Labour force participation higher among immigrants: economist
BNN Bloomberg
Labour participation rates among immigrants exceed those born in Canada, one economist says, which is helping offset the impact of baby boomer retirements.
In a report Thursday, Claire Fan, an economist at RBC, said that for some time immigration has been seen as a way to counterbalance the impact of an aging population. Beginning over a decade ago, Fan highlighted that large numbers of baby boomers aged into retirement, driving down the proportion of people born in Canada in the labour force.
“More immigrants joining Canada’s workforce is helping to mitigate the demographic pressures created by baby boomers retiring as the participation rate of Canadian-born workers continues to decline,” Fan said.
Near the end of 2020, participation in the labour force among immigrants exceeded the Canadian-born population, the report said. At the beginning of 2024, labour participation among immigrants grew to outperform the Canadian-born population by two per cent.
