As a Canadian, I’m hoping that the President can keep some form of ban on the entry of people from certain countries. Why? Simple, it may help Canada to fill a shortage of ‘knowledge workers’ in several industries. Needless-to-say, such a ban will hurt a number of sectors in the U.S. A Canadian study in 2016 concluded that there will be as many as 182,000 high-paying technology jobs up for grabs in Canada by 2019. However, the country’s school systems aren’t producing enough high technology expertise to fill those positions. Close to a million people are working in information and communications technology jobs in Canada, and almost half of all technology workers are employed in the professional and technical services industry. They also have a significant showing in health care, the public sector and in manufacturing.
The U.S. is also experiencing shortages of ‘knowledge workers’ in several sectors, forcing companies to recruit and bring in skilled labour from other countries. This includes countries such as the seven predominately Muslim countries listed in the immigration ban. Let’s consider a couple of facts. A recent research report by Goldman Sachs estimates that 900,000 to a million H-1B visa holders (highly skilled foreign workers) now reside in the United States, and that they account for up to 13 percent of U.S. technology jobs. Technology giants like Microsoft and Google, among some 97 American companies, have pressed for increases in the annual quotas, saying there are not enough Americans with the skills they need. The high tech sector is only one of several that will suffer because of such restrictions. Reports are coming out of persons on visas now working in the medical field, university research and financial services.
Several American tech companies already keep satellite offices in Vancouver, British Columbia. A number of these firms are looking into the possibility of expanding their operations in Canada. Immigration lawyers are reporting a steep uptick in inquiries from foreign-born tech workers worried their U.S. visas may disappear. Canada is a country that welcomes immigrants with open arms, especially those with much needed skills. Canadian entrepreneurs also have programs to help Bay Area immigrants and others relocate to Canada, particularly the hundreds of persons on temporary H-1B work visas affected by this temporary travel ban.
Canadian companies, hospitals and universities are not the only organizations ready to capitalize on Trump’s immigration executive order should it remain in place. A number of European firms and organizations are also in the market for ‘knowledge workers’, no matter what their countries of origin. Whether or not one agrees with such a travel ban, there are always those who will benefit from its shortfalls and short-sightedness. After all, as is the case for trade and commerce, we live and work in a global labour market.
FROLITICKS 