Immigrants in Canada stuck in low-paying jobs

Professionals and degree-holders seeking immigration to Canada, beware! The number of degree-holder immigrants, including doctors and engineers, stuck in jobs with low education requirements, such as clerks, truck and cab drivers and salespeople, has risen steadily since the last recession of early 1990s, says a new study by Statistics Canada.

Employment problems for new immigrants will only get worse as Canada enters recession, experts warn. The study titled "Immigrants' Education and Required Job Skills" covered the period from 1991 to 2006.

It found that in 2006, established immigrants - those who had lived in Canada for between 11 and 15 years - had more difficulty finding jobs as per their educational qualifications than they did in 1991.

During this 15-year period, it said, the proportion of qualified immigrants stuck in jobs needing low educational qualifications rose steadily.

In 1991, according to the study, about 12 percent male immigrants with a university degree had jobs with low educational requirements. By 2006, this proportion rose to 21 percent.
Among female immigrants, the study said, these numbers increased from 24% in 1991 to 29% in 2006.

"These increases for established immigrants suggest that the difficulties, which have long plagued immigrants who have arrived recently, today have an impact on established immigrants," said Statistics Canada in a statement.
"They also suggest that difficulties experienced by recent immigrants are not necessarily temporary."

Among the newly arrived immigrants - those who have lived in Canada for less than five years, 24% university-educated men and about 40% women were doing jobs needing low educational requirements, the study said.

It listed many factors, including language skills, non-recognition of their credentials, mother tongue, age, and visible minority status, for deterioration in job prospects for degree-holding immigrants.

Canada lets in about 250,000 new immigrants each year, with China and India accounting for the bulk of these numbers.

Studies have found that Canada loses up to $6bn annually in terms of economic output by not utilsing the skills of immigrants for the jobs they are trained for.

Study: A Few Extra Pounds = Big Heart Risk

(CBS) For years studies have shown that most people can still be healthy, even when just slightly overweight. That was good news for many Americans - nearly 190 million are considered either "moderately overweight" or "obese." But new findings tonight show that when it comes to raising your risk of heart failure, every extra pound counts. CBS News correspondent Bill Whitaker reports.

Philippe Morotti works out to keep the weight off.

He was surprised to hear today's report that just a few extra pounds can weigh heavily on the heart and dramatically boost his risk of heart failure.

"If you're 10 lbs. overweight, I wouldn't worry too much about it," he said.
But you should, Whitaker reports. The findings of this major national study - analyzing two decades of data tracking the health of 21,000 middle-aged American men, all of them doctors - are a sobering jolt for all men.

"Not obese, but just being overweight increases the risk of heart failure by 49 percent," said Dr. Satish Kenchaiah, a researcher for the study.

For example: take an average man of 5'10." As the scale goes up, so does his risk of heart disease - even if he's only modestly overweight, between 174 and 208 pounds.

For every seven pounds gained, the modestly overweight 5'10" man packs on, he raises his risk of heart failure by a full 11 percent.

There is some good news in all of this. The researchers found that even a little bit of exercise, enough to break a sweat just one to three times a month, can reduce your chance of heart failure by 18 percent.

"If you are lean and active your risk of heart failure will be the lowest and if you're obese and inactive it will be the highest," Kenchaiah said.

Morotti said: "The bottom line is you need to make time to work out."
Especially at this time of year when Americans are eating the most.

Global study centre for free software

The Kerala Cabinet on Wednesday gave its approval to the by-laws of the proposed International Study Centre for Free Software and its applications here.
Speaking to reporters after the cabinet meeting, Chief Minister V S Achuthanandan said the Centre had been planned as part of the government's progrmme to promote free software in the state.

The cabinet also decided to include the proposed Railway Coach Factory in Palakkad under the Fast Track category to speed up the land acquisition for the project, he said.

Two land acquisition units would be set up to speed up the work, he said adding 50 new posts would be created.

It was also decided to set up Krishi Bhavans would in eight gramma panchayats. It was also decided to create the post of 23 agriculture assistants and eight part time junior posts in these offices, he said.