#ImmigrantsWork: Building Immigrant Inclusion into Business Recovery Plans

Hire Immigrants Ottawa (HIO), with partners across the country, is excited to launch the #ImmigrantsWork campaign. Leveraging the collective voice of a national coalition, we are excited to share stories, resources, and a collection of tools to support rebuilding Canadian businesses with a focus on immigrant* integration.

We have heard this endlessly: we are in an unprecedented time. Yet the COVID-19 pandemic underscores the need for opening pathways for underutilized immigrants to contribute to communities across Canada. This historic moment offers the opportunity to build a strong workforce in which immigrant skills, education, and experience are fully recognized and successfully integrated into the Canadian labour market.

HIO is working with a national coalition to promote this goal through the #ImmigrantsWork campaign. The campaign will:

• Raise awareness of the previous, current, and future contributions of immigrants to Canada’s economy
• Ensure employers are thinking about immigrant talent sources as they plan their recovery strategies
• Provide employers with practical information and tools for an immigrant inclusive recovery

Immigrants comprise one-quarter of Canada’s labour force—the majority of whom are skilled and educated. As we re-build and re-hire we need to ensure that no one is left behind as we recover.

Join the Discussion

The actions we take now will create the workforce of our future. Join the discussion on social media by following the hashtag #ImmigrantsWork and share a success story or helpful resource for immigrant inclusion. Help us build the immigrant-inclusive economy we wish to see.

The #ImmigrantsWork campaign will be led by national coalition members:

• Immigrant Employment Council of B.C. (IEC-BC)
• Calgary Region Immigrant Employment Council (CRIEC)
• Edmonton Region Immigrant Employment Council (ERIEC)
• Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council (TRIEC)
• Niagara Workforce Planning Board (NIEC)
• Hire Immigrants Ottawa
• Halifax Partnership
• World Education Services Canada (WES Canada)

If you have any questions about this campaign, or how to get involved, please contact campaign lead, Devon Franklin (dfranklin@wes.org).

*For the purposes of this campaign, the term immigrant is used to describe all residents in Canada that were born outside of the country. This campaign is not intended to advocate for one specific group of immigrants, but rather, all immigrants to Canada.