Limited resources make settlement difficult for groups welcoming newcomers
Posted Apr 12, 2016 7:07 am.
Last Updated Apr 12, 2016 9:51 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
They’re dealing with more immigrants and limited resources but most admit they’re doing the best they can….
Settlement organizations are facing an increasing number of challenges as of late as they look to deal with more people looking to start their lives in Calgary,
Anila Lee Yuen is with the Centre for Newcomers in Marlborough, she’s certainly not surprised by comments from some new immigrants that they’re having a tough time finding a job.
“I think it really depends on the skill level of the newcomers that are coming in, a number of refugees currently are still requiring the language skill and need to go through our language instruction for newcomer classes in terms of being able to actually work in our environment. And a number of the people that being laid off are in oil and gas and professional industries, even though a number of a number of our Syrian refugees and other refugees that are coming in might be professionals in their own home country, many of them still need to upgrade or they need to be able to navigate that career path before getting to that position.”
“So really in terms of anyone saying there is a competition for the jobs, they’re really looking at two sets of jobs. What we’ve been finding is for a number of the entry level positions that people are looking at, those are still available.”
Lee Yuen says obviously it requires training to be able to handle something new or no longer have that professional job one might be accustomed to…
“Funding is right up there in terms of the resources that we have but we do understand it’s an economic downturn and that we do have a number of people coming in at a very fast pace, so we’ve had to be innovative, we’ve had to look at what are some of the ways where we can create collective impact by working collaboratively as immigrant serving agencies and with our other service providers like the Food Bank and Calgary Police Services and other organizations that want to be involved.”
She says there has been great support from the community in people wanting to help with the Syrian refugee crisis.
“If you’ve got more people and less resources what are young going to do in order to be able to help those new people who are coming in and still be able to serve the clients? So we rely a lot of volunteer led initiatives,” she said.
In the video above, Afaf Mohammed explains how the EthniCity Catering program works at the Centre for Newcomers.
They’re not the only ones who are noticing an increase in demand for their services; Calgary Catholic Immigration Services say they’ve seen dramatic increases in the last few years.
CEO Fariborz Birjandian has been helping to lead the charge locally since the Canadian government announced it would be accepting Syrian refugees.
“When you look at Alberta in particular, ten years ago we used to have maybe 10,000 people come to Canada, today we get about 45, 50,000 people, permanent residents coming to Alberta and there are also a number of maybe 10,000 temporary foreign workers that used to come and the numbers are lower now. This is 1.5 per cent of our population so it’s huge work obviously.”
Birjandian says those numbers have increased recently because of the economy we were enjoying and how Alberta created that critical mass.
He tells 660 NEWS if you go overseas, the province has developed a reputation as a good place to come and word is getting out among other countries.
“We’re actually not doing a lot to attract these refugees,” he said. “The reality is initial settlement services are in need, people come here and you just even go to a 5 day trip to another country and look at support systems for yourself, there are systems to help you as a tourist, just imagine if you’re coming as a permanent resident?”
He says new immigrants have a lot of needs in terms of integration and the levels of help are different.
“Everybody comes to a new country, they need some help,” he said. “They get it from us, they get it from their friends, churches, co-workers, what we do is provide ongoing systematic services.”
“And over the years as the number of immigrants raised, our business expanded as well,” he said. “Twenty years ago we had two-to three locations now we have 14 in Southern Alberta.”
Birjandian says resources have become more available but it’s never going to be enough because the demand will always increase.
“We’ve increased our immigration in Calgary by 700 per cent in the last 20 years,” he said.
YWCA has also noticed an increase on its, recently highlighting some of the programs they offer to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Director of External Relations Elsbeth Mehrer acknowledged the current economic situation has posed some difficulties for among their clients.
“I think that’s something we need to recognize, immigration is a long-term gain and the choices that families are making, particularly if they’re economic immigrants and they’re making a choice to leave their country of origin and begin a new life in Canada. That isn’t a decision that people make overnight, very different from the refugee scenario, but certainly economic immigrants who are driven by choice and opportunity, they’re responsiveness to changing conditions and boom and bust cycles that are so well known to those of us who have been in Alberta for many years, that’s not something that certainly influences a family’s choice because if they’re two years into the progress they’re just going to stay.”
Mehrer says they’re seeing a lot of newcomers within their employee services and the Women’s Emergency Shelter.
“We know that struggle of transition and it’s hard to imagine one more significant that coming from the other side of the planet,” she said when asked if they’re in a good position to handle the influx.
“I think it’s important to think about how are we providing dignified support and assistance in addressing that basic needs piece,” said Mehrer.
Click play below to hear Ian’s full interview with the Calgary Catholic Immigration Society:
