English and French language ability and the employability of immigrants in Canada
International Journal of Social Economics
ISSN: 0306-8293
Article publication date: 10 September 2021
Issue publication date: 3 January 2022
Abstract
Purpose
Both potential immigrants to Canada and policymakers in Canada continually compare and contrast the economic returns of immigrants' language ability and proficiency. They ask which of the two official languages has a higher economic return in terms of employment and earning. This study examines how ability and proficiency in Canada's two official languages, separately and/or jointly, influences immigrants' quick absorption into the labour market.
Design/methodology/approach
The study uses all three waves of the Longitudinal Survey of Immigrants to Canada (LSIC) and employs logistic regression on the relationship between employability, language ability/proficiency and various non-linguistic factors.
Findings
The study reports that language ability in French is as valuable as language ability in English for immigrants who are aspiring to work, full-time or part-time, when they arrive in Canada. The advantages of language ability and proficiency continue a few years after an immigrant's arrival. Using disaggregated speaking, reading and writing competencies, the authors observe that speaking proficiency in English has a greater impact on employability than reading and writing in English.
Originality/value
There are very few studies looking at the effects of language ability and proficiency on the employability of immigrants in countries with multiple official languages. Most studies are mainly focused on earning and not employability. This study is focused on employability, particularly in the context of Canada. Furthermore, this study specifically disaggregates the impact of speaking, reading and writing competencies in both languages on employment in Canada.
Keywords
Acknowledgements
This research was conducted at the University of New Brunswick Research Data Centre (NB-RDC), a part of the Canadian Research Data Centre Network (CRDCN). This service is provided through the support of the University of New Brunswick, the province(s) of New Brunswick, the New Brunswick Social Policy Research Network (NBSPRN), the Canadian Foundation for Innovation, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Social Science and Humanity Research Council, and Statistics Canada. All views expressed in this work are our own.
Citation
Solati, F., Chowdhury, M. and Jackson, N. (2022), "English and French language ability and the employability of immigrants in Canada", International Journal of Social Economics, Vol. 49 No. 1, pp. 34-58. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSE-12-2020-0851
Publisher
:Emerald Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2021, Emerald Publishing Limited