Overlooked: Canada’s Fastest-Emerging, Highest-Educated Workforce
4 min read · 2022
Heidi Turner, Pink Attitude
Summary
The South Asian community is the single largest visible minority group in Canada, comprising 25% of the visible minority population. Yet there has been little research or analysis completed on the experiences of South Asian women in the Canadian workforce, where so many face barriers and challenges daily. Pink Attitude Evolution, in partnership with Cultural IQ, has launched a national research study to create an accompanying action plan on unlocking the potential of a growing South Asian women's labour force.
This survey collected and analyzed responses from 2,200 participants identified through CulturaliQ's Online Mainstream and Ethnic Panels, including women and men from Canada's largest ethnic communities (South Asian, Chinese, Black, Filipino) and White Canadians.
Key findings
South Asian women, despite being among the most highly educated segment of the population, disproportionately report feeling underutilized at work, resulting in more than 50% intending to quit their current role — a significantly higher rate than other populations. South Asian women are also vastly underrepresented in senior positions, such as at the executive and board levels within corporations, due to barriers to career progression.
Among the most-stated reasons for leaving a job are unsatisfying work, poor management, and unfair treatment (48%, 37%, and 34%, respectively). Almost two-thirds of South Asian women said they would rather quit their jobs than wait for empty promises by their manager to come to fruition (65%), and a similar number feel they missed out on a job opportunity because they have an accent (64%).
South Asian women overwhelmingly report valuing mentorship, career development, and sponsorship at work. More than three-quarters of South Asian women agreed with the following statements:
Leaders can support South Asian women in advancing their careers by:
Providing targeted mentorship and sponsorship opportunities and monitoring and evaluating their success for target groups.
Offering professional development
Creating flexible work environments that allow for professional and personal life balance
Improving networking opportunities
Recognizing international credentials and avoiding the discriminatory actions associated with under-employing talent by discounting skills developed outside of Canada.
Offering effective DEI initiatives, which should be designed by tracking intersectoral data that captures the cultural nuances and unique challenges to help address the barriers faced by South Asian women.
Immigration is essential to growing the Canadian workforce.
Without immigration, Canada's population growth rate is projected to be nearly zero in 20 years. By 2056, Canadian companies will completely depend on immigrants for the workforce.
Statistics Canada reports that Canada's fertility rate (the number of children a woman is projected to have during her reproductive years, based on women aged 15-49) has been falling since 2009, dropping to 1.54 children per woman in 2016. This rate is well below the cohort replacement of 2.1 children per woman (i.e., the fertility level required to replace the population in the absence of immigration).
Canada's immigration program is essential for the future of the country. Despite the falling fertility rate, in 2019, Canada experienced its highest-ever jump in population over a year. Between July 1, 2018, and July 1, 2019, Canada's population increased by more than 531,497 people. That increase was significantly driven by the arrival of immigrants and non-permanent residents (82.2%). Over the next three years, the Federal Government of Canada plans to bring in more than 1.3 million immigrants.
Canada's population is diverse.
According to data from the 2016 Census, 22% of Canadians are visible minorities. Of those who identify as a visible minority, South Asians represent the highest percentage at 25%, followed by Chinese at 21% and Black at 16%. Of new arrivals to Canada, the highest percentage came from South Asian countries (28%), followed by the Philippines (11%) and China (9%). Immigrants from these three regions made up 48% of Canada's newcomers in 2018.
As immigration to Canada from some countries has stalled or decreased in recent years, immigration from India to Canada has skyrocketed. Between 2016 and 2019, there was a 116% increase in immigrants to Canada from India, compared with a 0% increase from China in the same period and a 45% decrease from the Philippines.
Although many immigrants have significant education and work experience when they arrive in Canada, only 39% who obtain work are in jobs with duties similar to what they did before moving to Canada, reports World Education Service. Less than half of survey respondents said they found work in the same sector they worked in before their move.
Takeaways
A country's economy is partly measured by the number of people working (the labour force) who pay taxes that fund public services, such as health care. With immigrants, employers would be able to find enough qualified workers to fill available jobs; because Canadians are living longer and having fewer children — more people are retiring, and there are fewer students in schools. As a result, the pool of Canadian-born existing and potential workers is limited. Thus, immigrants are important for our economy to grow.
References
Turner, H. (2022). Overlooked: Canada’s Fastest-Emerging, Highest-Educated Workforce. Pink Attitude – Empowering South Asian women.
