Visible minority neighbourhood enclaves and labour market outcomes of immigrants
by
Feng Hou and Garnett Picot
Business and Labour Market Analysis Division
Analytical
Studies Branch research paper series, No. 204
Context
Visible minority
neighbourhoods are on the rise in Canadian cities. The question of whether ethnic
neighbourhood help or hinder the integration of Canadian immigrants into Canadian
society has significant implications for immigrant settlement policies.
Objectives
This
study examines the association between living in a visible minority neighbourhoods
and the labour market outcomes of immigrants in the three largest Canadian cities-
Toronto , Montreal and Vancouver
Findings
The number of visible
minority neighbourhoods-defined as census tracts with at least 30% of the population
from a single visible minority group (Chinese, South Asian or Black)-increased
from 6 in 1981 to 142 in 1996, mostly in Toronto and Vancouver .
Living
in such neighbourhoods, by itself, seemed to have very little negative impact
on immigrants' labour market performance. The association between exposure to
own-group neighbours and employment outcomes was at times negative but generally
not statistically significant.
There was little association between exposure
and employment income.
There were, however, some important group differences.
The association between exposure to own-group neighbours and labour market outcomes
were usually very weak among Chinese immigrants but often negative and strong
among Black immigrants. However, very few Blacks live in visible minority neighbourhoods,
simply because there are not many such 'black' neighbourhoods in Canadian cities.
Data Sources: Census, 1981-1996
Also available
: Hou, F. and G. Picot. 2003. "Visible Minority Neighbourhood Enclaves
and the Labour Market Outcomes of Immigrants." In C. Beach, A. Green, and J. Reitz
(eds.), Canadian Immigration Policy for the 21st Century. McGill-Queen's
University Press.
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the full publication.
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