Tanya Chute Molina

How can community-based organizations “facilitate integration into fair and dignified work” on behalf of newcomers, immigrants, and others?

In this exclusive interview with Canvas, Tanya Chute Molina – executive director of the Mennonite New Life Centre (MNLC) in Toronto – describes one such way. The innovative ‘Newcomer Skills at Work’ program supports newcomers in transitioning into a career in Canada.

Professional accreditation, licensing, and Canadian experience are the most frequent barriers to employment cited by MNLC clients. Ultimately, says Tanya, the goal is to help people find full-time employment in their field.

In addition to providing direct assistance like counselling, the program gathers individual and collective analysis on the common barriers to employment in Canada in order to propose systemic changes.

The program team brings together the expertise of volunteers and professionals who contribute job coaching, skills training, and counselling. In 2007, the team was strengthened by a clinical supervisor and an expanded team of four psychologists serving upwards of 175 clients.

Here, Tanya reflects on recent legislative proposals that would “limit access to permanent status and increase the # of temporary foreign workers who are vulnerable to labour exploitation and abuse.”

Newcomers are and should be equal participants in Canadian society.