Business Unfriendly

Business Unfriendly
by Lee Down
published in The Source Newspaper, December 2005

So much unnecessary suffering among immigrants; Canadian businesses have no foresight. I’ve worked in the employment field for years and have heard the judgmental banter from business owners and hiring managers stating that hiring immigrants is bad business. What a load of crap! I’ve worked with many immigrants over the years and know that there is a tremendous opportunity for Canadian business that does hire with diversity in mind.

I was asked to chase down a few immigrants and write about their stories. I’ve already heard many stories and I wanted to look for new people. Coming out of my building I met Valentina, the mother of a Russian immigrant family immersed in tragedy. It has been a difficult transition for everyone involved. The mother, a family doctor back home, watches her family crumble from the stress and obstacles, including resistance by Canadian business and poor advice by career counselors. I quickly corrected her when she started to shoulder the blame for all of the difficulties she and her family has experienced.

Valentina worked hard to learn her English and being an optimistic person, she was the glue for the family for years. This year, the weight finally caught up to her and she is now living in a transition house to escape the negativity at home that has their family life falling apart. How can anyone succeed professionally when their personal lives are disintegrating around them? She’s worried about her husband who is depressed and struggling. Her son, a brilliant student when in Russia, now struggles through all the negativity at home. They’ve all changed so much due to the lack of familial success. She still has a plan and everyone in the family is still working towards a future, but the collateral damage has taken an enormous toll.

Felicity, another beautiful woman I met, had another remarkable story to tell. A mix of African, European, and Asian descendents, she hails from Zimbabwe and has worked for years in Geneva for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. Her commitment was to help families via counseling, reintegration strategies, training, and fundraising activities. With new love in her life, she moved to Calgary in 1991, working in the oil business until 1993 when her Italian husband couldn’t stand the cold and they returned to Europe. As with so many love stories, this one abruptly ended and she came to Vancouver in 1998.

At that time, she struggled with the same business resistance to her having no Canadian experience and the infamous line that I’ve heard in interviews as well, “you didn’t move here for the money, you moved here for the scenery.” This attempt at hiring talent and not paying for it persists on many levels still today. A strong woman, she stuck to her guns and found a marketing position and life seemed well until the fateful day she was diagnosed with Cancer. This witnessed the loss of not only a breast, but also a career, a partner, her finances in ruin and a house repossessed.

Today, she has almost completed her recovery and is looking forward to working again. Her experience with loss, cancer, and recovery has taught her the importance of balance and positive energy. The positive energy and balance in life allows her to maintain an attitude of abundance, creativity, and gratitude. Her experience with helping others and recovering from her illness has demonstrated the power of her attitude in creating opportunity for herself and for others.

There are other stories as well, some similarly tragic, some more uplifting. As a Canadian seeking change in our business culture, it’s time to shift the focus to business in Vancouver – possibly even Canada and America. An attitude exists that ignores the fact that we are all living in community and the health of our society and economy depends upon our willingness to embrace and integrate our interdependence. Business wants the superhero employee and they don’t want to pay for it. Money, profits, and performance are the measuring stick. Loyalty and family values have evaporated. Business is the new family and the bottom-line is the King. When will the business culture realize the value and power behind investing in people?