On #InternationalWomensDay, BMO Newcomer Workforce Integration Lab Director Marshia Akbar highlights important research that reveals persistent labour market inequalities facing immigrant women in Canada.
Despite Canada ranking as the 8th highest among 43 countries in gender pay disparity (OECD, 2018), the challenges faced by immigrant women remain particularly severe and multifaceted:
Immigrant women who arrived in Canada within the last 5 years face a staggering 16.4 percentage point employment gap compared to immigrant men
Among refugees, only 30.6% of women are employed compared to 53.8% of men
University-educated racialized immigrant women earn nearly 28% less than their male counterparts and 31.79% less than Canadian-born women with the same education
These statistics emphasize what Akbar calls the “triple disadvantage” of gender, immigration status, and race that creates compounded barriers to economic inclusion.
Read the report here:
