A new immigrant initiative will help solve looming labour shortages and make BC’s economy more competitive at a global level.

Labour analysts have long known that Canada’s ageing workforce is set for massive changes over the next several decades.

But the developers of Embracing Cultural Diversity in the BC Workplace, an innovative project being launched this week, believe those changes can be positive.

“We want employers to know that hiring and retaining a more diverse workforce will help them stay competitive in the 21st Century,” said project manager and DIVERSEcity career services director Sanjeev Nand.

Retiring baby boomers in BC will help create more than a million job openings by 2015. And Canada’s low birth-rate has not produced enough workers to replace them.

That trend is being felt all over the industrialized world. The solution, according to Nand, is to hire, retain and train more new immigrants.

“It’s not like immigrants only have opportunities here in Canada,” Nand said. “We as a province and a country are competing against other nations all over the world. Immigrants are going to come to the places where they’re fully utilized in the workforce.”

Embracing Cultural Diversity in the BC workplace is a solutions-oriented initiative designed to make that happen.

Both employers and potential employees can access the latest tips, strategies and research at www.getintheknow.ca. They can base future diversity policies on a new workplace guidebook. And a series of training sessions in the Lower Mainland will provide training to both employers and new immigrants.

“There are all kinds of information and tools here that employers have never had before,” said Ian Cook, director of research and learning with the BC Human Resources Management Association (BC HRMA).

Some larger Lower Mainland businesses are beginning to realize the economic benefits of creating diverse workforces. But many small and medium-sized businesses have yet to access the value of this employee group.

“These organizations are missing out on the opportunities and skills that new immigrants can bring,” said Cook, a United Kingdom immigrant himself. “This project is making those opportunities simple and accessible from an employer’s perspective.”

Embracing Cultural Diversity in the BC Workplace was funded by the provincial government through its Welcome BC initiative. It was developed, launched and is now being implemented by the Surrey-based DIVERSEcity Community Resources Society.