Promoting Gender Equality by Overcoming Employment Obstacles
From: Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
Government Initiatives to Empower Women
The Canadian government is dedicated to ensuring the full and equal involvement of women and girls, which is vital for the nation’s economic advancement. To facilitate this, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) is enhancing job accessibility for racialized newcomer women through essential support and services.
December 9, 2022—Halifax—In alignment with Canada’s 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-based Violence, Lena Metlege Diab, representing Halifax West, conveyed the government’s plan to renew up to $5.8 million in funding for the Racialized Newcomer Women Pilot until 2025. This initiative adds to the $15 million funding from Budget 2021, aimed at extending this crucial support.
IRCC’s Dedicated Programs for Racialized Women
The Racialized Newcomer Women Pilot focuses on delivering employment-related settlement services like work placements, mentorships, and job counseling. This initiative helps racialized newcomer women secure meaningful employment and advance their careers by tackling obstacles such as discrimination, unstable jobs, and childcare access.
Lena Metlege Diab’s visit to MetroWorks in Halifax highlighted the Deep Roots job readiness program, providing participants with work experience and skills development in a Canadian context. This program includes job readiness training, workshops, and counseling to help overcome employment barriers.
Collaborative Efforts to Combat Gender-Based Violence
The Canadian government partners with organizations nationwide to combat gender-based violence among newcomers. The Gender-based Violence Settlement Sector Strategy project fosters collaboration between the settlement and anti-violence sectors, focusing on prevention through increased awareness and multi-sector collaboration. Over the next four years, this project will enhance front-line worker capacity and provide trauma-informed prevention programs for smaller cities and rural areas.
Empowering Initiatives and Global Leadership
- The Racialized Newcomer Women Pilot supports 21 projects, some of which are completed.
- Labour market barriers worsened during the pandemic, with significant unemployment gaps between recent immigrant women (15.2%) and Canadian-born women (8.0%).
- The GBV Sector Settlement Strategy project partners conducted an environmental scan, hosted webinars, and launched an online course, Bridges to Safety.
- Canada, as a GCM Champion, prioritizes gender-responsive migration management, especially for racialized migrant women affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Notable Quotes
“Racialized newcomer women face significant challenges in entering the workforce. This isn’t just about getting women jobs, it’s also about providing a sense of dignity and belonging. This support is integrated within the work the Government of Canada is doing to prevent and end gender-based violence by ensuring that gender equality is supported across all sectors. Canada’s gender equality is for all women.”
– The Honourable Sean Fraser, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship
“It is a pleasure to visit MetroWorks again to hear about their Deep Roots program that helps newcomer women learn skills, get job-ready and find a rewarding career in Canada. We know there are barriers to break down to ensure all immigrants can work in jobs that align with their skills and experience. Programs funded by the Racialized Newcomer Women Pilot Program are taking important steps to combat gender- and race-based discrimination, and I’m proud that the Government of Canada can be a partner in this work.”
– Lena Metlege Diab, Member of Parliament for Halifax West
“We are extremely pleased the Government of Canada is supporting our work with Racialized Newcomer Women. We have seen tremendous growth in the skills, confidence, and self-sufficiency of the women in the Deep Roots program. Their connections to the community and contributions to the Nova Scotia labour market strengthen as they move through the program. We are very proud of the work of the women and MetroWorks’ role in their journey.”
– Dave Rideout, President and CEO of MetroWorks Employment Association
Associated Links
Contact Information
Bahoz Dara Aziz
Press Secretary
Minister’s Office
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
bahoz.daraaziz@cic.gc.ca
Media Relations
Communications Branch
Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada
613-952-1650
media@cic.gc.ca
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Racialized Newcomer Women Pilot?
The Racialized Newcomer Women Pilot is an initiative by IRCC to support employment-related settlement services, helping racialized newcomer women find sustainable jobs and advance their careers.
How does the Gender-based Violence Settlement Sector Strategy work?
This project fosters partnerships between settlement and anti-violence sectors, focusing on gender-based violence prevention and offering enhanced services for newcomers.
What are the impacts of the pandemic on newcomer women?
The pandemic has exacerbated existing labour market barriers and created new challenges, leading to a significant unemployment gap between recent immigrant women and Canadian-born women.
What global initiatives does Canada support for gender equality?
Canada supports various global initiatives, including the Gender+Migration Hub, to promote a gender-responsive approach to migration management.
Take a step towards gender equality. Read our immigration guide for more insights.
