SHOULD I STAY OR SHOULD I GO HOME? NEWCOMER EMPLOYMENT EXPERIENCES IN MID-SIZED CANADIAN CITIES

Despite changes to Canadian immigration policy to address declining labour market outcomes, many highly educated immigrants still face challenges when searching for career-related employment. Semi-structured interviews with 38 skilled newcomers in Edmonton, Alberta and Winnipeg, Manitoba illustrate significant obstacles, including a lack of credential recognition, racial discrimination, and a requirement for Canadian experience. Drawing from inter-sectional feminism and critical race theory, this study assesses the perspectives of newcomers during their employment search and explores the common desire for return-migration. Findings illustrate how the pre-arrival expectations of immigrants are incongruent with the realities of persistent labour market barriers. Newcomers consider if they should stay in Canada due to the lack of meaningful economic opportunities. Keywords: secondary migration, return migration, labour market integration, critical race theory, intersectionality, transnational feminism Malgre les changements a la politique d'immigration canadienne pour remedier la baisse des resultats sur le marche du travail, de nombreux immigrants tres instruits sont toujours confrontes a des difficultes lorsqu'ils cherchent un emploi lie a leur carriere. Des entretiens semi-structures avec 38 nouveaux arrivants qualifies a Edmonton, Alberta, et a Winnipeg, Manitoba, illustrent des obstacles importants, notamment le manque de reconnaissance des titres de competences, la discrimination raciale et l'exigence d'une experience canadienne. S'inspirant du feminisme intersectionnel et de la theorie critique de la race, cette etude evalue les perspectives des nouveaux arrivants pendant leur recherche d'emploi et explore le desir commun de retourner sur le marche du travail. Les resultats illustrent comment les attentes des immigrants avant leur arrivee sont incompatibles avec les realites des obstacles persistants du marche du travail. Les nouveaux arrivants se demandent s'ils doivent rester au Canada en raison du manque d'opportunites economiques significatives. Mots-cles: migration secondaire, migration de retour, integration sur le marche du travail, theorie critique de la race, intersectionnalite, feminisme transnational.
INTRODUCTION In recent decades, Canadian immigration policy has increasingly prioritized 'economic self-sufficiency' over cultural diversity and multiculturalism (Abu-Laban 1998; Chuong 2015). Current immigrant selection policy strives for optimal labour market [...]