Immigrant Women
Over the last four decades, the number of women migrants to Canada increased significantly. They arrived as members of the family class, economic immigrants, migrant workers, and international students.
Unemployment and Underemployment Experienced by Immigrant Women
- Female immigrants may take longer than their male partners to find work, according to the 2011 National Household Survey.
- Immigrant women are less likely than men to be working full-time, and they are less likely to be eligible for unemployment benefits if needed.
- Immigrant women are least likely to be employed in positions that match their education.
- Women are employed in lower-paying occupations and experience more discrimination in the workplace than men.
- Finding employment is a major stressor for many immigrant women, particularly racialized immigrant women. This vulnerable group faces intersecting issues involving gender, race, and class that make them experience oppression concerning financial insecurity, racist and xenophobic attitudes, and social exclusion.
Obstacles in Finding Employment
- To enter the workforce, immigrant women consider many factors, including family responsibilities, the ability to converse in English and other settlement issues.
- Immigrant women, especially single mothers, face challenges in juggling work and home responsibilities. This barrier prevents them from finding a job.
- Some immigrant women have a post-secondary education and have had years of professional work expertise in their home countries before immigration. However, their credentials and experiences are not being recognized.
Poverty Experienced by Immigrant Women
- Very recent immigrant women (11.6%) were more likely to experience poverty in 2021 than women born in Canada (7.0%)
- Social and economic injustice causes poverty experienced by immigrant women.
- A gender wage gap persists in Canada, showing that women earned 84 cents for every dollar earned by men for their median hourly wages in 2022.
- Single mothers particularly experience a high risk of entering poverty because of the lack of affordable childcare services and women’s generally lower wages.
Ready-to-Work Closet Project
The initiative aims to build climate resilience and reduce poverty experienced by immigrant women job seekers through an inclusive movement, promoting opportunities and fostering possibilities with the concept of a clothing bank. By cultivating a sense of security and generating hope, the program supports immigrant women living in low-income households. It helps them overcome unemployment and persistent barriers that hinder their ability to perform well in interviews and succeed in the labor market.
Work Cited:
Cheung, M., & King, R. U. (2017). Working with immigrant women and families. In M. C. Yan, & U. Anucha (Eds.), Working with immigrants and refugees: Issues, theories, and approaches for social work and human service practice ( pp. 181-199). Oxford University Press.
Raphael, D., Bryant, T., Mikkonen, J. and Raphael, A. (2020). Social Determinants of Health: The Canadian Facts. Oshawa: Ontario Tech University Faculty of Health Sciences and Toronto: York University School of Health Policy and Management
Statistics Canada. (2024). International Women’s Day 2024. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/89-28-0001/2022001/article/00009-eng.htm