Thursday, December 7, 2000

They had a nice home and good jobs in England but London was congested and
expensive. The idea of raising their children in a country with wide open spaces was appealing.

"We need people like you," said the official at the Canadian High Commission when they inquired about emigrating.

So Selladurai and Nesa Premakumaran took a chance. They quit their jobs, sold their home and packed for the big move to Canada.

What could go wrong? Born in Sri Lanka, Prem, as he prefers to be called, was an accountant who had lived in England for 20 years.

Prem, 47, has accounting degrees from two British universities as well as a post-graduate diploma in marketing.

An equivalency assessment rates him as a Level 4 certified general accountant - a, few courses away from a full CGA designation.

Nesa, 43, a bookkeeper with administration and payroll diplomas, worked for years in various British government departments.

When Prem applied to come to Canada in 1997 under the skilled under the skilled workers program  he easily accumulated more than the minimum 70 points needed to qualify. As part of the selection process, points are awarded for criteria such as one's occupation, education, experience and knowJedge of English and French.

He scored well - 15 out of 16 points for education and six out of eight points for work experience, for example.

His skills would be in high demand, said the immigration officer.

So, after paying more than $10,000 for things like processing fees, medical checkups and their airline tickets, Prem, Nesa and their kids emigrated to Canada in 1998.

The UN rates Canada the best country in the world, Immigration Canada happily declares on its Web site.

Prem, Nesa and their children, aged 12, nine and three, are still waiting to see the proof in the pudding.

Instead of using his accounting skills, Prem has worked in a series of menial jobs. He began stocking shelves at a department store. When he applied for an accounting position with the store, he was snubbed because he has no Canadian work history.

It's a refrain he's heard over and over. "For God's sake, somebody has to give us Canadian experience," he says.

At one point, he was reduced to working as a janitor. "A job is a job. I have to survive so I took the job," he explains.

"I was nearly crying," says the man who was once the head of business studies at the London School of Management.

"It was mental torture. Did I pay all that money to come and do this kind of slavery?"

Malaysia-born Nesa has been unable to find work in her field too, despite upgrading her qualifications by passing several Canadian Payroll Association exams. She has provided day care out of the family's humble 118 Avenue basement apartment and is now working as a hotel maid.

"We feel cheated and defeated," she says. "There are times I feel like packing everything and going back (to England)."

You can't blame them. They didn't come here as refugees. They had decent jobs in Britain but were given the impression Canada was the land of opportunity.

They wonder why Canada is wooing skilled workers (92,000 were accepted last year) when so many employers won't recognize foreigners' education and experience.

Heather Plaizier, a Catholic Social Services education counsellor who helps immigrants, hears many similar complaints.

"Their story is not uncommon. People come here with strong qualifications and a good educational background and they end up stuck in very entry ­level jobs," she says.

"We're taking the best from other countries and then wasting what they have to offer and they're getting marginalized."

We must have the best-educated minimum-wage earners in the world. Oh, Canada.