To support 10 initiatives, IRCC will grant $5.8 million to the Racialized Women Newcomer Pilot Program. During a 16-day awareness campaign about ending violence against women, the statement was made in Halifax on December 9.
The Government created the Racialized Newcomer Women Pilot Program (RNWPP) to assist racialized newcomer women. In 2018, the IRCC launched a program to help newcomer women overcome obstacles to work. The program will dedicate $31.9 million over the first three years to supporting racialized newcomer women in their employment and professional growth. The budget for 2021 will allocate $15 million over the next two years.
Providing racialized newcomer women with a sense of belonging and respect is important, not just obtaining their jobs, according to Sean Fraser, the minister of immigration. It is part of the Canadian government’s effort to prevent and stop gender-based violence by promoting gender equality across all sectors, and this support is part of that effort. In Canada, all women are equal under the law.
Women new to the country are more likely to have low-paying jobs
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which disproportionately affected newcomers, especially women, whose jobs are typically in retail or food services, the need for these activities became even more apparent. As a whole, the food, hospitality, and lodging sectors in Canada have a higher employment rate, which can negatively affect lockdowns.
In addition, an unemployment disparity of 15.2% percent exists between women who recently immigrated to Canada and women who were born in the country (15.2% percent vs. 8.0%).
Part-time employment is also more common among newcomer women to Canada. The statistics from Statistics Canada show that six out of ten married or common-law immigrant women are full-time workers, compared to 70 percent of Canadian-born women.
Racialized Newcomer Women Pilot Program – Women’s empowerment projects
The Pilot-related events hosted by Pilot in 2019-2020 attracted more than 2,500 customers. The study predominantly consisted of recent immigrants aged 25 to 54 years old. Residents of Canada who have lived here less than five years.
Several independent organizations in Canada are currently implementing initiatives aimed at teaching newcomer women language skills, connecting them with companies, and imparting other soft skills that can help them find employment.
An additional project assists immigrant women with IT and technical skills in obtaining the recognized credentials necessary for employment in Canada.
Among the latest announcements is funding for projects aimed at stopping gender-based abuse against immigrant women. The Gender-Based Violence Settlement Sector Strategy was an important aspect of the project.
An initiative to increase action, awareness, and cross-sector cooperation in fighting gender-based violence. Cross-sector collaboration, awareness, and action will be increased through the design of this. Workers dealing with gender-based violence in settlements will receive increased funding to enhance their capacity.
As a result of the resources, training, and information that they have acquired, IRCC anticipates being able to better serve the needs of victims. They will be able to provide better service to victims with the resources, education, and training they receive from IRCC. Additionally, by developing programs that provide information about resources and services available to newcomers, including those in smaller cities and rural areas, this project will build a common understanding of gender-based violence through the settlement sector.
