Immigrant perceptions of integration in the Canadian workplace

• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1108/EDI-02-2019-0086
• Published date: 29 October 2020
• Date: 29 October 2020
• Pages: 1091-1111
• Subject Matter: HR & organizational behaviour,Employment law,Diversity,equality,inclusion
• Author: Secil E. Ertorer,Jennifer Long,Melissa Fellin,Victoria M. Esses

Immigrant perceptions of

integration in the

Canadian workplace

Secil E. Ertorer

Department of Sociology, Criminal Justice and Environmental Studies,

Canisius College, Buffalo, New York, USA

Jennifer Long

Anthropology, Economics and Political Science, MacEwan University,

Edmonton, Canada

Melissa Fellin

Youth and Children’s Studies, Wilfrid Laurier University,

Waterloo, Canada, and

Victoria M. Esses

Department of Psychology, University of Western Ontario,

London, Canada

Abstract

Purpose –This paper explores integration experiences of immigrants in the Canadian workplace from the

perspective of immigrants themselves, focusing on cultural capital and cultural judgments as factors

influencing workplace entry, advancement and social integration in an increasingly diverse work environment.

Design/methodology/approach –An interpretive approach that involved thematic analysis of in-depth

interview data was employed.

Findings –The findings reveal that the official two-way multiculturalism policy of Canada is not reflected in

the Canadian workplace and that structural forces of assimilation are evident. Cultural judgments and

immigrants’cultural capital create barriers for integration.

Research limitations/implications –While highlighting important aspects of immigrant experiences

within the Canadian workplace, the study findings cannot generate a fully representative theorization of

immigrant employment experiences in Canada. Further studies with diverse migrant groups in different parts

of the country would shed more light on the issues faced by immigrants.

Practical implications –The barriers to social integration identified by this study can be largely overcome

by improving intercultural skills and cultural intelligence of employers and employees through training and

incorporating values of diversity and inclusion into the corporate culture.

Social implications –The factors that foster and hinder workplace integration identified by this study can

inform workplace integration strategies and related policies.

Originality/value –Much of the literature concerning immigrants’position in Canada address the economic

integration and economic well-being of immigrants, focusing on quantitative, macro level analyses of earnings

disparity and labor market segmentation. There is a lack of qualitative research that explores the integration

process through the lens of immigrants. Informed by the theories of cultural capital, cultural judgment and

integration, the study sheds light on the everyday workplace experiences of skilled migrants and perceived

barriers to workplace entry, advancement and social integration.

Keywords Cultural diversity, Multiculturalism, Diversity management, Cultural capital, Workplace

integration, Cultural judgments

Paper type Research paper

Immigrant

perceptions of

integration

1091

The authors are thankful to the participants of the study who shared their personal experiences and

views genuinely. The authors are grateful for constructive comments on previous versions received

from two anonymous reviewers and the journal editors. Funding for this study was provided by the

Mitacs Accelerate Internship, The London Cross Cultural Learner Centre and The Achievement Centre.

The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:

https://www.emerald.com/insight/2040-7149.htm

Received 23 February 2019

Revised 7 January 2020

29 June 2020

Accepted 2 October 2020

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion:

An International Journal

Vol. 41 No. 7, 2022

pp. 1091-1111

© Emerald Publishing Limited

2040-7149

DOI 10.1108/EDI-02-2019-0086

Introduction

Canada is traditionally known as a country of immigration, with official multiculturalism and

interculturalism policies asserting recognition and respect for diverse identities, languages,

customs and religions of its residents and citizens. The country has a diverse demographic

profile with over 250 ethnic origins (Statistics Canada, 2017a). According to the 2016

long-form census, one in four people in Canada speaks a language other than English and

French (Statistics Canada, 2017b); one in five Canadians are foreign-born; and two out of

every five Canadian children have an immigration background (Statistics Canada, 2017a).

Statistics Canada (2017a) defines immigrants as persons who are born outside of the country

and granted the right to live in Canada permanently by immigration authorities, excluding

temporary foreign workers and those with student or working visas. Thus, the reported

numbers reflect this definition which is also adopted by our study.

It is predicted that immigrants and their Canadian-born children will make up nearly half

of Canada’s population by 2036 (Statistics Canada, 2017c). In 2016, immigrants represented

nearly one-quarter of Canada’s total labor force (Statistics Canada, 2017d). Thus, immigrants

constitute a growing proportion of the workforce and the Canadian workplace structure and

composition is becoming increasingly diverse to include employees from a range of ethnic,

religious and cultural groups. The increasing trend in cultural diversity of the workforce has

brought a greater complexity and challenges to the employers wishing to integrate talented

immigrants successfully into the workplace and maximize their growth (Malik et al., 2014).

The majority of new immigrants enter the job market with sufficient work experience and

human capital (Reitz, 2007), making them an important talent pool who can contribute to

productivity and profits in the short term. However, recent evidence suggests that while

attracting skilled immigrants, Canada struggles to successfully integrate immigrants into its

workplaces (Nakhaie and Kazemipur, 2013;Yap et al., 2014).

A wide body of research has documented existing barriers to integration of immigrants

into the labor market in immigrant-receiving societies. The existing literature focuses

predominantly on immigrants’economic integration with attention to reporting

unemployment and underemployment rates, earnings disparities and deskilling of

immigrant workers. Research in Canada shows that many skilled immigrants are

prevented from entering the labor market and/or upward mobility due to

de-credentialization (Bauder, 2003;Dolin and Young, 2004;Ng et al., 2006;Reitz, 2007;

World Education Services, 2019), which is the tendency of employers and licensing bodies to

discount professional credentials and foreign experience. Studies revealed that over half of

the skilled immigrants were unable to find occupations in the fields of their education and

experience (Statistics Canada, 2007) and had to overcome periods of unemployment and

underemployment (Aghakhani, 2007;Avni, 2012;Khan and Watson, 2005;Oreopoulos, 2011).

According to the studies that assess earnings disparities, recent immigrants had lower

income levels compared to those born in Canada despite similar levels of education and work

experience (Bloom et al., 1994;Frenette and Morissette, 2005;Li, 2000;Maxim, 1992;

McDonald and Worswick, 1998;Picot and Sweetman, 2004;Skuterud, 2010;Warman and

Worswick, 2004;World Education Services, 2019). Furthermore, the presence of an income

gap has increased in the last decades (Picot and Sweetman, 2004;Reitz, 2001). While some

researchers explain these trends with deskilling and de-credentialization (Schmidt et al.,

2010), others emphasize discrimination based on race and skin color (Haan, 2008;Hersch,

2008) and judgments of cultural capital such as accent speech, ethnicity and cultural

background (Mattu, 2002;Murdie, 2002;Purkiss et al., 2006). Research examining the role of

cultural capital, without employing the concept, revealed existing discrimination in the hiring

process due to ethnic sounding names or foreign credentials (Oreopoulos, 2011). Esses et al.

(2014) found that applicants’religious identity affects the selection process if the applicant

was not Canadian born and trained. Studies show that within the province of Quebec, which

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