purgan
10-14 08:17 PM
Another recent story on Canadian Skilled Immigration...
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/national/story.html?id=752a2097-a21f-42d1-b9c4-d15bab949d9f&k=9534
Geoffrey Scotton, Calgary Herald
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
gscotton@theherald.canwest.com
CALGARY - Alberta and the rest of Canada need to move quickly to boost immigration and take better advantage of skills so many new Canadians bring to their chosen home or risk being left behind in a global race for talent, says the head of Canada's largest bank.
''We must significantly increase these efforts and others if Canada is going to have the necessary human resources to compete in today's global economy,'' Royal Bank of Canada president/chief executive Gordon Nixon said to a dinner of the Immigrant Access Fund in Calgary Tuesday evening.
''Make no mistake, Canada is in a global war for talent. We must be a destination of choice for skilled immigrants and professionals or we will not succeed ... If we do, we will have a unrivaled advantage. If we don't, we will face an uphill battle just to maintain our quality of life.''
David Baxter, a demographer and economist with the Vancouver-based Urban Futures Institute Society, agrees with Nixon's analysis, suggesting Canada faces a ''perfect storm'' of demographic labour force pressures. Those factors include a declining birthrate, a massive number of Canadians approaching retirement and relatively fewer Canadians entering the workforce as they reach working age.
''You don't need a robust economy to be able to say there's going to be a problem here. We're probably now at the point now that without immigration our labour force stops growing,'' he said. ''This is a long-term issue, let's regularize it. We've got to move away from this talk of temporary (workers).
''What I would look for is young, healthy, intelligent, honest energetic people, preferably with an entrepreneurial spirit - and more employee sponsorship.''
Nixon argued that nowhere is the potential of immigrant expertise and contribution more evident than in Calgary, which is suffering labour shortages across the board, in all industries, from the unskilled worker to the skilled professional.
''Calgary is facing a shortfall of as many as 90,000 workers over the next five years ... by 2025 the shortage across the province will be well through 300,000,'' said Nixon. ''Alberta is at the cusp of a trend we're seeing nationwide.''
Nixon argued that immigration must be viewed by policymakers as a strategic economic development tool that will help to define 21st century Canada. He noted the country has in the past used immigration as a tool of industrial policy, particularly around the settlement and development of the West.
That kind of approach is needed again, Nixon asserted, as is better utilization of under-employed immigrants already in Canada, a phenomenon that RBC economists has estimated costs Canada $13 billion annually.
''We can no longer view immigration as a temporary employment agency,'' said Nixon. ''We need to start looking at immigration as a blueprint for nation-building, and we must find the right balance between social justice and economic need.''
Baxter believes that Alberta is making the strongest effort of any of the Canadian provinces to attract and efficaciously absorb new Canadians. However, he noted that while immigration policy remains largely the purview of the federal government, questions of professional accreditation and other determinants limiting immigrants' entry into the Canadian workforce rest in provincial hands.
''Alberta is at the forefront of this. The provincial government recognizes this (the need for more workers) and so does industry,'' said Baxter, referring to Alberta's Labour Force Strategy, released in July.
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/national/story.html?id=752a2097-a21f-42d1-b9c4-d15bab949d9f&k=9534
Geoffrey Scotton, Calgary Herald
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
gscotton@theherald.canwest.com
CALGARY - Alberta and the rest of Canada need to move quickly to boost immigration and take better advantage of skills so many new Canadians bring to their chosen home or risk being left behind in a global race for talent, says the head of Canada's largest bank.
''We must significantly increase these efforts and others if Canada is going to have the necessary human resources to compete in today's global economy,'' Royal Bank of Canada president/chief executive Gordon Nixon said to a dinner of the Immigrant Access Fund in Calgary Tuesday evening.
''Make no mistake, Canada is in a global war for talent. We must be a destination of choice for skilled immigrants and professionals or we will not succeed ... If we do, we will have a unrivaled advantage. If we don't, we will face an uphill battle just to maintain our quality of life.''
David Baxter, a demographer and economist with the Vancouver-based Urban Futures Institute Society, agrees with Nixon's analysis, suggesting Canada faces a ''perfect storm'' of demographic labour force pressures. Those factors include a declining birthrate, a massive number of Canadians approaching retirement and relatively fewer Canadians entering the workforce as they reach working age.
''You don't need a robust economy to be able to say there's going to be a problem here. We're probably now at the point now that without immigration our labour force stops growing,'' he said. ''This is a long-term issue, let's regularize it. We've got to move away from this talk of temporary (workers).
''What I would look for is young, healthy, intelligent, honest energetic people, preferably with an entrepreneurial spirit - and more employee sponsorship.''
Nixon argued that nowhere is the potential of immigrant expertise and contribution more evident than in Calgary, which is suffering labour shortages across the board, in all industries, from the unskilled worker to the skilled professional.
''Calgary is facing a shortfall of as many as 90,000 workers over the next five years ... by 2025 the shortage across the province will be well through 300,000,'' said Nixon. ''Alberta is at the cusp of a trend we're seeing nationwide.''
Nixon argued that immigration must be viewed by policymakers as a strategic economic development tool that will help to define 21st century Canada. He noted the country has in the past used immigration as a tool of industrial policy, particularly around the settlement and development of the West.
That kind of approach is needed again, Nixon asserted, as is better utilization of under-employed immigrants already in Canada, a phenomenon that RBC economists has estimated costs Canada $13 billion annually.
''We can no longer view immigration as a temporary employment agency,'' said Nixon. ''We need to start looking at immigration as a blueprint for nation-building, and we must find the right balance between social justice and economic need.''
Baxter believes that Alberta is making the strongest effort of any of the Canadian provinces to attract and efficaciously absorb new Canadians. However, he noted that while immigration policy remains largely the purview of the federal government, questions of professional accreditation and other determinants limiting immigrants' entry into the Canadian workforce rest in provincial hands.
''Alberta is at the forefront of this. The provincial government recognizes this (the need for more workers) and so does industry,'' said Baxter, referring to Alberta's Labour Force Strategy, released in July.
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