Hanif Ladha, Immigrant Employment Council BC

Thanks again to Hanif, Manager of Employer Relations for the Immigrant Employment Council of BC.  Hanif is an established businessman and dedicated community volunteer (with an interest in youth leadership programs).  He's work with Rotary on projects.  His new position involves providing support for BC businesses by connected them with skilled immigrants.  This helps to promote BC's economic growth and provides immigrants with employment opportunities.  There are many benefits to hiring skilled immigrant workers (makes businesses competitive, develop new markets by providing language and cultural background, etc.) and challenges (visas/quotas, language, mobility, cultural issues, etc.).

 

There are a number of programs, including:  Mentor Connect which involves 24 hours over 4 months with same occupation members to mentor new workers; Connector Program; tools and resources; etc.  There are no government subsidies as yet for wages but there are possible future connections through IECBC to other service organizations.  See the website for details (www.iecbc.ca).