What's in a Name? Why it is of vital importance to get the pronunciation right?

Health services across the world are on the one hand the most regulated of all professions, the workforce planning is the most advanced and the restrictions on licence to practice most stringent, especially across borders- yet the workforce is dependent on the ability of large scale movement of professionals across nation-states. The UK NHS has over 41% of its doctors and a quarter of all nurses who were born / trained overseas. This is not much different to many other advanced health systems. It is also recognised that patient outcomes, recruitment and retention of healthcare professionals who are in great demand depends on autonomy, job satisfaction and a sense of value, equality and a just environment. A fundamental tenet of equality, celebrating diversity and inclusion is how organisation or society deals with the immigrant professionals or ‘foreigners’. The ability to correctly pronounce ‘foreign’ names is one of the fundamental and most obvious demonstration of respect one accords to a fellow human. There is a long standing practice of transfiguring foreign sounding names to anglicised or westernized versions for ease of use. The westernization of foreign names is predominantly imposed by the dominant segments of populations on those considered inferior. There is clear evidence of social inequalities linked to one’s race, ethnicity, immigration and gender. Transfiguring one’s name is a clear example of such discrimination, microaggression and a form of bias. It is time that we understood the impact of such microaggressions of colleagues and our patients. It should be vital for all professionals to take the time and attention needed to get the pronunciation right and in the process understand the cultural diversity, identity and demonstrate due respect and equality. It is also imperative on those of us with foreign sounding names that we help colleagues navigate the rich heritage of our culture and identity and do so with humility. It can only then be a win-win for all.

“Hey Cabbie! Where are you From?” An Examination of Everyday Racism in Toronto’s Taxi Industry

Using an anti-racist Marxist lens, issues of social exclusion and settlement are broadly highlighted taking into account racism in an industry that is most commonly noted for its ease of entry for immigrant professionals. This study attempts to build on previous studies of Toronto’s taxi industry (Hathiyani, 2006; Abraham, Sundar, & Whitmore, 2008) to focus specifically on racism. This research paper examines the extent to which ‘everyday racism’ is both a by-product of and a critical ingredient in perpetuating structural racism, using Toronto’s taxi industry as a case study. Drawing on interviews from 18 fulltime taxi drivers who identified as racialized groups and were born outside of Canada, it describes the familiar tensions associated with experiencing and responding to instances of racism in a precarious industry. In the absence of an association, anti-discrimination or workplace rights to protect the driver against racial abuse and harassment, drivers are forced to negotiate their responses on an individualized basis. Drivers linked everyday racism to both class position and structural racism within the industry. These findings strongly demonstrated inadequate policies to protect drivers from everyday racism in the workplace as a result of both structural racism and a neo-liberal climate. This warrants further inquiry as Toronto’s taxi industry is a major employer of racialized, immigrant men.

“Hey Cabbie! Where are you From?” An Examination of Everyday Racism in Toronto’s Taxi Industry

Using an anti-racist Marxist lens, issues of social exclusion and settlement are broadly highlighted taking into account racism in an industry that is most commonly noted for its ease of entry for immigrant professionals. This study attempts to build on previous studies of Toronto’s taxi industry (Hathiyani, 2006; Abraham, Sundar, & Whitmore, 2008) to focus specifically on racism. This research paper examines the extent to which ‘everyday racism’ is both a by-product of and a critical ingredient in perpetuating structural racism, using Toronto’s taxi industry as a case study. Drawing on interviews from 18 fulltime taxi drivers who identified as racialized groups and were born outside of Canada, it describes the familiar tensions associated with experiencing and responding to instances of racism in a precarious industry. In the absence of an association, anti-discrimination or workplace rights to protect the driver against racial abuse and harassment, drivers are forced to negotiate their responses on an individualized basis. Drivers linked everyday racism to both class position and structural racism within the industry. These findings strongly demonstrated inadequate policies to protect drivers from everyday racism in the workplace as a result of both structural racism and a neo-liberal climate. This warrants further inquiry as Toronto’s taxi industry is a major employer of racialized, immigrant men.

Access to professions : the experience of Japanese immigrants in Canada

This paper investigates employment experiences faced by 8 Japanese immigrant professionals in the Greater Toronto Area, including 3 Japanese-educated professionals, 3 both Japanese and Canadian-educated professionals, and 2 exclusively Canadian-educated professionals. This study attempts to examine whether Japanese credentials are recognized in licensing and hiring processes, and whether Canadian education improves the employment experience among Japanese immigrant professionals. In the case of the Japanese immigrant professionals in this study, barriers to licensing they experienced differ from profession to profession. Despite licenses, participants also experienced barriers to employment in their professions even if they were Canadian-educated, Japanese professionals. Except in one case, it appears that obtaining Canadian degrees in their professions facilitated practicing their professions in the mainstream labour market. Most of the participants were also benefited by some form of Canadian education in addition to their professional knowledge.

Access to professions : the experience of Japanese immigrants in Canada

This paper investigates employment experiences faced by 8 Japanese immigrant professionals in the Greater Toronto Area, including 3 Japanese-educated professionals, 3 both Japanese and Canadian-educated professionals, and 2 exclusively Canadian-educated professionals. This study attempts to examine whether Japanese credentials are recognized in licensing and hiring processes, and whether Canadian education improves the employment experience among Japanese immigrant professionals. In the case of the Japanese immigrant professionals in this study, barriers to licensing they experienced differ from profession to profession. Despite licenses, participants also experienced barriers to employment in their professions even if they were Canadian-educated, Japanese professionals. Except in one case, it appears that obtaining Canadian degrees in their professions facilitated practicing their professions in the mainstream labour market. Most of the participants were also benefited by some form of Canadian education in addition to their professional knowledge.

Tracking immigrant professionals' experience in Manitoba's labour market

Our project aims to improve immigrant integration programs by exploring the immigration and settlement process from the perspective of professionals and trades people who are clients of Winnipeg’s Success Skills Centre, an agency that offers employment assistance services to immigrant professionals and skilled workers. We make three observations on the integration experience of immigrant professionals and trades people in the Manitoba labour market. First, recent immigrants to Manitoba through the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) have been educated and skilled, yet their labour market participation has often been restricted to general labour and entry-level employment. Second, immigration policy sets a minimum amount of money that an adult immigrant has to bring with him or her, resulting in a demand/supply mismatch in the labour market. Finally, employment has not been a fair or effective stepping-stone to integration in the case of visible minority immigrants. Our research indicates that a strict labour market definition of success fails to capture the expectations and real life goals of new immigrants. Key Words: immigration, professional immigrants, workforce, integration, Manitoba

Tracking immigrant professionals' experience in Manitoba's labour market

Our project aims to improve immigrant integration programs by exploring the immigration and settlement process from the perspective of professionals and trades people who are clients of Winnipeg’s Success Skills Centre, an agency that offers employment assistance services to immigrant professionals and skilled workers. We make three observations on the integration experience of immigrant professionals and trades people in the Manitoba labour market. First, recent immigrants to Manitoba through the Provincial Nominee Program (PNP) have been educated and skilled, yet their labour market participation has often been restricted to general labour and entry-level employment. Second, immigration policy sets a minimum amount of money that an adult immigrant has to bring with him or her, resulting in a demand/supply mismatch in the labour market. Finally, employment has not been a fair or effective stepping-stone to integration in the case of visible minority immigrants. Our research indicates that a strict labour market definition of success fails to capture the expectations and real life goals of new immigrants. Key Words: immigration, professional immigrants, workforce, integration, Manitoba

Perception of cross-cultural adjustment by immigrant professionals from three ethnic groups in one host context

Ensuring that immigrant professionals experience cross-cultural adjustment positively is beneficial for both employers and host countries, as well as the immigrants themselves, yet has proven problematic in practice. This study utilises a series of longitudinal interviews to examine the personal narratives of three strategically selected sets of recently arrived professionals from the British Isles, China, and the former Soviet Union who are employed in New Zealand. Immersive research, employing Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA), followed the participants over 1 year of their life, illuminating their struggles, wins, and contradictions, endeavouring to develop a deep understanding of what it feels like to be an immigrant professional in a new, often culturally unusual country. This study reports the discovery of divergent sets of characteristics influencing the cross-cultural adjustment perceptions of interview+ees from different ethnic groups within the same host country. It finds that ‘one size does not fit all’.

“I actually got my first job through my ex-colleague”: Employment-related information seeking behavior of Bangladeshi immigrants in Canada

This study explores the employment-related information seeking behaviour of Bangladeshi immigrants in Canada. Using a mixed-methods approach, the study conducted semi-structured interviews with 60 Bangladeshi immigrants in Ontario, Canada, and obtained 205 survey responses. The study highlights the centrality of employment-related settlement among Bangladeshi immigrants in Ontario and reports many immigrants not being able to utilize their education and skills after arrival in Canada. The results show that Bangladeshi immigrants utilize various information sources for their employment in Canada, including friends and professional colleagues, online searchers, and settlement agencies. Although Bangladeshi immigrants utilized a large array of information sources for meeting their employment-related information needs, many interview participants emphasized that the employment-related benefits they received was because of their access to friends and professional colleagues in Canada. The survey results echoed the interview findings. The cross-tabulation results on post-arrival information sources and occupation status as well as first job information sources and occupational status in Canada show a significant association among the use of the information source “friends and professional colleagues in Canada” and immigrants’ occupational status. The study highlights the benefits of professional colleagues among immigrants in employment-related settlement contexts. It also reports the challenges faced by many immigrant professionals related to employment-related settlement because of the lack of access to their professional friends and colleagues in Canada. The author urges the Federal Government of Canada, provincial governments, and settlement agencies working with newcomers to offer services that would connect highly skilled immigrants with their professional networks in Canada, in order to get proper guidance related to obtaining a professional job or alternative career. The author calls for further studies on employment-related information seeking by immigrants to better understand the role information plays in their settlement in a new country.