Agenda - London, Ontarioimmigration.london.ca/LMLIP/Documents/EmpApr2018.pdfthe labour market plan to be submitted to the government. The survey will ensure that the immigrant voice

London & Middlesex Local Immigration Partnership

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Agenda

LMLIP Employment Sub-Council Date and Time: January 17, 2018 1:00 – 3:00 pm

Meeting Location: LMLIP office, 141 Dundas St.

Item Description

1. Welcome and introductions

2. Approval of September 20, 2017 Minutes

3. Additions to Agenda

4. Annual Implementation Plan 2017-2018:

a. Immigration Fact Sheet Update: Wilma de Rond

b. Recognition Event for Employers – Update: Wilma de Rond

5. Updates from community initiatives: Wilma de Rond a. Local Employment Planning Council (LEPC) b. Updates on Central Council: Wilma de Rond c. LMLIP #AllAreWelcomeHere – Information: Huda Hussein

6. Roundtable updates 7. New Business 8. Chairperson’s Closing Summary and Review of Action Items 9. Adjourn

Next meeting: TBD


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Minutes

LMLIP Employment Sub-council Date and Time: January 17, 2018 1:00 – 3:00 pm

Meeting Location: LMLIP Office, 141 Dundas St.

Present: Robert Collins, Lisseth D’Andrea, Wilma de Rond, Jennifer Hollis, Arla Longhurst, Nancy McQuillan, Bharati Sethi, Martin Withenshaw, Huda Hussein, Maria D’Souza

Regrets: Pauline Andrew, Yenny Medina, Bill Pigram

Guest: Michael Haan, Western University

Item Description Information, Update, Action, Lead and Due Date


Wilma de Rond welcomed the group and guest, Michael Haan.

2. Adoption of Previous Minutes

Motion to approve September 20, 2017 meeting minutes was moved by Martin Withenshaw, seconded by Nancy McQuillan and approved.


Rescheduling of March Sub-council meeting under New Business and community survey under LEPC update.

4. Annual implementation Plan 2017-2018

a. Immigration Fact Sheet Update Presentation: Michael Haan

Based on discussions at the last Sub-council meeting, a revised wish list was drawn up that will include:

- Household income - Rates of employment insurance and social assistance rates by years since

landing - Differences in retention rates between people who came to London - Income by industry - Self-employment income by years since landing

Data regarding immigrant median household income, receipt of Employment Insurance and retention rates were discussed. Michael suggested also analyzing poverty rates and the rise of immigrants out of poverty.

Jennifer noted that it may be helpful if there was some comparison of the data perhaps to Canadian-born individuals.

With regard to retention statistics, Robert noted that it is crucial to know under which category immigrants came in, to analyze if the City is better at retaining one segment versus another.


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Michael mentioned that 2016 Census data would be released in April and asked the group if they would be willing to wait till then to incorporate the information. After some discussion, the group agreed to wait for the 2016 Census data. Michael also offered to have a student help with the project by devoting 10 hours.

A template will be developed for the fact sheet and presented at the March Sub-council meeting.

b. Recognition Event for Employers – Update: Wilma de Rond

Wilma mentioned that the idea was discussed with Central Council and concerns were raised about funding an awards function as well as competing for recognition with established business awards.

After some discussion it was decided to request the London Chamber of Commerce awards to add a criterion to their checklist asking employers if they hire immigrants or work with employment preparation agencies.

The London Chamber of Commerce Business Achievement Award is one of the most respected and largest in Canada. A committee oversees it. Martin Withenshaw suggested contacting the organizing committee and offered to join the meeting. The current award ceremony is on March 21 and the change will be suggested for next year.

It was noted that changing the criteria could possibly be a first step towards the Chamber perhaps eventually instituting a recognition award for employers hiring immigrants.

5. Updates from community initiatives

a. Local Employment Council (LEPC): Nancy McQuillan, Robert Collins, Martin Withenshaw

A meeting was held on January 11, 2018. A review of phase two, which is the evaluation of the strategic plan, is currently under way. The review aims to go back to the initial priorities of the plan.

Martin noted that since it can be difficult to access groups of immigrants, a survey will be created for immigrant employment seekers. He mentioned that they are looking for local data and for the immigrant voice to be heard. Martin asked if members could share the survey. Jennifer noted that there are a number of surveys being conducted and it can sometimes be difficult to obtain responses especially when deadlines are tight.

Wilma offered to review the survey to see if there is any data that WIL Employment Connections can offer. The LEPC survey data will be used for the labour market plan to be submitted to the government. The survey will ensure that the immigrant voice is heard.

b. Central Council

Update provided with meeting materials.

c. LMLIP #AllAreWelcomeHere – information: Huda Hussein

Lawn signs are the first phase of the three-part campaign. February 1 will see the launch of 1000 Acts of Welcome, which is the second phase. The support of members in promoting the campaign was requested. The third phase is the

Wilma will inform fact sheet funders, LEDC and LEPC, of decision to wait for 2016 Census data

Martin will email nomination form and criteria to Robert

Wilma will forward minutes if available to share at next Sub-council meeting


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culminating event on March 21, 2018, which will be LMLIP Day of Learning with a Welcoming Communities theme.

The settlement sector has been invited to join in planning and partnering on the March 21 event. The London Cross Cultural Learner Centre (CCLC), the Diversity Inclusion Anti-Oppression Advisory Committee (DIAAC) and Networking for an Inclusive Community (NIC) have confirmed that they will be partnering. Members were requested to save the date.

The distribution of lawn signs has been successful with 11 signs being displayed outside London and one as far as Cambridge. Promotional materials will be designed for businesses and individuals.

6. Roundtable updates

Robert: The London & Area Works Job Fair will be held on April 10, 2018 at the Best Western Lamplighter Inn.

Jennifer: Immploy completed the Ontario Workforce for Innovation project with Michael Haan. The report will be forwarded to Wilma for circulation to the Sub-council.

Martin: Age Friendly London is holding a volunteer fair on April 25, 2018 at Cherryhill Mall.

7. New business

The March 21, 2018 Employment Sub-council meeting has to be rescheduled because of the Welcoming Communities event being held on the same day. The Sub-council meeting will now be held on March 27 from 1-3 pm at LMLIP office

8. Chairperson’s Closing Summary and Review of Action Items

Wilma thanked the group for their participation.

9. Adjourn

Meeting adjourned at 3:00 pm.

Next Meeting Location and Date:

March 27, 2018, 1:00 – 3:00 pm, LMLIP Office, 141 Dundas St.


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Agenda

LMLIP Employment Sub-Council Date and Time: March 27, 2018 1:00 – 3:00 pm


Item Description


2. Approval of January 17, 2018 Minutes




b. Chamber of Commerce Business Awards Update: Wilma de Rond

5. Updates from community initiatives: Wilma de Rond a. Local Employment Planning Council (LEPC) b. Updates on Central Council: Wilma de Rond c. LMLIP #AllAreWelcomeHere – Event Update: Huda Hussein

6. Scheduling June Sub-council meeting (June 20 when the meeting would have normally been held coincides with Life as a Refugee. Possible meeting dates are June 6, June 13 & 14, 9:30-11 am or June 21, 1-3 pm)

7. Roundtable updates 8. New Business 9. Chairperson’s Closing Summary and Review of Action Items 10. Adjourn

Next meeting: April 18, 1:00-3:00 pm, LMLIP office, 141 Dundas St.

Upcoming meetings, please mark your calendars: 2018: June (TBD) September 19, November 21,

2019: January 16, March 20


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Minutes

LMLIP Employment Sub-council Date and Time: March 27, 2018 1:00 – 3:00 pm


Present: Robert Collins, Lisseth D’Andrea, Wilma de Rond, Arla Longhurst, Nancy McQuillan, Martin Withenshaw, Huda Hussein, Maria D’Souza

Regrets: Pauline Andrew, Jennifer Hollis, Yenny Medina, Bill Pigram, Bharati Sethi

Guests: Michael Haan, Laura Monteiro


1. Land Acknowledgement Statement, welcome and introductions

Wilma de Rond read the Land Acknowledgement statement and welcomed the group and guests, Michael Haan and Laura Monteiro.

2. Adoption of Previous Minutes

Motion to approve January 17, 2018 meeting minutes was moved by Martin Withenshaw, seconded by Robert Collins and approved.


None.

4. Annual implementation Plan 2017-2018

c. Immigration Fact Sheet Update Presentation: Michael Haan

Michael has devised four versions of the fact sheet which will be passed on to members by Wilma. The target audiences addressed by the fact sheets are employers, job seekers and the general population. The two-sided fact sheets will feature 4-5 facts and the LMLIP website address for those who want further information.

The guidelines drafted by Michael for each target audience were discussed and suggestions were made by members:

Employers

- A positioning statement such as “Successful employers have globally diverse workforces,” works better than asking employers, “Why should you have a globally diverse workforce?”

- Identifying which countries immigrant job seekers come from could set the stage for discrimination. Besides not all job seekers necessarily move from their countries of origin as they could be working elsewhere before migrating to Canada. It was also observed that some employers would like to know which languages employees speak if they are catering to foreign markets.

Maria will check if the existing LMLIP URL can be shortened


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- An important fact to be highlighted in the fact sheet is that working age populations are going to shrink without immigration.

- There was some discussion if the fact that London lags behind other major cities in visibility minority populations should be included in the fact sheet.

Job seekers

- One side of the sheet will have economic facts and the other side will explain why they should move to London.

- There was a discussion if the fact that immigrant incomes converge with those of native born Canadian after a few years should be included and if so, how it can be worded.

- Robert noted that the London Economic Development Corporation (LEDC) has a Concierge feature that helps jobseekers to London walk through various services they may require such as child care etc.

- The quality of life within the community – access to rural living, trails etc.

General population

- The fact sheets for the general public aim to show the desirability of immigration for London and that immigrants are also create jobs for Londoners. The positioning statement could read, “We welcome immigrants as key contributors to our future prosperity and quality of life.”

- Sunfest could be used as an indicator of how diversity creates business opportunities while cultural events attract people to London.

5. Updates from community initiatives: Wilma de Rond

d. Local Employment Council (LEPC): Nancy McQuillan, Robert Collins, Martin Withenshaw

A community meeting was held in Dorchester on February 21, 2018 to obtain feedback on action items for various initiatives.

A new TV commercial has been developed for the “Apprenticeship Advantage” and can be viewed at http://review.bellmedia.ca/view/666233751 It was suggested that the City could broadcast the commercial in Ontario Works waiting rooms.

e. Central Council: Wilma de Rond

January and February updates were provided with meeting materials.

Wilma reported that the Central Council had met the previous night. There was a presentation by LUSO Community Services on an initiative to help landlords to be more welcoming to new Syrians. She showed members the useful phrases card as well as a brochure that had been printed to explain the cultural background of the Syrians. Videos have also been developed.

f. LMLIP #AllAreWelcomeHere update: Wilma de Rond

The All Are Welcome Here: United in Diversity event was held on March 21, 2018 at the Hellenic Centre. Around 200 people attended.

Guest speaker, Dr. Shelina Kassam, spoke about different types of discrimination and four panelists provided their experiences of discrimination. Group discussions were held.

Robert will send Michael “rave” cards developed by LEDC for job seekers moving to London

Michael will bring a draft of one of the sheets to the April Sub-council meeting

http://review.bellmedia.ca/view/666233751


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Positive feedback was received, more than 80 evaluations were received at the event, which could possibly be a recurring, signature event for the LMLIP.

It was suggested that for future group discussions, it may be better to assign just one question to each table to allow for more in-depth answers.

6. Scheduling June Sub-council meeting

Since the Life as a Refugee conference falls on June 20 which is the same date that the Sub-council meeting would have been held on, it will have to be rescheduled. A doodle poll will be sent to members to select a date.


Robert: The LEDC is acting as a referral agency to help employers find qualified employees. The new “Global Talent Stream” program offers easier processing for employers bringing in overseas employees. Employees moving to Canada under the program can also eventually apply for permanent residency when eligible.

Martin: Employer insights from the Employer One Survey have been released.

Arla: Participated with another volunteer from the Settlement Sub-council in a panel discussing housing issues affecting new immigrants. The panel was featured at the Ontario Home Economics Association Conference.

8. New business

None.

9. Chairperson’s Closing Summary and Review of Action Items

Wilma thanked the group for their participation.

10. Adjourn



April 18, 2018, 1:00 – 3:00 pm, LMLIP Office, 141 Dundas St.


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Agenda

LMLIP Employment Sub-Council Date and Time: April 18, 2018 1:00 – 3:00 pm


Item Description

1. Land Acknowledgement Statement


3. Approval of March 27, 2018 Minutes




b. Chamber of Commerce Business Awards Update: Wilma de Rond

6. Updates from community initiatives: Wilma de Rond a. Local Employment Planning Council (LEPC)

7. 2018-2019 Implementation plan 8. Roundtable updates 9. New Business 10. Chairperson’s Closing Summary and Review of Action Items 11. Adjourn

Next meeting: June 14, 2018 9-11 am, LMLIP office, 141 Dundas St.

Upcoming meetings, please mark your calendars: 2018: September 19, November 21, 2019:

January 16, March 20


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Minutes

LMLIP Employment Sub-council Date and Time: April 18, 2018 1:00 – 3:00 pm


Present: Pauline Andrew, Robert Collins, Wilma de Rond, Jennifer Hollis, Arla Longhurst, Martin Withenshaw, Huda Hussein, Maria D’Souza

Regrets: Afeez Ajibowu, Lisseth D’Andrea, Nancy McQuillan, Yenny Medina, Bill Pigram

Guests: Michael Haan, Laura Monteiro


1. Land Acknowledgement Statement, welcome and introductions Wilma de Rond read the Land Acknowledgement statement and welcomed the group and guests, Michael Haan and Laura Monteiro. She informed the group that Bharati Sethi had resigned and was moving to another Sub-council. 2. Adoption of Previous Minutes Motion to approve March 27, 2018 meeting minutes was moved by Martin Withenshaw, seconded by Arla Longhurst and approved. 3. Additions to Agenda None. 4. Annual implementation Plan 2017-2018

a. Immigration Fact Sheet Update: Michael Haan The drafts of the facts sheets were discussed and suggestions were made by members.

Employers

- “Global Talent” is a more accurate title than “Diversity in the Work Place” because the term diversity reflects many sections and not just immigrants.

- Employers could be encouraged to hire immigrants by using messaging such as “Wise employers are already benefiting from global talent in London”. Frame it as an invitation for employers to act and show that London needs to grow.

- Data on the back of the fact sheet will support the points highlighted on the front. Michael suggested using Employer One data and Martin will send it to him.

- The London Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) is already experiencing a shortage of workers and Michael will look for statistics on the topic as well as on Canada’s aging population to support the point.

- Highlight sectors that immigrants are employed in and correlate that with success in that field.

- The fact sheet is to inform employers of the current status in London and how they can help be global drivers of the economy. It should not be a repeat of other fact sheets. When ready, the fact sheets could be distributed at an employer targeted event.

Members to send feedback to Wilma on all three fact sheets to pass on to Michael


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General population

- The general fact sheets are aimed at dispelling myths amongst the host community such as “immigrants are taking our jobs, immigrants are living off benefits.”

- The term “CMA” should be explained. It should not just be a demographic profile but should have more employment related data.

- Positive contributions of immigrants are to be highlighted by the fact sheets including facts such most immigrants are highly educated.

Job seekers

- A title such as “Choose London” will encourage job seekers as opposed to asking them “Why Choose London?”

- There was some discussion whether there should be separate fact sheets for London and Middlesex and it was decided that the differences between the two are advantageous and would look better highlighted on the same sheet.

- The number of golf courses, top notch theatre and other recreational activities could be highlighted.

- Use demographic data such as the number of nationalities and languages to demonstrate that the London-Middlesex area is diverse.

- Jennifer asked if data collated so far could be shared with Immploy. Michael will send it to her.

- The other side of the chart will have employment data targeted at immigrants explaining why they should come to London.

- Martin noted that the data analyst at the Elgin Middlesex Workforce Planning and Development Board data has already collated a chart of professions and the number of people in each. He also has job vacancy data over a period of time. Michael will speak to him.

- The bar graph showing the cost of housing will be restricted to Southwestern Ontario and the other cities will be removed. The final draft of the fact sheets will be presented at June Employment Sub-council meeting.

b. Chamber of Commerce update: Wilma de Rond Wilma reported that she had contacted the Chamber and has not yet received a response. Martin mentioned that the committee will be meeting shortly and to look at revamping criteria for the awards.

5. Updates from community initiatives: Wilma de Rond a. Local Employment Council (LEPC): Wilma de Rond

The LEPC met in early April. The Worktrends.ca website was reviewed and will be launched soon..

Employer One survey results were reviewed.

A workplace summit will be held May 17.

The AGM will be held on May 31, 2018. 6. 2018-2019 Implementation Plan

The Employment Sub-council’s plan in the 2016-2019 LMLIP Strategic Plan was reviewed.

It was noted that the upcoming implementation plan would see the Sub-council working with the London Chamber of Commerce to include immigrant employment amongst their criteria for qualifying for the annual business awards.

Martin will email Middlesex data to Michael by mid-May


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The next meeting will discuss what has been accomplished so far and what areas will be looked at for implementation in 2018-2019.


Martin: The Age Friendly Volunteer Fair will be held on May 9, 2018 at Cherryhill Mall and will showcase various volunteer opportunities. - Middlesex is in the process of planning bus tours to inform people of jobs and

opportunities available in agro-business.

Jennifer: Immploy is celebrating its tenth anniversary on April 27 at the Best Western Lamplighter. There will be a panel presentation with Michael Haan, Joaquim Balles and Steven Owen.

Pauline: Middlesex County held a successful International Women’s Day on March 8. The County is meeting with Cuddy Farms that employs 70 immigrants living in London.

8. New business

None.

9. Chairperson’s Closing Summary and Review of Action Items Wilma thanked the group for their participation. 10. Adjourn



June 14, 2018, 9:00 – 11:00 am, LMLIP Office, 141 Dundas St.