By Kelly Pollack

Are you looking to add to your workforce but you don’t know where to look for the skilled workers you need? If you’re like many small and medium-size businesses in BC today, finding, hiring and retaining qualified and skilled workers is an increasing challenge. Does it have to be?

A key component of the solution lies with employers who are now recognizing and tapping into the existing pool of local skilled immigrants as part of their human resource strategies.

To make that challenge easier, an array of innovative, new tools and resources designed to connect employers with immigrant talent are now available within the Employer Tools and Resources Library, recently launched on Immigrant Employment Council of BC (IEC-BC) website.

Benefits to Small and Medium Business
Under development for the past year, this comprehensive, user-friendly online library features immigrant employment tools and resources sourced from across Canada that have been identified as most relevant and useful to BC employers, particularly small and medium enterprises (SMEs).

“I did not expect to find as much information and would definitely go back and use the information when I need it,” says one employer who tested the resource library. “This kind of information is typically something I would pay someone else to prepare.”

The library includes easy-to-use resources created by IEC-BC such as the New Canadian Assessment Resource tool—developed in collaboration with BC HRMA—as a go-to online resource on how to assess the employment experience of new Canadians.

The online tool includes information on assessing language proficiency, academic and professional credentials, and foreign experience with each section featuring tips for overcoming common challenges.

Employer Innovation Fund Fuels New Tools
The Employer Tools and Resources Library also offers all the tools and resources created through IEC-BC’s 11 Employer Innovation Fund (EIF) projects, designed to address immigrant talent hiring and retention challenges faced by BC employers.

One such innovative project is The Hire Guide – a unique, interactive, “one-stop shopping” guide for BC construction employers who need to find skilled workers in a sector where candidates are scarce, developed by the BC Construction Association (BCCA).

“Most construction employers are small firms without human resources staff. As the competition for skilled workers heats up, those companies will need to be more strategic in terms of their hiring practices,” says BCCA President Manley McLachlan. “We created The Hire Guide to help them succeed.”

A Competency-Based Approach to Hiring
Another of the 11 innovative EIF-funded project resources was designed and delivered by the Kitimat Chamber of Commerce. The project involved workshops in a number of locations in northwestern and northeastern BC to inform employers about using a competency-based approach for hiring new immigrants.

“Employers who have attended our workshops are eager to use the resources that will assist them in attracting new immigrants as another strategy for current HR challenges,” says project lead Trish Parsons, who is executive director of the Kitimat Chamber. “Employers from a variety of industries in northern BC have indicated that hiring immigrants is one of the strategies they are using to address critical labour shortages resulting from current and future major projects and economic development throughout the regions.”

Feedback and Moving Forward
The workshop materials are available now for use in the Resource Library and a video of the workshop will follow.

“The resource library has been tested among BC employers to ensure it will meet their needs,” says IEC-BC manager, Opreet Kang. “We partnered with the Surrey Board of Trade and the Campbell River Chamber of Commerce which hosted employer feedback sessions to gather input on the navigation, content and look of the resource library.”

Those who took part in the employer sessions found the website quick and simple to use. “It’s easy for employers to find resources that are specific to their needs,” reports one employer participant.

The Surrey Board of Trade and the Campbell River Chamber of Commerce also reached out to their members for feedback on the Employers Tools and Resource Library using an online survey provided by IEC-BC.

After exploring the online resource library, employers found it to be a valuable addition to their HR strategies.

Find, Hire and Retain Skilled Immigrants
Find all the latest innovative and effective employer tools and resources to help you attract, hire and retain new immigrant talent at the IEC-BC Employer Tools and Resource Library. IEC-BC’s Employer Tools and Resources Library is comprised of three main sections: Find, Hire and Retain—each of which features a Key Resource section and an Additional Tools & Resources section.

The Find Talent section of the library include tips and advice, a list of organizations that can help you find qualified new immigrant candidates and other useful resources such as creating barrier-free job descriptions and places to advertise job openings.

The Hire Talent section includes tools and tips on hiring new immigrants and other practical resources such as a resume review centre, tips for screening resumes and how to assess academic and professional credentials.

The Retain Talent section includes key resources, tips and advice on retaining new immigrant employees and other ready-to-use information such as how to successful employ a diverse workforce, how to improve English skills and how to provide support for your new employees.

Under Additional Tools & Resource, The Employers Roadmap to Hiring and Retaining Internationally Trained Workers is an example of one resource that covers the benefits of hiring a diverse workforce, as well as how to be successful at finding, hiring and retaining new immigrant talent.
http://www.iecbc.ca/employer-resources

Kelly Pollack is executive director of the Immigrant Employment Council of BC (iecbc.ca).

(PeopleTalk Winter 2013)