for officially recognized credentials •Occupation-specific •General general •Other points) points) (30 points) Points(25 only awarded to thosepoints) aged•18-29 (20 18-44IELTS •30-34 (15 •35-39 English •40-44 •Competent •Degree, diploma or trade qualification 60- trade 60- or or nominated 50- to diploma 40-, essential, relates any •Degree, in is applicants experience Offshore applicants experience for of •If experience waived •If months •12-24 experience Onshore applicants •Work n.a. 1 credential (22 points) credential (20) (5-15) (deduct 2 points) (2-24 points) obligation for external validation Canada (5 points) (though not specific) occupation (up to 21 points) 1 year’s full-time work experience in a field on the National Occupation List •2 or more bachelor’s degrees or trade or points 25 trade degrees or Ph.D.: qualifications or degree bachelor’s 21 more •Master’s or university under •2 or 49 •2-year French over no points) •lower-school/post-school and/or and (10 year each •21-49 English •For migration in in skill study ability for of academic •Level skilled essential of a in •Not years 2 of of experience •Minimum work requirement years’ 4 to threshold •Up •Additional n.a leyanne Hawthorne leyanne Points Tests for Economic Category Migrants, Canada, Australia,Attribute New Zealand and the United Kingdom, 2003-05 Canada (2003) Australia (2005) New Zealand (2004-05) United Kingdom (2005) Skill Age Host-country language ability Host-country qualifications Recent work experience Achievement in the field Appendix

39 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008

Appendix (cont’d)

Points Tests for Economic Category Migrants, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom, 2003-05

Attribute Canada (2003) Australia (2005) New Zealand (2004-05) United Kingdom (2005)

Recent earnings n.a. n.a. n.a. (Based on an earnings assessment conducted in the past 12 months in the country of origin)6 Category A – more than 28 years •£250,000 (50 points) •£100,000 (35 points) •£40,000 (25 points) Less than 28 years •£60,000 (50 points) •£40,000 (35 points) •£27,000 (25 points) Category E •£2,350-£21,875 (25-50 points)

Occupational demand •Permanent or temporary job offer in •If the nominated occupation is on the •See bonus points (below); from 2006, •General practitioner recognized to work in Canada (10 points) MODL7 with a job offer (20 points) 3,000 additional skill places are reserved the UK (50 points) •Minimum 1 year’s work experience in •If the occupation is on the MODL, but for applicants with NZ jobs or job offers, Canada (5 points) there is no job offer (15 points) with work-to-residence permits reduced •Arranged employment in Canada from 2 years to 6 months (5 points)

Regional links n.a. •Has lived and studied for a minimum of 2 •See bonus points (below) n.a. years in regional Australia (5 points)8

Spouse’s skills •Education level (3-5 points) •If spouse’s age, English-language ability, •Qualification (10 points) •Undergraduate or higher (10 points) 40 work experience, field and qualifications •Vocational or professional qualification satisfy selection requirements (5 points) equal to degree (10 points) •Current or previous graduate-level work experience without qualification (10 points)

State/territory sponsorship •Select Provincial Nominee Programs in •If applicant is sponsored by an authorized n.a. n.a. place and expanding state or territorial body (10 points)

Relationship •5 points •If applicant is sponsored by a spouse or •10 points n.a. close relative (15 points)

Bonus points n.a. •For either capital investment, Australian •Qualification in a growth area (10 points) n.a. work experience or fluency in the com- •Qualification in a skills-shortage area munity language (5 points) (10 points) •Job, job offer or spouse job offer in skill- shortage area or select region (5-10 points)9 The Impact of Economic Selection Policy on Labour Market Outcomes for Degree-Qualified Migrants in Canada and Australia, by Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The n.a. points •65 age area or select region (5-15 points) (5-15 points) ranking 140 points or more are automatically accepted •2-6 years of NZ work experience skill-short- in by work selected NZ experience then of work points), years securing •Extended (100 •2-6 applicants •Eligibility 2006, •From r semester is included. alia. 10 n.a. points •120 n.a. points •67 leyanne Hawthorne leyanne Fewer points are required for select regional migration schemes — in some cases, 100. Applicants are also required to have at least 17 years of equivalent full-time study. International English Language Testing System. Honours degree to be achieved at the upper-secondary level or higher and at least two years of Australian accredited study. A minimum of 2 years of academic study in Australia; from September 2005, a minimum of 16 months of academic study if the summe “Exceptional achievement” is defined as that of tiny “a number of people who are right at the top of their profession.” Income differences by country are controlled for by 5 categories. This example relates to high-income countries including Austr Migration Occupations in Demand List. “Regional Australia” is defined as including state capitals with low populations — for example, Adelaide and Hobart. Defined as “outside Auckland.” Notes: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Points Tests for Economic Category Migrants, Canada, Australia,Attribute New Zealand and the United Kingdom, 2003-05 Canada (2003) Australia (2005) New Zealand (2004-05) United Kingdom (2005) Bonus points (cont’d) Points required Appendix (cont’d)

41 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 Notes 7The6The educational aim in5For doing confidentialityattainment this 4Comprehensivefor codes3“Generic the The OECD defines an overqualified individualreasons, as one who 2 LSIAthat 1Thisqualifications” 3weremethodological was refersStatistics usedto avoid toin countries Canadaare detail defined suppressed thatfor forthechoose studythe topurpose isactively of seek to and SebastienVachon andStanleyKustec(CIC);the Ostrovsky andJessie-LynnMcDonald(StatisticsCanada) Graeme Hawthorne(UniversityofMelbourne),Yuri also appreciatethestatisticalassistanceprovidedby updated versionofthereportasanIRPPpublication.I granting permissiontoreleaseanabridged,revisedand funding supportofthesebodiesandtothankthemfor (Hawthorne 2007a). Iwouldlike toacknowledgethe Professionals: CanadaandAustraliaCompared” entitled “LabourMarket OutcomesforMigrant and HumanResourcesSocialDevelopmentCanada Statistics Canada,CitizenshipandImmigrationCanada This paperisbasedonastudycommissionedin2004by college/university certificateordiploma/advanced or universitycertificate aboveabachelor’sdegree; 3) this studywere:1)Ph.D./master’s; 2)bachelor’sdegree outcome —forexample,international students. counting onlypart-timeworkas apositiveemployment not withactualfiguresbutpercentages. also importanttonotethatStatisticsCanadasuppliedus where theless-than-10-cases-per-cell rulewasused.Itis report willdifferfromnumbersobtainedinotherreports depending upontheanalysis.Therefore,numbersinthis suppressed waseitherlessthan5or10, the censusdata,wherenumberofsmallcellcounts procedure wasslightlydifferentfromotheranalysesof small cellcounts(lessthan5)inthedataprovided.This market outcomesformigrant professionals. creden- foreign All wereselectedfortheirexpertiserelatedtolabour nonprofit the of tial evaluationorganizationWorld EducationServices. staff and Vancouver); medical regulatorybodies(inOttawa,Toronto and providers; key personnelinengineering,nursingand Statistics Canada);languageandbridgingcourse researchers (fromselecteduniversitiesaswell Resources andSocialDevelopmentCanada); with 32policy-makers (fromCICandHuman request fromCIC.Extendedinterviewswereconducted Canada (CIC)report(Hawthorne2007a), availableby provided inthefullCitizenshipandImmigration fessional fieldofpractice(forexample,aBA orB.Sc.). this studyasthosenotimmediatelycorrelatingtoapro- compared toothermembernations,circa2000. tion oftheprevalencethisinCanadaandAustralia, level” (OECD2008).Seetables6aand6bforquantifica- that wouldtheoreticallybeavailableathiseducation “hold[s] ajobthatrequireslesserqualificationsthanone of immigrationprogrammeans. expand populationand/orrecruitmigrantsbyarange Elizabeth Ruddick(CIC)andLouisGrignon(HRSDC). project supportofGarnettPicot(StatisticsCanada), 11 Most Filipino temporary workers have entered Canada entered have workers temporary Filipino Most 11 profes- computing temporary for demand Employer 10 AllinformationonCanadianimmigrationflowsis 9 8These are estimates calculated on the basis of percentages 3Itischallengingtoestablishaneffectivemethodology 13 “OtherAfrica”excludes datafromSouthAfricainthe 12 sionals selectedaseconomiccategoryprincipal sition topermanentresidentstatus.Filipinoprofes- workers arerequired,andCICcanfacilitatetheirtran- me thatthiscategoryhasbeenrapidlyexpanding; caregiver category. InDecember2007, CICinformed to datethroughthelow-skill,employer-drivenlive-in selection oflandedimmigrants. Occupations inDemandList(20bonuspoints)forthe had alsobeenreinstatedonAustralia’sMigration ther demandforexperiencedprofessionals,sixITfields 2,808 newarrivals.BySeptember2006,reflectingfur- sionals remainedhighin2003-04,accountingfor Immigration andMulticulturalAffairs. rable datawasprovidedbyAustralia’sDepartmentof Citizenship andImmigrationCanadain2005;compa- derived fromtheauthor’sanalysisofdataprovidedby provided intables2aand2b. Seenote5formoredetails. mentary —secondary/other. ty certificateorwithdiploma/skilledvocational;5)ele- diploma/diploma/Certificate IV; 4)nocollege/universi- rent andfuture growth trends(includingdemographic market surveys,graduateemploymentoutcomes,cur- profiles byfieldaredeveloped drawingonlabour ifications —areexpectedtobereasonably high.Supply levels —asdesignatedbydegree, diplomaortradequal- addressed bytheEmploymentNomination Scheme.Skill more, leavingtheneedsofsmaller occupationstobe market demandinoccupations with1,500positionsor the MODL,DEWRassessesscaleofAustralianlabour to beupdatedonce(nowtwice)peryear. Informulating advice inrelationtodemandandwithpreparingalist Relations (DEWR)waschargedwithprovidingexpert The federalDepartmentofEmploymentandWorkplace not leadtosurplusesintheAustralianlabourmarket.” large thatincreasedentryby[skilledmigrants]would persistent andongoingshortage”infields“sufficiently “occupations orspecialisationsthatareinwidespread, labour market demandbackintoselectionandtotarget Established in1999,theMODLwasdesignedtofactor for predictinglabourmarket demandbyfield. categorizations (Hawthorne2007a). appendix Ainthefullreportfordetailonregional Commonwealth Asiansourcecountries.Pleasesee Singapore datawereaggregatedforthesecomparable tistical analysis—forexample,HongKong/Malaysia/ range ofsourcecountriestoallowformeaningfulsta- Census analysis.Dataalsohadtobeaggregatedfora and credentialrecognitionrequirements. ously discountedduetobarriersrelatedlanguage ers ofhigh-skillworkers, andtheirskillsareoftenseri- appear tobeofminimalinterestCanadianemploy- from thoseenteringthroughlow-skillschemes.Many applicants haveaverydifferentemploymenttrajectory 42 shifts), variations in employment demand by state and studies of the ease with which advertised vacancies can be filled (factoring in the source and perceived standard of recent appointees). Key criteria for inclusion of an occupation on the MODL include evidence of a national demand for it (based on DEWR’s “skills in demand” research); the skill level of the occupation and the exis-

tence of an Australian assessment authority; employ- Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The ment size of the occupation; unemployment rate of the occupation; employment growth in the occupation; and the persistence of skill shortages (Australia, Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs 2006, chap. 3). 14 Please note that the Australian Census favours the recording of “highest qualification” in terms of field. Given this, where postgraduate qualifications have been secured (for example, an MBA), the original vocational field will not be counted (for example, engineering or IT). 15 This level of growth would have been influenced by sustained nurse migration to Australia (by comparison, nurse migration levels to Canada were low). It would also have been boosted by the number of diploma- qualified local nurses attaining bachelor’s degrees (a growing trend since 1986). 16 It is a demand-driven anomaly that temporary resident IMG arrivals are permitted to work in Australia immediately, bypassing all credential examinations, while landed immigrant IMGs are required to take these exams. New South Wales, the major immigrant-receiving province, does not even seek information on the Australian Medical Council examination status of IMGs (Hawthorne, Hawthorne and Crotty 2007). 17 The Census data do not give us precise detail on this score. However (as stated in the methodological expla- nation), it is reasonable to deduce this based on arrival date and date of qualification. 18 Please see section 8 of the full report for methodological detail (Hawthorne 2007a). It is important to note here that LSIC and LSIA data were collected six months after arrival, compared to IMDB data, which were collected within the first year. Some additional caveats related to direct comparability are noted in section 8. 19 Analyses of census and other data in Australia confirm migrants may overestimate or underestimate their host-country language ability, with no evidence that self-reporting is a reliable measure, or one that corre- lates with employer expectations of performance. 20 Please note that 14 percent of migrants in Canada state that French is their first or second language at point of migration. However, substantial numbers may encounter employment problems if they settle outside Quebec. 21 Speaking, listening, reading and writing — the threshold score must be reached on independently validated language tests in all four skills. 22 The merits of the Australian model have recently been leyanne Hawthorne leyanne acknowledged by the UK as a major influence on its newly designed skill migration scheme from 2008. 23 For more on the discounting of labour market experience, see also Boudarbat and Boulet (2007).

43 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 Alboim, N.,andK.Cohl.2007. “CentresofExpertise:An Past Canada: in Regulation “Professional 2007. T. Adams, and Demand Employer Hired: “You’re 2004. J. Aceytuno, Abraham, S.,andL.H.Hamilton.2006. References _____. _____. _____. _____. 200 _____. 2007b. _____. _____. _____. Australia. BureauofLabourMarket Research(BLMR).1986. Beach, C.M.,A.G. Green,andJ.G.Reitz,eds.2003. Baldacchino, G.,S.Chandrasekere, andP. Saunders. 2007. the “Explaining 2005. Skuterud. M. and A., Aydemir, Issues/Thèmes canadiens Assessment,” ed.L.Hawthorne,specialissue, and Present.”In“ForeignCredentialRecognition September 27-October1,Geneva. the ninthannualInternationalMetropolisConference, Absorptive CapacityinCanada.”Paper presentedat Institute. Independent Taskforce America’s Future:ANewChapter. FinalReportofthe Immigration Aspects Indigenous Affairs(DIIMA).2005. Australian Linked (DIMIA). 1999. subcategories), sourcedMarch15. gov.au/media/fact-sheets/20planning.htm Sheet 20.Accessed March25,2008.http://www.immi. http://www.immi.gov.au/media/fact-sheets/24amep.htm Migrants.” FactSheet24.Accessed March25,2008. options.pdf al-skilled-migration/changes/_pdf/GSMchange_ March 25,2008.http://www.immi.gov.au/skilled/gener- “Changes totheGeneralSkilledMigration.”Accessed Service, p.119. Report Evaluation oftheGeneralSkilledMigrationCategories Publishing Service. Research Report10. Canberra:AustralianGovernment Migrants intheAustralianLabourMarket Issues/Thèmes canadiens Assessment,” ed.L.Hawthorne,specialissue, Education.” In“ForeignCredentialRecognitionand Expanded RoleforCollegesandInstitutesinImmigrant Canadian Issues/Thèmes canadiens and Assessment,”ed.L.Hawthorne, specialissue, Atlantic Canada.”In“ForeignCredential Recognition “Internationally EducatedHealth Professionalsin 38 (2):641-72. Cohorts: 1966-2000.” Deteriorating EntryEarningsofCanada’sImmigrant Publishing Service. Sharing OurFuture National AgendaforaMulticulturalAustralia— Office ofMulticulturalAffairs.1989. Department ofImmigrationandMulticultural Department ofImmigrationandMulticulturalAffairs 2008. Datarelatedtoskilledmigrationquotas(all Department ofImmigrationandCitizenship.2007a. Department ofImmigrationandCitizenship.2006. 7c. “MigrationProgramPlanningLevels.”Fact . Canberra:AustralianGovernmentPublishing “English LanguageTuitionforAdult Review oftheIndependentandSkilled- Categories . Canberra:AustralianGovernment , January. Canberra: DIMIA. . NewYork: MigrationPolicy Canadian JournalofEconomics (spring): 50-4. (spring): 14-16. . Canberra:DIMIA. Immigration and Population Flows: Population (spring): 104-7. Towards a Towards . BLMR Canadian Canadian Canadian _____. Birrell, B., andL.Hawthorne.1997. Birrell, B., I.Dobson,V. Rapson,andF.T. Smith.2005. Birrell, B. 2008,“SomeMigrantsNotSkilledEnough.” Bedford, R.2006.“SkilledMigrationPolicy inAustraliaand Birrell, B., E.Healy, andB. Kinnaird.2007. “CooksGalore Birrell, B., L.Hawthorne,andS.Richardson,eds.2006. Boyd, M.,J.DeVries, and K.Simkin.1994.“Language, 1992b. _____. Boyd, M.1992a.“GenderIssuesinImmigrationand Bourgeault, I.2007. “BrainDrain,BrainGainand Boulet, J.,J.Bede,D.McKinley, andJ.Norcini.2005.“An Boudarbat, B. andBoulet,M.2007. “Détériorationdes Categories Independent andSkilled-AustralianLinked Multicultural Affairs”[DIMA].In Conducted bytheDepartmentofImmigrationand Skilled-Australian Linked CategoriesBeing Contribution totheReviewofIndependentand University. Monash Research, Urban and Population Professions inAustralia University. Monash Research, Urban and Population Skilled Movementin2003-04 Immigration inaTimeofDomesticSkilledShortages: Age, Multicultural Affairs. Canberra: DepartmentofImmigrationand edited byB. Birrell,L.Hawthorne,andS.Richardson. Evaluation oftheGeneralSkilledMigrationCategories New Zealand:SimilaritiesandDifferences.”In Kingston: McGill-Queen’sUniversityPress. and HairdressersAplenty.” Multicultural Affairs. Canberra: DepartmentofImmigrationand Evaluation oftheGeneralSkilledMigrationCategories Immigration PolicyImmigration 21the for Foster. Toronto: UniversityofToronto Press. edited byH.Adelman, A. Borowski,M.Burstein,andL. and RefugeeP Economic StatusandImmigration.” In Publishing. Canada Immigration, MulticulturalismandRacismin90s Equity Premise.”In Earnings Inequality:ReassessinganEmployment Sociology States.” Language FluencyIssues:CanadaandtheUnited canadiens L. Hawthorne,specialissue, “Foreign CredentialRecognitionandAssessment,”ed. and Integrating at Aimed Retaining theBestandBrightestinHealthCare.”In Programs Programs: Waste Education inEurope,September, Amsterdam. sented attheconferenceofAssociationforMedical Overview oftheWorld’s MedicalSchools.”Paper pre- IRPP port àl’OntarioetlaColombie-Britannique.” salaires desnouveauximmigrantsauQuébecparrap- 1999. April 30,p17. 13 (7). , editedbyV. Satzewitch.Halifax:Fernwood Canadian ReviewofAnthropologyand “Skilled MigrationOutcomesasof1996:A “Gender, VisibleMinorityandImmigrant 44 18 (5):657-73. (spring): 96-9. . Canberra:DIMA. olicy: AustraliaandCanadaCompared Deconstructing aNation: . Melbourne:Centrefor People and Place and People Canadian Issues/Thèmes st . Melbourne:Centrefor Century Immigrants andthe Review ofthe . Montrealand Immigration 15 (1) Choix The . , . , Brean, J. 2007. “Immigrants Account for Our Growth.” Fincher, R., L. Foster, W. Giles, and V. Preston. 1994. “Gender National Post, March 14. and Migration Policy.” In Immigration and Refugee Canadian Council of Professional Engineers (CCPE). 2004. Policy: Australia and Canada Compared, vol. 1, edited by From Consideration to Integration: Recommendations H. Adelman, A. Borowski, M. Burstein, and L. Foster. to Help Integrate International Engineering Graduates Melbourne: Melbourne University Press. into the Canadian Profession and Workforce. Final Foundation for Advancement of International Medical Report from Phase 11. Ottawa: CCPE. Education and Research (FAIMER). 2005. International

Cardozo, A., and S. Guilfoyle. 2007. “Foreign Credential Medical Education Directory. Philadelphia: FAIMER. Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The Recognition in Key Sectors of the Economy.” In Frenette, M., D. Green, and G. Picot. 2004. Rising Income “Foreign Credential Recognition and Assessment,” ed. Inequality amid the Economic Recovery of the 1990s: An L. Hawthorne, special issue, Canadian Issues/Thèmes Exploration of Three Data Sources. Business and Labour canadiens (spring): 133-5. Market Analysis Research Paper 215. Ottawa: Statistics Centre for Canadian Language Benchmarks (CCLB). 2002. Canada. Benchmarking the English Language Demands of the Goldberg, M. 2007. “How Current Globalization Discourses Nursing Profession across Canada, July. Ottawa: CCLB. Shape Access: Professions and Trades Policy in Ontario.” Accessed March 31, 2008. http://www.celban.org/ In “Foreign Credential Recognition and Assessment,” ed. celban/doc_viewer_dex.asp?doc_id=19&page_id=32 L. Hawthorne, special issue, Canadian Issues/Thèmes Chiswick, B., and P. Miller. 2000a. The Complementarity of canadiens (spring): 31-6. Language and Other Human Capital: Immigrant Guo, S. 2007. “Tracing the Roots of Non-recognition of Earnings in Canada. RIIM Working Paper 00-08. Foreign Credentials.” In “Foreign Credential Recognition Vancouver: Research on Immigration and Integration and Assessment,” ed. L. Hawthorne, special issue, in the Metropolis. Canadian Issues/Thèmes canadiens (spring): 36-8. _____. 2000b. A Model of Destination Language Hawthorne, L. 1994. Labour Market Barriers for Immigrant Acquisition: Application to Male Immigrants in Engineers in Australia. Canberra: Australian Government Canada. RIIM Working Paper 00-13. Vancouver: Publishing Service. Research on Immigration and Integration in the _____. 1996. “Reversing Past Stereotypes: Skilled Non English Metropolis. Speaking Background Women in Australia.” Journal of Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC). 1998. “Skilled Intercultural Studies 17 (1-2): 41-52. Worker Immigrants: Towards a New Model of _____. 2001. “The Globalisation of the Nursing Workforce: Selection,” November. Ottawa: CIC. Barriers Confronting Overseas-Qualified Nurses in _____. 2002. “Immigration and Refugee Protection Act Australia.” Nursing Inquiry 8 (4): 213-29. (IRPA) News Release.” Ottawa: CIC. _____. 2002. “Qualifications Recognition Reform for Skilled _____. 2007. “CIC Canada Facts and Figures 2006: Migrants in Australia: Applying Competency-Based Immigration Overview Permanent Residents.” Ottawa: Assessment to Overseas-Qualified Nurses.” International CIC. Accessed March 25, 2008. http://www.cic.gc.ca/ Migration Quarterly Review 40 (6): 55-92. english/pub/facts2006_category.html _____. 2005. “Picking Winners: The Recent Transformation of _____. 2008. “Canadian Experience Class,” January. Australia’s Skill Migration Policy.” International Description paper, working draft. Migration Review 39 (2): 663-96. Committee to Advise on Australia’s Immigration Policy. _____. 2007a. “Labour Market Outcomes for Migrant 1988. Immigration: A Commitment to Australia. Professionals: Canada and Australia Compared.” Ottawa: Report of the Committee to Advise on Australia’s Citizenship and Immigration Canada. Immigration Policy. Canberra: Australian Government _____. 2007b. “Foreign Credential Recognition and Printing Service. Assessment: An Introduction.” In “Foreign Credential Dauphinee, D. 2007. “Credentials Recognition in Medicine: Recognition and Assessment,” ed. L. Hawthorne, special History, Progress and Lessons.” In “Foreign Credential issue, Canadian Issues/Thèmes canadiens (spring): 3-13. Recognition and Assessment,” ed. L. Hawthorne, spe- Hawthorne, L., G. Hawthorne, and B. Crotty. 2007. The cial issue, Canadian Issues/Thèmes canadiens (spring): Registration and Training Status of Overseas Trained 100-103. Doctors in Australia. Canberra: Department of Health English for International Opportunity. 2007. International and Ageing. English Language Testing System (IELTS) Information Hawthorne, L., and J. Toth. 1996. “The Impact of Language for Candidates. Accessed March 31, 2008. Testing on the Registration of Immigrant Doctors.” http://www.ielts.org/_lib/pdf/Information_for_ People and Place 4 (3): 47-54. Candidates_2007.pdf# Hiebert, D. 2006. “Skilled Immigration in Canada: Context, Ferrer, A., D.A. Green, and W.C. Riddell. 2004. International Patterns and Outcomes.” In Evaluation of the General Adult Literacy Survey: The Effect of Literacy on Skilled Migration Categories, edited by B. Birrell, L. leyanne Hawthorne leyanne Immigrant Earnings, cat. no. 89-552-MIE, no. 12. Hawthorne, and S. Richardson. Canberra: Department of Ottawa: Statistics Canada. Accessed April 3, 2008. Immigration and Multicultural Affairs. http://www.statcan.ca/english/research/ _____. 2007. Skill Migration Statistical Update, August. 89-552-MIE/89-552-MIE2004012.pdf Vancouver: University of British Columbia.

45 IRPP Choices, Vol. 14, no. 5, May 2008 _____. Institute ofHigherEducation,ShanghaiJiaoTong _____. _____. 2007. 2007. _____. Organisation forEconomicCo-operation andDevelopment O’Neil, P. 2007. “Vancouver SeesPopulation Soar.” Miller, C.2005.“240Part HarmonyandaCultural Migration Policy Institute.2006.“BipartisanPanel Callsfor McDonald, P., S.E.Khoo,andG.Hugo,2005. Mamann, G.2007. “SkilledWorkers LoseBig.” Lim, L.,andN.Oishi.1996.“InternationalLaborMigration Kustec, S.,E.Thompson,andX.Li.2007. “Foreign Human ResourcesandSocialDevelopmentCanada Hugo, G.1990.“TheAdaptation ofAsianMigrantsto Lemay, M.2007. “FromConsiderationtoIntegration: Lee, S.1996.“IssuesinResearchonWomen, International 2006/ARWU2005_TopAsia.htm http://ed.sjtu.edu.cn/rank/ 2008. 27, March Accessed University. 2006.“Top 100 AsiaPacific Universities.” Level andMostRequestedNOCs Skill LevelandMostRequestedNOCs OECD. International MigrationOutlook Foreign QualificationsforHealth Professionals.” MI 2006.Paris: OECD. (OECD). 2006. Post [Melbourne], July24. Kaleidoscope We Can AllCallHome.” AF/news_ 092006.php March 28,2008.http://www.migration policy.org/ITFI- Force onImmigrationandAmerica’sFuture.Accessed release, September20.Washington, DC:IndependentTask Highlights NeedforForward-LookingPolicies.” Press CurrentImpasse ‘New Chapter’inU.S.ImmigrationPolicy: Canberra: DepartmentofImmigrationandCitizenship. Skilled Migrants’EmploymentandResidentOutcomes [Toronto], November5. Scalabrini MigrationCenter. Battistella andA.Paganoni. QuezonCity, Philippines: Concerns.” In of AsianWomen: DistinctiveCharacteristicsandPolicy Issues/Thèmes canadiens Assessment,” ed.L.Hawthorne,specialissue, Graduates.” In“ForeignCredentialRecognitionand canadiens Hawthorne, specialissue, Credential RecognitionandAssessment,”ed.L. Credentials: TheTools forResearch.”In“Foreign ARWU2006_TopAsia.htm March 27,2008.http://ed.sjtu.edu.cn/rank/2005/ (HRSDC). 2005. Miniato, Italy. the StatusofFemaleMigrants,March27-30,San Group MeetingonInternationalMigrationPolicies and Australia.” Paper presentedattheUnitedNationsExpert Canadian EngineeringandInternational Journal Migration andLabor.” 2006. “Top 100 AsiaPacific Universities.”Accessed 2006. , March14. 5 (1):5-26. “Migration Policies and Recognition of Report onLabourMarket RequestsbySkill (spring): (spring): Asian W International MigrationOutlook Report onLabourMark 26-30. omen inMigration Asian andP (spring): 81-4. Canadian Issues/Thèmes , SOPEMI2007. Paris: . Ottawa:HRSDC. acific Migration . Ottawa:HRSDC. Sunday Age et Requestsby Temporary , editedbyG. Metro Canadian National , SOPE- . Orme, L.2007. “ImmigrantWorkforce Integration:The _____. Picot, G.,andF. Hou.2003. _____. Money: of Colour “The 1998. Pendakur. R. and K., Pendakur, 2000. G. Pawlikowska-Smith, Sweetman, A.2005.“Immigration asaLabourMarket Stahl, C.,R.Ball,C.Inglis,and P. Gutman.1993. Schellenberg, G.,andH.Maheux.2007. Schellenberg, G.2004. Ruddock, P. 1996.InterviewwithElaineHarris,26 April Richardson, S.,andL.Lester. 2004.“A Comparisonof _____. Reitz, J.G.2004.“ImmigrantEarningsPerformance in Picot, G.,F. Hou,andS.Coulombe.2007. cial issue, Recognition andAssessment,”ed.L.Hawthorne,spe- Hamilton Experience.”In“ForeignCredential Century: DatafromOECDCountries 11F0019MIE2003198.pdf http://www.statcan.ca/english/research/11F0019MIE/ Division, StatisticsCanada.Accessed April3,2008. no. 198.Ottawa:BusinessandLabourMarket Analysis among ImmigrantsinCanada and Integration intheMetropolis. Immigration on Research Vancouver: 04-11. Paper Earnings GapChangedoverTime? Canadian JournalofEconomics Earnings DifferentialsamongEthnicGroupsinCanada.” Benchmarks. Adults Benchmarks 2000:EnglishasaSecondLanguagefor 75-8. Canada.” In Strategy: EuropeanandNorthAmerican Perspectives. Publishing Service. for Implications Their Australia and Movements Population Immigration Canada. Module 11-008-XWE. Ottawa:Citizenship and Canadian SocialTrends First Their on Perspectives Statistics Canada. Metropolitan Areas 1996. University, Adelaide, September. National InstituteofLabourStudies,Flinders Labour Market Outcomes.”Paper presentedatthe Australian andCanadianImmigrationPolicies and Economy.” for CanadianImmigrationPolicy intheKnowledge Journal ofUrbanResearch Canadian Cities:1981 through2001.” 11F0019MIE2007294.pdf http://www.statcan.ca/english/research/11F0019MIE/ Ottawa: StatisticsCanada.Accessed April3,2008. Research Paper Seriescat.no.11F0019MIE, no.294. Immigrants Income andLow-IncomeDynamicsamongRecent 2004. 2005. “Tapping Immigrants’Skills:NewDirections 2008. Croll’s MonitoringAustralia . Ottawa:CentreforCanadianLanguage Colour MyW A ProfileofImmigrantPopulations inthe21 . Canberra:AustralianGovernment 46 Canadian Issues/Thèmescanadiens , January30.AnalyticalStudiesBranch IRPP Choices Immigration asa Labour Immigrants inCanada’sCensus , cat.no.89-613, no. 003.Ottawa: orld: HastheMajority-Minority The RiseinLow-IncomeRates , April,PublicationsWebsite Canadian Language 11 (1). (1). 11 Four Years in Canada: 13 (1):62-84. , June,cat.no.11F0019, 31 (3): 518-48. (3): 31 . RIIM Working Immigrants’ . Paris: OECD. MarketStrategy: Chronic Low- Canadian Global (spring): st European and North American Perspectives, edited by J. Niessen and Y. Schibel. Brussels: Migration Policy Group. _____. 2004. Immigrant Source Country Educational Quality and Canadian Labour Market Outcomes. Analytical Studies Branch Research Paper Series cat. no. 11F0019MIE, no. 234. Ottawa: Statistics Canada. Accessed April 4, 2008. http://www.statcan.ca/

english/research/11F0019MIE/11F0019MIE2004234.pdf Les by Australia, and Canada in Migrants Degree-Qualified for Outcomes Market Labour Policyon Selection Economic of Impact The Sweetman, A., and S. McBride. 2004. Postsecondary Field of Study and the Canadian Labour Market Outcomes of Immigrants and Non-immigrants. Analytical Studies Branch Research Paper Series cat. no. 11F0019MIE, no. 223. Ottawa: Statistics Canada. Accessed April 4, 2008. http://www.statcan.ca/english/research/11F0019MIE/ 11F0019MIE2004233.pdf Thompson, E., and C. Worswick. 2004. Canadian Research on Immigration and the Labour Market: An Overview, July 21. Ottawa: Human Resources and Social Development Canada. Times Higher Education. 2005. The World’s Top 200 Universities. Accessed April 3, 2008. http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/hybrid.asp? typeCode=175 _____. 2006. The World’s Top 200 Universities. Accessed April 3, 2008. http://www.timeshighereducation.co.uk/ shybrid.asp?typeCode=161 Watty, K. 2007. “Quality in Accounting Education and Low English Language Standards among Overseas Students: Is There a Link?” People and Place 15 (1). Weeks, C., and M. Leong. 2007. “Census Shows Population Boom around Cities.” National Post, March 14. Wooden, M. 1994. “The Labour Market Experience of Immigrants.” In Australian Immigration: A Survey of the Issues, edited by M. Wooden, R. Holton, G. Hugo, and J. Sloan. Canberra: Australian Government Publishing Service. Yeoh, B., and L. Khoo. 1998. “Home, Work and Community: Skilled International Migration and Expatriate Women in Singapore.” International Migration Quarterly Review 36 (2): 159-85. Zlotnik, H. 1995. “Migration and the Family: The Female Perspective.” Asian and Pacific Migration Journal 4 (2- 3): 253-71. leyanne Hawthorne leyanne

The Impact of Economic Selection Policy on Labour Market Outcomes for Degree- Qualified Migrants in Canada and Australia Résumé by Lesleyanne Hawthorne

e Canada et l’Australie sont des références mondiales À l’inverse, l’Australie, depuis 1999, a exclu les immi- en matière de développement national soutenu par grants économiques qui auraient eu peu de chances de trou- L des programmes d’immigration économique, fami- ver un travail correspondant à leurs qualifications. En se liale et humanitaire planifiés et administrés par l’État. En basant sur des résultats de recherche, elle a étendu les tests de 2005, l’Australie comptait la plus forte proportion au connaissances linguistiques, augmenté les exigences relatives monde de citoyens nés à l’étranger (24,6 p. 100 de la po- aux titres de compétences et accordé des points de bonifica- pulation), devant le Canada (19,2 p. 100) et les États-Unis tion aux professions en forte demande. La sélection fondée (11,7 p. 100). Depuis 10 ans, les deux pays privilégient le sur le capital humain avait révélé ses lacunes en retenant des recrutement d’immigrants qualifiés (environ 60 p. 100 des demandeurs principaux dépourvus des aptitudes recherchées immigrants, dont une grande majorité sont diplômés). Dès par les employeurs. Depuis, les anciens étudiants interna- 2001, cette stratégie avait transformé des secteurs clés tionaux participent massivement au nouveau programme (ingénierie, technologies de l’information, architecture/ (52 p. 100 en 2005). En principe, ils ont financé leurs efforts bâtiment), où les immigrants représentaient environ la pour satisfaire les employeurs australiens : jeunes et accul- moitié des travailleurs qualifiés. Vu l’ampleur du turés, ils possèdent une solide connaissance de l’anglais et phénomène et la demande internationale de travailleurs des titres de compétences pleinement reconnus. qualifiés, la situation d’emploi des immigrants Dans quelle mesure ces nouveaux critères ont-ils amélioré économiques est devenue un enjeu politique majeur. la situation d’emploi en Australie par rapport au Canada, car Cette étude poursuit deux objectifs. Premièrement, même si les gouvernements élaborent les politiques d’immi- analyser et comparer les taux d’intégration au marché du gration, ce sont les employeurs qui ont le pouvoir d’offrir ou travail des nouveaux immigrants diplômés de toutes caté- de refuser du travail ? Les données disponibles révèlent que, gories dans leurs cinq premières années au Canada et en depuis 10 ans, les immigrants économiques diplômés ont net- Australie. Selon les recensements de 2001, les deux pays tement mieux réussi en Australie. Ils sont plus nombreux à affichent sur ce plan un bilan presque identique. Parmi ces trouver rapidement du travail, à occuper des emplois profes- immigrants arrivés au Canada et en Australie de 1996 à sionnels ou de direction, à toucher des salaires élevés et tirer 2001, respectivement 65 et 66 p. 100 avaient trouvé un profit de leurs titres de compétences. Dans la foulée, un nom- emploi en 2001 (un emploi professionnel pour 30 et bre record d’immigrants économiques ont évité les déplace- 31 p. 100 d’entre eux). Leur pays d’origine, leur âge, leur ments et la surqualification. Ces changements n’ont ni entravé sexe et la demande par secteur ont eu une incidence déci- ni perturbé les flux migratoires, le nombre d’immigrants sive. Au Canada par exemple, ce sont les immigrants de économiques ayant augmenté de 77 800 en 2004-2005 à l’Afrique du Sud, de l’Australie, de la Nouvelle-Zélande, du 102 500 en 2007-2008. On a aussi maintenu la diversité eth- Royaume-Uni, de l’Irlande, de l’Europe du Nord-Ouest et nique et raciale. Surtout, la situation d’emploi des immigrants des États-Unis qui étaient les plus susceptibles d’avoir traditionnellement désavantagés, y compris ceux d’Europe de trouvé un emploi professionnel (tout comme en Australie). l’Est, de l’Inde, des Philippines et de la Chine, s’est grande- Cette probabilité de succès était beaucoup moindre pour ment améliorée. Et tout indique que cette réussite austra- les immigrants provenant d’ailleurs. Plusieurs nouveaux lienne est le fruit de l’intervention politique. arrivants des Philippines, de l’Inde, du Vietnam et d’autres Au Canada, d’importantes initiatives sont en cours en vue pays d’Asie du Sud et centrale n’avaient trouvé que des d’améliorer la reconnaissance des titres de compétences, la emplois peu spécialisés. Un problème réel vu l’importance transition vers l’immigration économique des anciens étu- de ces groupes parmi la nouvelle immigration diants internationaux et des travailleurs temporaires, et de économique. permettre l’expansion du Programme des candidats des L’étude vise ensuite à évaluer la situation d’emploi des provinces. Des investissements majeurs sont également con- immigrants économiques à la lumière du cycle sentis à l’élimination des obstacles rencontrés par les immi- économique semblable des deux pays. Or depuis quelques grants qualifiés, y compris en matière de cours de langues et décennies, d’importants écarts sont apparus entre les de formation d’appoint. Autant de mesures éclairées à l’heure deux systèmes de sélection. Le Canada a maintenu un où de nombreux immigrants qualifiés risquent davantage modèle fondé sur le capital humain et accepté des que les cohortes précédentes de vivre de faibles revenus. demandeurs principaux aux aptitudes linguistiques limi- L’enjeu de l’immigration économique restera donc très élevé tées et aux qualifications et titres de compétences non dans l’actuelle économie du savoir, pour les premiers reconnus dans des secteurs à faible demande. intéressés comme pour l’ensemble du pays. 49 The Impact of Economic Selection Policy on Labour Market Outcomes for Degree- Summary Qualified Migrants in Canada and Australia by Lesleyanne Hawthorne

anada and Australia are global exemplars of nation- a clear Canadian employer preference for temporary foreign building through government planned and adminis- workers from the USA, France, Australia and the UK. C tered economic, family and humanitarian migration Since 1999, Australia, in contrast, has used research evi- programs. By 2005 Australia had the world’s highest propor- dence to exclude economic category applicants at risk of tion of foreign born (24.6 percent of the population), fol- poor employment outcomes at point of entry, by consider- lowed by Canada at 19.2 percent and the US at 11.7 percent. ably expanding pre-migration English language testing and Over the past decade both countries have placed extraordi- mandatory credential assessment, and awarding bonus nary emphasis on recruiting skilled migrants (around 60 points for high-demand occupations. In Australia’s experi- percent of total number, with the great majority holding ence the human capital model of selection had proven degrees). By 2001 this strategy was transforming select pro- flawed — delivering principal applicants lacking the attrib- fessional fields, with migrants representing approximately utes employers sought. Since then former international stu- half of all degree-qualified workers in engineering, informa- dents have become important participants in the program tion technology, and architecture/building. Given the scale (52 percent by 2005). In theory, such students have financed of these arrivals, plus unprecedented global competition for their own efforts to meet domestic employers’ demand: they skilled workers, the employment outcomes for economic are young and acculturated, and they have advanced category migrants has become a major policy issue. English language ability and fully recognized credentials. The current study has two aims. First, it seeks to examine To what extent have Australia’s revised selection crite- and compare labour market integration rates in the first five ria transformed employment outcomes relative to years of arrival for all categories of recently arrived degree- Canada’s, in a context where governments frame migra- qualified migrants in Canada and Australia. Analysis of 2001 tion policy but employers retain the power to offer or Census data finds the two countries to be near identical. By withhold work? Based on analysis of available longitudi- 2001, 65 percent of degree-qualified 1996-2001 migrants had nal data, the author finds degree-qualified economic secured work in Canada, compared to 66 percent in Australia. migrants have performed indisputably better in Australia And 30 percent had found professional positions in Canada, than in Canada in the past decade. Far greater proportions compared to 31 percent in Australia. Migrant source coun- of newcomers in Australia secure positions fast, achieve try, labour market demand by field, age and gender power- professional or managerial status, earn high salaries and fully influenced such employment outcomes in both use their professional credentials in work. In the process, countries. For example, recent Canadian immigrants from unprecedented numbers of economic migrants have South Africa, Australia and New Zealand, UK/Ireland, avoided labour market displacement and overqualifica- Northwestern Europe, and the US were the most likely to tion. These policy changes have not discouraged or dis- have secured professional work. A near identical pattern torted migration flows — the number of economic prevailed in Australia. In both countries, the chances of migrants increased from 77,800 in 2004-05 to 102,500 in securing professional work dropped markedly for other 2007-08. Racial and ethnic diversity has been maintained. birthplace groups. Large numbers of degree-qualified Most importantly, employment outcomes have dramatical- migrants from the Philippines, India, Vietnam and other ly improved for traditionally disadvantaged groups — South/Central Asia had found only low-skilled work — a including economic migrants from Eastern Europe, India, significant policy issue given the prominence of these the Philippines and China — as a result of more effective groups among recent economic arrivals. screening. The Australian experience suggests such out- The second aim of the study is to assess economic comes are highly amenable to policy intervention. migrants’ labour market outcomes in Canada and Australia, Important Canadian policy initiatives are now underway in the context of similar economic cycles. In recent decades, to improve foreign credential recognition, the transition of major policy differences have emerged between Canada and former international students and temporary workers to Australia in terms of points-based selection. Canada has economic migration, and to expand the Provincial maintained a human capital model of selection — its eco- Nominee Program. Major sums are being invested to nomic program admitting principal applicants with limited address labour market barriers for skilled migrants, includ- host-country language ability, nonrecognized credentials ing language and bridging courses. These are timely initia- and qualifications in fields that have weak labour market tives, given that many skilled migrants are more likely demand. By 2006, China, the Philippines, India, Pakistan now to face chronic low income and poverty than did pre- and Korea were the primary economic category source vious cohorts. In the knowledge economy, the stakes are countries, despite major potential labour market barriers and high, both for economic migrants and for the nation. 50