How is Canada’s workforce diversity impacting employment trends?

We’re doing a lot of business in Canada these days and are struck by the diversity of its workforce. Can you explain the increase of the immigrant population in Canada’s labour force and why it matters to employers?

In the last decade, over 80% of the growth in Canada’s labour force came from immigration. During the same period, a decreasing percentage are immigrating from Europe, and an increasing share are immigrating from India, the Philippines, China, countries in Africa, and the Middle East.

By late 2020, the share of immigrants participating in the labour force surpassed that of the Canadian-born population. 

Why does this matter to employers?

While the U.S. is viewed as a “melting pot,” Canada is more of a mosaic, in that rather than assimilate, we see a strong community-based presence of cultural groups that retain distinct traditions and perspectives reflecting their heritage from generation to generation.

Those permeate Canadian workplaces, affecting how employees communicate, experience change, view hierarchy and interact with one another.

What may be acceptable in some cultures, like a direct communication style or a firm handshake, may be seen as offensive to some workers. What may resonate as a positive trait – maintaining eye contact, for instance – is culturally prohibited for some. 

Another feature of our workforce is the competing human rights claims of workers who may express in the workplace, or on a chat or social media, passionate beliefs about their place of origin or their faith.

Increasingly, Canadian employers are managing harassment or discrimination complaints rooted in conflicts happening halfway around the world.

We’ve seen an increase in complaints, harassment allegations and union organizing when policies and procedures for workplace conduct, investigations, recruitment, and promotion are rolled out without considering these deeply held cultural differences.

We are your local resource to ensure your policies, training, and engagement strategy, are effectively calibrated for the diverse cultural dynamic, of the Canadian workforce.