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Canada's immigration policy is regarded globally as a best practice model for selecting highly skilled migrants. Yet, upon arrival many immigrants face challenges integrating into employment. Where immigrants settle is one factor that has been shown to impact on employment integration. In Canada, regionalization policies have resulted in more immigrants settling in small to mid‐sized cities. It is important to understand how these local systems are organized to promote immigrant integration into employment. Using a systems approach, this paper presents a case study of immigrant employment in a mid‐sized city in Ontario, Canada. Through a document review and stakeholder interviews, a systems map was developed, and local perspectives were analyzed. Results demonstrate that in a mid‐sized city, few organizations play a large role in immigrant employment. The connections between these core organizations and the local labour market are complex. Any potential challenges to the system that interfere with these connections can cause a delay for newcomers seeking employment. As cities begin to experience growth driven by immigration, there is a need to ensure local services are not only available but also working effectively within the larger employment system. Key messages: An important focus of Canada's immigration policy has been to improve employment integration locally.Using a systems approach allows mid‐sized cities to identify local services and how they are connected to promote employment integration of newcomers.Greater connectivity between services can streamline the employment process for immigrants settling in mid‐sized cities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The migration literature focusing on understanding interactions between immigrants' integration and transnationalism is replete with mixed findings. However, contemporary consensus among migration scholars suggests that immigrants' integration and transnational connections can occur simultaneously. Focusing on transnational dating—which is understudied—this exploratory study draws on an online qualitative survey with five Ghanaian male immigrants in southwestern Ontario, Canada, to explore how immigrants' attachment to the host society, homeland, and "elsewhere" shape transnational dating behaviour. Transnational dating is conceptualized in this paper as dating partners that live part or most of their life or time detached from each other, yet hold together and create a sense of shared welfare and harmony, namely "datehood" that surpasses national borders. Using the integration‐transnationalism matrix as the theoretical framework, this paper demonstrates that the roles of integration and transnationalism should not be seen as separate influences on participants' transnational dating behaviour given participants' strong attachment to the host society, sending country, and "elsewhere." Importantly, our finding indicates that the motivation for transnational dating is related to transnational connections rather than not feeling integrated into Canadian society. Overall, the finding contributes to discourses on dating, transnational dating, transnationalism, and the conceptual framework of the integration‐transnationalism matrix. Key Messages: The migration literature focusing on understanding interactions between immigrants' integration and transnationalism is replete with mixed findings.This exploratory study has taken a critical step in stimulating a research agenda on transnational dating within the integration‐transnationalism matrix.Our finding indicates that the motivation for transnational dating is related to transnational connections rather than not feeling integrated into Canadian society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

International retirement migration involves the seasonal relocation of older adults to destinations abroad. For Canadians, this is typically done to escape winter at home in favour of warmer weather elsewhere. In this paper, we explore how Canadian newspapers chronicled the changes associated with managing the COVID‐19 pandemic in Canada, including border measures and calls to avoid non‐essential travel, and how they impacted international retirement migrants and their movements. We specifically present the findings of a framing analysis conducted of 187 newspaper articles published in 2020, identified through the Canadian Newsstream Database. The framing analysis identified three ways in which Canadian international retirement migrants were discussed in relation to the pandemic and the changed spatio‐temporal realities that affected their transnational movements. First, they are a group who altered their consumer practices, which had economic impacts at home and in their usual seasonal destinations. Second, they are a group who faced considerable uncertainty with regard to travel and movement, among other things, as the pandemic unfolded in 2020. Finally, Canadian international retirement migrants sought stability in a number of ways, both in terms of their social networks and living arrangements at home and abroad. Key Messages: The lives and seasonal movements of Canadian international retirement migrants were greatly impacted by the COVID‐19 pandemic and measures put in place to manage the spread of the virus.Newspaper coverage of Canadian international retirement migrants from 2020 framed them as altering consumer practices, facing uncertainties, and seeking stability in response.These responses form an interesting dualism because the COVID‐19 pandemic introduced both challenges and opportunities for Canadian international retirement migrants in 2020. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In recent years, Canada has witnessed an increase in visibility of far‐right groups and activities. This phenomenon is particularly interesting as it contrasts with the broader Canadian context of acceptance of immigrants and support for multiculturalism. How do far‐right groups represent themselves and their claims to the public considering the dominant discursive environment in which they operate? Moreover, are far‐right groups' discourse and rhetoric marked by contextual differences? This paper analyzes the way the distinct Canadian and Quebec chapters of the vigilante group Soldiers of Odin (SOO) use their public Facebook pages, comparatively. This research demonstrates that both SOO chapters negotiate their self‐representation by employing cultural elements that are salient and meaningful in their respective sociopolitical contexts and that can be exploited to infer motivations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Over 60 years ago, the Jewish nationalist movement known as Zionism culminated in the creation of the State of Israel. Millions of Jews immigrated to Israel over the twentieth century, a process known as aliya (literally, "going up"). Yet over the years, thousands of Israelis have also chosen to leave Israel in a movement termed yerida ("going down"). As the term suggests, this reverse migration has been highly stigmatized. During the 1960s and 1970s, emigrants were publicly disparaged in the Israeli media for having abandoned a struggling state. Consequently, Israeli migrants suffered strong feelings of guilt that often, hampered their integration process abroad, a phenomenon observed as late as the 1990s. This paper, however, reveals that feelings of stigmatization have greatly decreased among Israeli migrants in recent years. The study is based on research that I conducted in 2008-2009, involving nine months of participant observation in Vancouver's Israeli community and 34 in-depth interviews. Unlike in previous studies, most of my informants expressed no feelings of guilt over having left Israel. Of those who did, most framed their guilt as a longing for family and friends rather than the patriotic longing for the land as expressed by previous generations. Previous studies have also found that Israelis harbour a "myth of return" - a continuously expressed desire to return to Israel and a reluctance to accept their stay abroad as permanent. However, I have not found that the myth of return is still strong today, despite the continued prevalence of a strong sense of Israeli identity among Israelis abroad. I suggest that these changing attitudes are the product of shifting ideals in Israeli society that have developed as the state of Israel has matured. This paper thus serves to update the outdated image of Israeli migrants as it exists in the prevailing literature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper portrays the emergence of Canadian settlement work with immigrants and explores its prospects as an occupation. Currently, settlement work includes three forms of practice: (1) a loose occupation; (2) a specialty of social work; and (3) an emerging profession. The paper argues that settlement work is likely to have a professional future. However, whether or not it will become an independent profession depends largely on the funding regime of the settlement service sector. If the existing federal and short-term funding regime continues, settlement work will still be trying to define itself in the broader field of social service work. If a provincial and long-term funding regime emerges, prospects for an independent professional settlement work will improve. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Canada, the U.S., and Australia have recently experienced an increased regional dispersion of entering immigrants. American research suggests that a mixture of economic push factors (away from states like California) and pull factors (toward states with growth of low-wage jobs) and changing government policies and regulations contributed to the development of the New Gateways. Very few studies have been conducted to determine why the regional dispersion of entering immigrants occurred in Canada. This paper assesses the extent to which changes in immigration selection programs, notably, the Provincial Nominee Programs, contributed to the regional dispersion of entering immigrants. Using data from immigrant landing records, this study shows that different factors accounted for changes in the share of immigrants settling in different destinations. Changes in immigration selection programs played the primary role in the increasing numbers going to Saskatchewan and Manitoba, although improving economic conditions may have played an indirect role. Shifts in immigrant source regions were an important factor in the decrease in immigration to Toronto and in the increase to Montréal. Economic conditions likely played a significant role in the changes in the shares of new immigrants going to Toronto, Montréal, Calgary, and Edmonton. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper reports on a qualitative study that used focus groups to gather data from the perspective of child protection workers on their experiences in providing services to clients with limited English proficiency (LEP). The goals of the study were to understand processes of relationship building and service provision that could contribute to improved practice. Focus groups are ideal in obtaining data on how a group deals with particular situations and for understanding their decision‐making processes. Measures to ensure rigour and trustworthiness were taken throughout the study. Findings provide rich and multilayered insights into the complexity of providing services for families with LEP showing that agencies use bilingual workers as well as interpreters for services. Participants noted, however, that services continued to be inconsistent with unclear guidelines and training about how and when to access interpreters. Lack of training for bilingual workers was also identified. Confidentiality issues, barriers to engaging with clients, problems with the quality of interpretation and role confusion together with benefits including interpreters being cultural and language ‘conduits’ and links to culturally specific services; enhanced communication decreasing the possibility of inaccurate assessments and lessening power differentials; and help with workload were noted. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper investigates wealth disparities among first-generation immigrants using data from the 2012 Survey of Financial Security. We apply logistic and linear regression models to estimate disparities in homeownership and household equivalent net worth by immigrant status, region of origin, and time since arrival. By focusing on immigrant families from different regions who entered Canada at different points in time, this research applies theories related to assimilation, human capital, and structural barriers to wealth. Our findings demonstrate that even though many immigrant families transition into homeownership and grow their wealth over time, certain first-generation immigrant groups continue to experience wealth disparities many years after their arrival to Canada. In particular, immigrant families from African, Asian, and Middle Eastern countries experienced the largest wealth gaps. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the relationship between transnationalism and belonging, with particular reference to Ong's concept of ‘flexible citizenship’, ten years after it was first articulated. It asks ‘to what extent is Ong's work still relevant for the contemporary experiences of transnational migrants?’ With a focus on research in Canada, I argue that, contrary to their ‘flexible’ intentions, transnational immigrants often demonstrate a high level of local civic involvement and a localised sense of identity in the ‘new’ country, even when continuing to practice transnationalism on a daily basis. In addition, the paper contributes to debates around the relationship between transnationalism and integration over time. It draws upon an indepth qualitative study of immigrant women over eight years to examine the extent of their transnational activities and feelings of belonging. It concludes that while the notion of flexible citizenship would in many cases seem to describe accurately the objectives of Chinese immigrants to Canada, it is perhaps less salient in relation to some of their experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Coptic Church has a very unique historical trajectory that includes an early separation from the Greco-Roman Byzantine Christian world in the fifth century followed by a legacy of subordination in Egypt after the Arab Conquest. This paper looks at how the Coptic Church narrates this history particularly as it transcends the national boundaries of Egypt to serve migrant Copts in Western societies. The historical narrative of the Coptic Church celebrates its contributions to early Christianity; defends its stance in the Chalcedon Council in 451 CE; and celebrates a legacy of triumph and survival after the Arab conquest. Building on theories on collective memory, this paper shows how the present and the past shape one another in a very complex way. The paper is based on interviews with both lay and clerical members of Coptic immigrant communities in Canada and the United States and on textual analysis of books, bulletins and websites launched on and by the Church. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Canada census is one of the chief sources of demographic and socio-economic data for researchers in this country. Census variables are linked to geography files that allow researchers using geographic information systems (GIS) to view and analyze spatial data. Some of the most useful analysis, however, is based on changes in attribute values over time and space. Analysis of spatio-temporal events such as shifting migration patterns or changes in the distribution of health status permits a more dimensioned perspective than the viewing of static spatial phenomena. The analysis of spatio-temporal phenomena is limited by major changes in the spatial framework (e.g., location of road networks and other spatial entities) between national censuses. This paper addresses this limitation by (i) illustrating the extent of spatial mismatch between the 1996 and the 2001 census; (ii) examining attempts to rectify this problem in other jurisdictions and (iii) presenting a ‘made-in-Canada’ solution for conflation of census geometries. We believe that this solution will enhance the ability of Canadian researchers to describe and analyze socio-economic, health and demographic shifts across time and space. The research is supported by an ftp site for downloading the census geography rectification software presented in this paper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper evaluates the economic benefits of self-employment in Canada for 12 groups of ethno-racial immigrants. It tests whether or not their self-employment earnings are higher or lower than similar groups in wage and salary employment, whether ethnic minorities earn more or less from self-employment compared to White immigrants, and whether self-employment earnings of immigrant groups vary by their industrial sectors of employment. Using the Canadian Census 2006, I show that self-employed ethno-racial immigrants earn less than White immigrants. I also show that the economic benefits of self-employment depend on the ethno-racial groups and the industrial mix of their self-employment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In Canada, the notion of a heritage language ideology is often conceived of as a natural by-product of official multiculturalism. By contrast, Germany has long struggled with its status as a multilingual and multicultural country. By comparing two corpora of interviews with immigrants to each of these two countries (Canadians of German heritage and Germans of Vietnamese heritage), this paper aims to explore to what extent these different language ideologies are reconstructed in the interviews. It will be argued that the interviewees construct different sociolinguistic spaces and take up different positions within them in terms of centre and periphery. Our analysis shows that the German-Canadian interviewees construct public sociolinguistic spaces in which they position themselves as German even when they do not have an active knowledge of their heritage language. By contrast, despite the monolingual habitus in Germany, the German-Vietnamese respondents endorse a heritage language ideology; the space they claim for speaking Vietnamese, however, is restricted to private or family conversations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the migrant networks that develop between migrants, non-migrants and the larger Indian diaspora. Specifically, it examines the decision to migrate to Toronto, Canada and how this decision is shaped by, and in turn shapes the migrant network. Based on 35 interviews with migrants from Karnataka, South India, two main findings are presented. First, migrants are deliberately choosing settlement countries in which their families are not yet located, thereby becoming 'migrant pioneers' in their country of settlement, which is an attempt to expand their migrant networks globally. Second, the narratives these migrants receive and subsequently impart to others are often inaccurate, which can lead to miscommunication flows among these migrant networks. These findings are considered in light of the large body of research on migrant networks and the ways they develop and transmit information. This paper argues that existing understanding of migrant networks is somewhat static. Findings indicate that these 'migrant pioneers' may be engaging in global risk-diversification strategies for subsequent generations, but may themselves suffer from the more immediate consequences of misinformed networks. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper we examine the formation of diverse social ties among international migrants to Vancouver, Canada. We look specifically at the influence of involvement in Neighbourhood Houses -- a type of voluntary association -- on facilitating diverse tie formations. Past research has found that membership in different types of associations can lead to more or less network diversity. We build on this research by considering how different types of involvement can lead to either increases or decreases in cross-ethnic or non-immigrant ties among new immigrants. We find that targeted, instrumental types of involvement in Neighbourhood Houses can lead to more diverse immigrant social ties and that general, expressive types of involvement can lead to more homogeneous social ties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Temporary migration programmes have re-emerged as a preferred mechanism for regulating labour migration in many migrant-receiving countries in the past decade. In this paper, I consider the role of shifting Canadian immigration policies, notably the expanded streams for temporary workers, in the changing flow of migrants from Trinidad to Canada. Temporary programmes can bring workers to Canada relatively quickly, but they limit access to permanent residency and citizenship, in sharp contrast to most of Canada's earlier immigration policies. Ethnographic fieldwork reveals that Trinidadians actively seeking to make the move to Canada have little interest in new temporary work programmes. Rather, they continue to plan futures in Canada that they expect to be years in the making. I consider some reasons for this apparent refusal to submit to the new migration realities. I show that present-day Trinidadian emigrant desires and practices are deeply connected to individual, familial and national emigration and immigration histories. Trinidadians are declining to participate in new immigration regimes and are restricting their migration practices to those forms that are historically familiar and have been proven successful. I attempt to show how ethnographic approaches that take seriously migrants' agency can assist in developing a fuller understanding of the ways in which migration flows are changing. These approaches reveal what are otherwise the silences and invisibility surrounding those whose previous access to permanent migration streams has been diminished through neoliberal restructuring of migration policy. I argue that temporary worker policies disregard long-standing histories of migration and engagement with capitalist processes for people in particular regions of the world, rendering them, for policy purposes, effectively 'people without history' (Wolf, 1982). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background Over the past two decades, there is increasing emphasis being placed upon providing family-centred care (FCC) in paediatric oncology settings. However, there is a lack of knowledge of FCC in paediatric oncology from the perspectives of immigrant parents. The purpose of this paper is to describe Chinese and South Asian immigrant parents' experiences of FCC in paediatric oncology settings in Canada. Methods This study adopted a constructivist grounded theory approach. Fifty first generation Chinese and South Asian parents of children with cancer who were at least 6 months post-diagnosis were recruited from six Canadian paediatric oncology centres. Interviews were conducted in English, Cantonese, Mandarin, Urdu, Punjabi or Hindi, and transcribed into English. Analysis involved line-by-line, focused and theoretical coding, and the use of the constant comparison method. Results Findings indicated that overall parents were highly satisfied with the care and services they received, and their experiences were reflective of the key elements of FCC. However, there were some areas of concern identified by participants: parents not perceiving themselves as a member of the medical team; inconsistency in the quality and co-ordination of services among healthcare providers; disrespectful and mechanical manner of a few healthcare providers; and parents' discomfort with healthcare providers communicating sensitive health-related information directly with their child. Conclusions In order to successfully provide family-centred services to immigrant parents of children with cancer, better communication of the elements of FCC between healthcare staff and families is needed to negotiate a clear role for the parents as partners of the healthcare team. Moreover, a better understanding of how family relationships are structured in immigrant families will assist healthcare providers to balance the best interests of the child with that of the family as a unit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent research points to a growing gap between immigrant and native-born outcomes in the Canadian labour market at the same time as selection processes emphasize recruiting highly educated newcomers. Drawing on interviews with well-educated men and women who migrated from countries in sub-Saharan Africa, this paper explores the gendered processes that produce weak economic integration in Canada. Three-quarters of research participants experienced downward occupational mobility, with the majority employed in low-skilled, low-wage, insecure forms of 'survival employment'. In a gendered labour market, where common demands for 'Canadian experience', 'Canadian credentials' and 'Canadian accents' were uneven across different sectors of the labour market, women faced particular difficulties finding 'survival employment'; in the long run, however, women's greater investment in additional post-secondary education within Canada placed them in a somewhat better position than men. The policy implications of this study are fourfold: first, we raise questions about the efficacy of Canadian immigration policies that prioritize the recruitment of well-educated immigrants without addressing the multiple barriers that result in deskillling; second, we question government policies and settlement practices that undermine more equitable economic integration of immigrants; third, we address the importance of tackling the 'everyday racism' that immigrants experience in the Canadian labour market; and finally, we suggest the need to re-think narrowly defined notions of economic integration in light of the gendered nature of contemporary labour markets, and immigrants' own definitions of what constitutes meaningful integration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite considerable interest in remittances to developing countries, the limited availability of large sample data has constrained aspects of our understanding of remitter behaviour. This paper utilizes data from Statistics Canada's Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada (LSIC) to investigate how the demographic characteristics of recent immigrants influence their remittance levels shortly after their arrival in Canada. We identify several hypotheses and use a Tobit model to estimate the impact of individual characteristics on remittance choices. As expected, remittances rise with incomes, age and falls with the size of the migrating family, housing costs and education. We also estimate how remittances are affected by other characteristics, such as gender, marital status, religion, region of origin, region of settlement and attitudes towards home and host communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigate factors that skilled immigrants can improve in order to have better job search outcomes, in particular to avoid underemployment. We test an unfolding model which considers barriers faced by skilled immigrants during their job search (language and cultural barriers, and the lack of social support in the receiving country), job search constructs and job search outcomes (including underemployment). We collected data through an online questionnaire and obtained 357 usable responses from skilled immigrants in Canada. The hypotheses were tested with partial least squares (PLS). Language fluency and cultural knowledge were positively related to both job search clarity and job search self-efficacy. Social support was only related to job search self-efficacy. Job search clarity was related to job search intensity. Job search intensity was related to the number of interviews, which in turn, was related to the number of job offers. Finally, the number of job offers was negatively related to underemployment. Our paper contributes to the understanding of the job search of skilled immigrants by examining factors that can help them overcome obstacles and obtain better job search outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Ethno-racial minority families who come in contact with child protection services face unique challenges that include different ideas about appropriate child rearing practices, possibly different definitions of child maltreatment, the possibility of racial biases and service provision that does not address their particular needs. Ethno-racial minority immigrants encounter additional barriers to services associated with the challenges of settlement in a new cultural environment. Although considerable research has explored these issues, knowledge of the experiences of ethno-racial families who have been in contact with child protection is limited. The current paper provides insights from a qualitative study that explored the experiences of one ethno-racial group (South Asians) in Canada. Findings suggest a variety of reasons that families come into contact with the child protection system, and the characteristics of the sample highlight their difficult financial and employment circumstances. Themes include participants' desire to be better informed about the reasons for child protection involvement and about what they can expect from the worker and the agency. They also identified a wish for services that not only recognize their cultural diversity but also respond to the needs of the whole family. In-home services were especially appreciated. The findings reveal the resilience and personal agency among participants that can be enhanced through strength-based approaches to practice. Helping others, establishing community networks and developing needed services were avenues of resilience identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the relative earnings and wages of immigrants working in the hi-tech sector in Canada's cities. Between 1990 and 2000, a sizeable earnings advantage of immigrants over nonimmigrants employed in the hi-tech sector evaporated, and this change was most noticeable in the largest cities. We use population census microdata to examine the geographical dimensions of this shift. After controlling for individual characteristics, we show that immigrants in the largest and tech-intensive cities earn significantly less relative to nonimmigrants than those in midsized and smaller cities. We also present results comparing the hi-tech immigrant wage and earnings gap for the five largest Canadian cities. The findings are consistent with the notion that geographic differences are an important component of the overall earnings gap between immigrants and nonimmigrants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Implicit in Canada's immigration policies is that some immigrants are endowed with a particular entrepreneurial spirit, and that this spirit relates to immigrants’ origin. This paper examines whether attitudes towards entrepreneurship indeed relate to origin, or whether they can be explained through labour market circumstances at the place of settlement and/or Canada's immigrant selection procedure. The empirical study focuses on the reported attitudes towards entrepreneurship. A survey of 509 Vancouver residents of a predominantly Chinese immigrant neighbourhood, a predominantly South Asian immigrant neighbourhood, and a neighbourhood of non-immigrants reveals that ethnic origin is a weak indicator of entrepreneurial attitudes. Instead, urban or rural background emerges as a more powerful predictor. The results also raise doubts about whether the Canadian government's immigration policy, which selects immigrants on the basis of economic potential, indeed selects immigrants with a greater desire to become self-employed. Furthermore, the amount of time immigrants have spent in Canada does not significantly affect attitudes towards entrepreneurship. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Using landing records and tax data, this paper examines both the changing composition of the Chinese immigrants in Canada in the past two decades and their levels of economic performance. Our research found that, in addition to a shift in origin, economic immigrants have been on the rise and other classes of immigrants have declined. This has been accompanied by a significant increase in their educational qualifications and proficiency in a Canadian official language. Yet, despite their increased human capital, Chinese immigrants still experience very different economic outcomes in the Canadian labour market compared to members of the general population of Canada. For one thing, they have much lower employment and self-employment income than the general population. Moreover, these earning differentials hold true for all age groups, both genders, and Chinese immigrants from all origins. While their levels of economic performance increases with length of residency in Canada, this study suggests that it would take more than 20 years for Chinese immigrants to close the earning gaps with the general population. Evidence also suggests that Canadian-specific educational credentials are indeed worth more than those acquired in the immigrants' country of origin, and are much better remunerated by Canadian employers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An emerging perspective in the study of global diasporas stresses the effect of economic globalization and migration shifts in reshaping the population and identifying the formation of diaspora communities. This paper analyses the immigration patterns from Hong Kong and mainland China to Canada between the 1980s and 1990s. and shows that the migration shifts have been influenced by political and economic forces in Hong Kong and China, as well as changes in Canada's immigration policy. The imminent return of Hong Kong to China in 1997 and its uncertain political future in the 1990s were often cited as the main reasons for Hong Kong's large emigration in the late 1980s and early 1990s. In reality, the rising volume of Hong Kong emigration was prompted by the 1989 Tiananmen Square incident in China and its aftermath, and by the booming economy of Hong Kong in the early 1990s that created the means for many middle-class Chinese to emigrate. At the same time, Canada's expansion of the Business Immigration Program in the mid-1980s also benefited immigrant entrepreneurs from Hong Kong. In contrast, the Asian Financial Crisis of 1997 did not deter the economic growth of China. Immigration from China rose after 1989 when Canada allowed Chinese students studying in Canada to immigrate, but it was after the mid-1990s that immigration from China expanded due to Canada's greater emphasis on admitting economic immigrants and to China's growing middle class. The continuous arrival of well-educated and urban-based immigrants from China is likely to change the population composition and identity complexity of the Chinese community in Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines the relationship between family change and economic well-being among recent immigrant families with children to Canada during the 1977 to 1997 period. Whereas the average income to needs ratio of all Canadian families with children is up modestly over this period, this study documents a substantial decline in the average level of economic well-being of recent immigrants. In this context, this study draws attention to the relevance of not only structural explanations that emphasize the role of labour markets and/or government policy in shaping the economic conditions of immigrants, but also the potential impact of shifts in the living arrangements and family structure of immigrants. More specifically, an increased incidence of lone parenthood has had a net negative impact on the economic well-being of immigrants, albeit not to the same extent as among non-immigrants in Canada. Yet, other changes have had a slight positive impact, including an ongoing decline in the average number of children per family, an upward shift in the age distribution of parents, and a slight increase in the tendency of immigrants to co-reside with family members beyond the immediate nuclear family. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Studies from a number of countries, including Canada, have demonstrated that the oral health status of immigrants is worse than that of then native-born counterparts and that they make less use of dental services. To date, however little information is available which documents changes in immigrant oral health following immigration. This paper reports the results of a study conducted in the City of North York, Ontario, that examined the oral health status of Canadian-born and immigrant adolescents aged 13 and 14 years. The former had better oral health than the latter on all parameters assessed and made more use of dental services. Within the immigrant population, there was a significant association between oral health and time since immigration. Those who had been in Canada 6 or more years were significantly healthier than those who had arrived within the preceding 2 years. While changing patterns of immigration may account for part of these differences, the data suggest that access to dental public health programs, delivered to students between the ages of 4 and 14 years, have been effective in improving the oral health of those born outside Canada. Since these programs cease at age 13 or 14 years, barriers to accessing the private dental care sector may mean that the residual inequities and inequalities evident in the data widen as these individuals age. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]