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Personal Obstacles or Invisible Structural Barriers? A Study of Job-Hunting, Working Experience and Occupational Attainment of Chinese Immigrants in Saskatoon

Date

2020-10-05

Authors

Journal Title

Journal ISSN

Volume Title

Publisher

ORCID

0000-0001-6112-3985

Type

Thesis

Degree Level

Masters

Abstract

As the first country in the world to adopt multiculturalism in the Constitution, Canada is proud of its inclusiveness, cultural diversity, and belief that all citizens have equal opportunities regardless of ethnicity. However, several scholars point out there is a new type of racism rising, in which racist behaviors and attitudes are implicitly expressed in a muted, covert, or polite way (Wang, Zong and Li 2012; Wang et al. 2011; Zong and Perry 2011). This research study focuses on Chinese immigrants in Saskatoon and aims to disclose the structural barriers and racial discrimination perceived by immigrants. By using a mixed-method design, including quantitative survey and qualitative semi-structured interviews, this research focuses on Chinese immigrants in Saskatoon and their experiences of job-hunting, and daily work through a gender lens. The survey result shows that more than 75% of the respondents do not feel being discriminated, even though many of them experience structural barriers such as the devaluation of their foreign credentials and working experiences. The interviews, on the contrary, suggest that most of the interviewees have had some “uncomfortable” experiences but prefer not to label such experiences as discrimination. This result, I would like to argue, supports the notion that implicit racism does exist in the social structure and daily life practices of Chinese immigrants. These trends prevent them from full participation in the labor market thereby hindering their integration into mainstream society.

Description

Keywords

Chinese Immigrants, Multiculturalism, Racism, Gender, Immigrant Women

Citation

Degree

Master of Arts (M.A.)

Department

Sociology

Program

Sociology

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DOI

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