Neo-liberalism: Employability, and the Labor Market Mobility among Racialized Migrants- Canada's Study

Abstract

The paper discusses the effect of political paradigm on the path of career development and the predicament of employment outcomes among racialized migrants in Canada. The study highlights challenge of retraining, skills development and access to Canadian work experience that meets neo-labor market demands. The study also examines how neoliberals’ interventions in market place, elimination of social services, and employment support programs have deterred labor force integration of the racialized migrants’ job seekers. In this Grounded Theory study (GT), participants have shared their experiences and challenges they have encountered form own perspectives. They shared stories about difficulties of finding suitable training and employment support programs within the current neo-liberalized labor market in Canada. The outcomes suggested that the rise of neoliberalism as noted in policies of social and employment services cuts, coupled with employment standard Acts reforms (ESA), have given employers more powers over hiring process which in many cases has nothing to do with candidate’s skills or qualifications. In this neo-political paradigm, the racialized migrants felt they have wasted most of their productive years searching for (1) training, mentorship or employment support programs that can facilitate effective transition to the labor force, and (2) dealing with challenges of improving unrecognized skills and qualification attained from countries of origin.