Migrating for Care: Permanent and Temporary Workers in North America

How does immigration/citizenship status and location of work influence migrant caregivers’ work conditions and earning power in Canada? What other factors are related to labour prospects and inequalities for those doing this kind of work?

This project seeks to achieve an up-to-date understanding of how the migrant care labour market in Canada fits in with caregiving work as a whole – as well as other employment sectors – in Canada and the United States.

Firstly, we examine and assess the development of Canada’s Live-In Caregiver program, which Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) significantly changed in November 2014. Secondly, the project compares those who enter as temporary residents with those admitted as permanent residents. Thirdly, we compare Canada and the U.S. to highlight similarities and differences in where migrant labourers work, how countries organize care work, and the extent to which they rely on migrant labour. Fourthly, we compare care workers’ earnings with those who are not employed in caregiving jobs. Finally, we examine informal care by migrant women in their households compared with the patterns of women who are Canadian-born.

This project relies on data from CIC, Employment and Social Development Canada (formerly HRSDC), Statistics Canada, and the United States Bureau of the Census.

Research Publications

• Boyd, Monica & Naomi Lightman. “Nativity and racial stratification of workers in the personal and direct care sectors in Canada.” Under revision.
• Boyd, Monica. “Canada’s Live-in Care Giver Program: its Demise and Recasting into a New Form.” Presentation at the October 2015 Gender, Migration and the Work of Care Conference. This paper will be revised during the first half of 2016 for publication in a forthcoming book edited by Ito Peng and Sonya Michel
• Boyd, Monica & Alice Hoe. “Immigrant Babysitters.” Expected to be completed and submitted for publication by August 2016.