New immigrants heavily impacted by job disruptions caused by the pandemic

A recent study conducted by Statistics Canada found that new immigrants to Canada have been heavily affected by the pandemic. With the coronavirus making its way around the globe, countries have faced many problems in terms of accommodating new immigrants and keeping the immigration process intact.

Important findings

The study found that recent immigrants to Canada have been significantly more affected as compared to the Canadian-born population because of the various changes in employment that have taken place over the last few months. The economic downturn brought on by the pandemic is one of the major reasons why so many people are struggling to find stable employment.

Recent immigrants have borne the brunt of the damage because of their vulnerable position. There has been a steady decline in employment for a major part of the Canadian population ever since the country went into lockdown to reduce the spread of the virus.

The labour market in Canada lost 3 million jobs during the sharp economic downturn back in March and April 2020. The restoration of economic activity started in May, and since then, 1.7 million jobs have been regained.

The Statistics Canada Labour Force Survey, published on August 20, found that new immigrants faced a higher risk of losing their jobs in March and April than Canadian-born citizens. When Canada initiated the measures for the pandemic, all three groups in the study faced a higher percentage of unemployment, namely those born in Canada, immigrants who had arrived in Canada in the last ten years, and immigrants who had arrived more than ten years ago.

However, recent immigrants saw a more significant increase in the rate of people who became unemployed. Since the economy is on its way to recovery now, things will hopefully look up soon.