ELORA – Organizers of an Immigration Summit hosted by the County of Wellington here on Feb. 20 are pleased with the outcome of the well-attended event.
Tom Lusis, a talent attraction specialist with the county, said about 100 people attended the day-long event at the Elora Mill.
Lusis said the county received “very good feedback” from employers and economic development personnel who attended.
“We were thinking maybe 30 people (would attend), but we had people coming from outside of the county, staying in the community, just showing the relevance of the topic,” said county economic development director Jana Burns.
“We had people coming not just from other more rural municipalities, but from Toronto as well and from some universities,” added Lusis.
He said the event grew out of a two-year project funded in part by the Ontario Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration (now within the Ministry of Children, Community and Social Services).
Originally the plan, following consultations with the business community on such topics as hiring international students, was to develop workshops on immigration-related topics.
However, after speaking to more than 140 individuals in the Wellington business community, Lusis said, “We thought it would be more impactful to have a summit to kind of raise the profile of immigration …
“Some employers are tapping into immigration, but it was not quite on the radar of many of the groups that we spoke to.”
Burns said immigration strategies will play an integral role in the future of rural communities.
“In 15 years the number of deaths in Canada is going to be exceeding the number of births and it’s a fact that were going to be 100 per cent dependent on immigration for population growth,” she pointed out.
“We’re already seeing it – and it’s not just unique to our rural community – but an out-migration of young people and an aging population.”
Burns added, “And we know across Wellington County that three-quarters of our employers are having trouble finding workers and some of them are tapping into international markets and they’re having success doing so. So the summit showed how other employers can do that and what kind of support the county and regional organizations provide to employers.”
Lusis said one of the goals of the seminar was “to let employers know how important immigration is to their economic viability.”
He said it is also important to highlight the resources available in the area for employers.
“Employers find it intimidating because they might feel it’s something they might have to do on their own, not realizing perhaps that through the County of Wellington I can go speak to them about immigration programs and help them choose one and lead them through the process,” he said.
“And then we can connect them to the county settlement workers who can help them if they do have a foreign worker come, or just a newcomer that’s based out of Guelph, to connect them with the cultural resources in their neighbourhood.”
Lusis said the summit was also a lead-in to additional resources the county is set to launch on the topic. The county, in partnership with Danby Products Ltd. and Immigrant Services Guelph-Wellington, is developing an employer tool kit, based on a study of what over 30 business in the region are doing to attract and retain newcomers and immigrants.
“This summit was a way to also let the … community being done in our region know about some of the innovative work that’s being done in our region and also some of the resources that are shortly going to be available to the business community, specifically in this area,” said Lusis, adding the toolkit will be released sometime in March.
Burns said there are a number of reasons immigration is important to the economy of the region.
“Number one, employers are not having success with existing hiring methods and I think there’s hesitancy, there’s concerns and there’s fears around hiring folks outside of the community,” she said. “But we had employers at the summit dispelling those fears by talking about … positive experiences.”
For example, Burns said Denise Taylor of Puslinch-based Cherry Forest Products has had numerous applicants from Mexico for mechanical and manufacturing positions.
“She was talking about how she provides ESL (English as a Second Language) training on the job and how she buddies up employees and she talks about how these different cultures create a rich, interesting workplace.”
Burns also noted newcomers bring families with them.
“I think it’s important from an economic perspective also to look at how that enriches our communities,” she said. “These newcomers are going from places, typically, that they want to leave. They are looking for a new home. They’re investing here. They’re dedicated to their job.”
In addition to filling labour market needs, Burns said immigrants bring connections and capital when they move to an area.
“These newcomers are also acting as ambassadors and they’re connecting us with foreign markets that we wouldn’t have access to,” she said. “So when a company hires somebody from Germany or Mexico that person still has connections, be it new workers or be it economic investment opportunities, and I think that’s something our employers are maybe not aware of and … they’re still a little bit hesitant or concerned because of the unknown, or maybe they think the process is too overwhelming. Our message is don’t be overwhelmed, we’re here to hold your hand through it.”
Lusis pointed out newcomers don’t just fill jobs, they also create them.
“There’s an entrepreneurial spirt there that we believe is very important for our rural communities,” he said. “So I think of this when we see store closings, for instance, in our downtown and I believe there’s going to be more business people coming up who are thinking about retiring and perhaps they don’t have any succession plans in place.
“Tapping into this side of the economics, welcoming the immigrant entrepreneur, we believe is also an important thing to highlight and for our communities to start thinking about.”
Lusis said the summit is just one facet of the county’s plans to work with local businesses on immigration strategies.
“I think that going forward we’re looking at working with employers on a more intensive kind of basis … it’s not enough to just direct them to a website. It’s establishing more of a longer-term kind of a relationship and we can really flesh out what are some of their options.”
Burns pointed out the county is already working on two of the challenges raised by summit attendees: a lack of rental and affordable housing and rural transit.
“Yesterday we released an RFP for a housing strategy to do exactly that, to increase rental stock in the county and homes priced at affordable levels, to be able to enable workers with the respective salaries that our communities are offering to be able to live here and rent here.”
In terms of transit, Burns noted the county is developing an app-based, on-demand ride-sharing system with the assistance of $449,500 in provincial Community Transportation Grant Program funding.
While affordable housing and transit are issues for everyone, Lusis noted, “in some cases it might be accentuated in terms of immigration.”
When speaking with people considering a move to the county, Lusis said the first questions asked are usually about jobs and quality of life.
“And the next is, ‘Okay, where do I stay and how do I get around?’”
