Dodig says wages are too low and housing is too expensive.
The leader of one of Canada's most influential companies called for an overhaul of the country's approach to immigration, arguing that professions too often under value skills acquired abroad, that housing has become so expensive that it can deter talented foreigners, and that employers tend to pay lower wages.
Victor Dodig, chief executive of Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, said in a commentary that being welcoming in this case doesn't just mean newcomers accepting. Ensuring that immigrants can thrive in society and the economy is what it means. Canada has a lot to do.
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The chief executives of Canada's biggest companies generally let their lobbyists and trade associations talk for them, at least in public, so Dodig's decision to take such a public stand on immigration suggests the issue has become top of mind.
The federal government is about to submit its next immigration levels plan. There will be an update on the number of immigrants the country will accept. Canada aims to welcome over half a million new permanent residents in the next three years. Dodig, the son of immigrants, urged the government to increase those levels.
Canada has the population density, human capital and capacity to be a leader in the new economy according to Dodig.
84 per cent of the growth in the total labour force during the 2010s was attributed to immigration. Data shows the skills of newcomers are frequently used. According to Statistics Canada, the number of immigrants with a university degree working in jobs requiring a degree fell from 2001 to 2016
We need to think differently about immigration.
The CEO is Victor Dodig.
Correcting the gap was one of Dodig's suggestions. The accreditation of skilled workers who learned their trades abroad should be sped up. He said that immigrants end up working in roles far below their skill level, unable to contribute as much as they want and as much as Canada needs.
Rebekah Young, vice-president and head of inclusion and resilience economics at Bank of Nova Scotia, said it was premature to suggest there is a waning of demand to come to Canada. She said that governments of all levels needed to address services that are under pressure, such as, quality education and access to health care.
Young said that the decisions and actions taken today would determine if Canada remained a destination of choice down the road.
There is a severe labour shortage and Dodig wants to rethink immigration policy.
Some 500,000 temporary residents will be allowed to work for more than 20 hours per week starting in November after the Trudeau government removed a cap on work hours for international students.
It will take a lot more to fix the issue. As more and more Canadian boomers age out of the workforce, the number of vacancies surged to a record of about one million.
There were a record one million job openings this summer.
The photo was taken by Dax Melmer.
Immigration can help, but only if Canada is an attractive place to live and work. Too many jobs that don't pay enough for people to get ahead are working against Canadian recruitment efforts. Building more rental housing as a pathway to homeownership and using government land strategically to ease the housing supply crunch was recommended by the chief of the bank.
Dodig said that the minimum wage would be raised to $25 per hour by the year 2025. The importance of attracting talent and providing a wage that can contribute meaningfully to household finances were both recognized.
In the current environment, housing affordability is a problem not only for newcomers but for Canadians as well. She said that newcomers face higher costs if they want to purchase a new home or rent a room.
Young said that newcomers may vote with their feet for cities or regions where their dollar is stretched further. She said that this should put more pressure on governments to make needed changes.
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada admitted in a statement last month that the process of recognizing qualifications in regulated professions can make it hard for newcomers to get into Canada.
Most provinces and territories delegate authority in legislation to regulatory bodies when it comes to regulating professions and trades.
The IRCC said it was working with provinces and territories to make improvements to the issue.
The email address is nkarim@postmedia.
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