Better Opportunity?

For those who live in third world countries, Canada means freedom, safety, opportunity and equality. Once they arrive in Canada, often the only employment they find is minimum wage, and sometimes not even full time. Many immigrants find themselves working two or three part time jobs, simply so they can provide for their families. Even if they have received a postsecondary education in their native countries, their degrees and diplomas might not be equivalent to a Canadian education, making the education null and void.

Immigrating is no easy feat, especially into countries such as Canada or the United States of America. There are an incredible amount of steps which must be taken in order to even be considered as a potential immigrant, and it is extremely costly. One of the most important requirements that must be met (if one is not being sponsored by a resident of that country) is to have desirable skills which will contribute to the economy of the potential country, or must be willing to fulfill a position which citizens are not, or are unable, to fill.

Those with physical disabilities desiring to emigrate from third world countries have a much harder time making that dream a reality. Due to the fact that the majority of jobs available to immigrants involve physical labor for menial pay (such as being a nanny or live-in caregiver), persons who have a physical disability are not even considered for the position, as they would not be able to adequately perform the job. This decreases their chances of obtaining a Landed Immigrant status greatly.

If they are able to find employment, immigrants and refugees often find themselves forced into jobs which Canadians do not want to do. These kinds of work, especially the part time positions, do not offer any kind of benefit plan or package to their employees. Jobs such as a live-in caregiver are not even governed by national minimum wage laws; the amount of pay received by the employee is at the discretion of the employer, as the employer is not only paying the employee, but also housing them and paying for utilities and such, ensuring their basic human needs are met.

As the majority of jobs immigrants work do not have any type of benefit plan, they are unable to receive some services that may be required for them to have the same level of independence and living condition that someone with adequate benefits would. For instance, if a landed immigrant is in need of a white cane or a teletypewriter (TTY) phone, these particular services might not be available to them in the same way that they would be for someone with medical coverage. Granted, Canada is much more sensitive than the United States of America is in regards to circumstances such as these, receiving required services might still end up being a hassle for immigrants and refugees.

Another barrier that immigrants and refugees might face is communication. Landed immigrants often come from countries where English is not the national language, so discovering services that are available to the public, especially those which are available for persons with a physical disability, might seem virtually impossible. For example, if one is unable to speak or understand English, or does so very poorly, s/he might not be aware of services such as Handi-Transit.

For some, Canada is a lifelong dream when which attained, might not prove to be everything they had dreamed of. As much as one would like to believe that Canada is as perfect as some make it out to be, the reality is that there is still a substantial amount of discrimination and inequality that needs to be dealt with, preferably in a timely manner. People immigrate to Canada in hopes of bettering themselves and the lives of their families, only to find that there are countless hurdles to jump over to achieve a satisfactory level of living.

To me, a perfect Canada would not discriminate against persons who want to immigrate into our beautiful country based on physical disability, and upon landing in Canada would be immediately paired with someone who knows the ins and outs of various services that the newcomer would be in need of, and be able to explain these things in a language that would be understood by the new resident; someone who could assist him/her in learning either of our national languages so that they could eventually be able to properly communicate with our citizens, service providers, and government officials so they might receive the same standard of living which everyone deserves to have.

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. (2005) Immigrants finding jobs in Canada, just not the ones they want. http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/story/2005/10/13/lsic051013.html

Alyssa