On October 29, 2021, the Conference Board of Canada introduced a study about essential workers, offering suggestions of how to improve the nature of essential work in Canada and fill labour gaps in essential services. Canadian-born workers usually avoid essential occupations in food manufacturing, truck transportation, nursing, and residential care facilities due to the low compensation and lack of career mobility. Thus, immigrants take these jobs even if they are mostly overqualified. Overqualification, however, makes these immigrants underemployed and limits their earnings and career prospects. The study calls for the Federal Government to provide more pathways for essential workers to address the labour shortages in the country.
The Current and Future Role of Immigrant Talent
