Understanding Intergenerational Social Mobility: Filipino Youth in Canada

SummaryCanadian research on intergenerational social mobility has shown that there is considerable upward mobility among the children of immigrants. However, there are some groups that are exceptions to the overall pattern. This study examines the situation of one such group - the children of immigrants from the Philippines. In aggregate, Filipino youth present a double anomaly: they are less likely to hold a degree than either their parents or their peers in other racialized groups. The reasons for this need to be understood, particularly given that the Philippines is currently one of Canada's leading source countries for new immigrants.Using interviews with Filipino community leaders to supplement statistical data, Philip Kelly explores three factors that shape youth educational and employment trajectories. The first relates to family resources of money and time. Immigrant parents' educational and professional qualifications tend not to yield commensurate rewards in the labour market. Financial hardship thus shapes family life, as parents work extra jobs and hours or in sectors that require irregular and shift work. This results in little time for parental oversight and assistance for their children. In addition, there may be long periods of family separation due to the conditions of the Live-in Caregiver Program (90 percent of workers in the program are from the Philippines).The second factor concerns the networks and information flows through which youth navigate the labour market. Social networks are key to shaping educational choices and employment trajectories. Kelly's research found that Filipino networks tend to consist of Filipino-background friends and relatives. This leads to labour market marginality being reproduced from one generation to the next.The third relates to how constructions of "Filipino-ness" shape the self-esteem and aspirations of young people. Faced with the deprofessionalization of their parents, some Filipino youth may be motivated to aim higher, but many resign themselves to lower positions. The lack of role models in the larger community, especially for young boys, is a related problem. Representations and racialization of Filipino identity within wider Canadian society, and the non-recognition of that identity in school curricula, also play a role.Kelly makes a number of recommendations, some of which also apply to other immigrant-background communities: intensify efforts to improve immigrants' access to professions and credential recognition; recognize the importance of extended families in the success of the next generation; lessen precarity for those in the Live-in Caregiver Program by considering giving workers permanent residence upon arrival; and support role-modelling and mentoring, particularly to improve educational achievement among males. Finally, the author underlines the need to collect large-scale data by, among other things, reinstating the compulsory long-form census to accurately track intergenerational outcomes.ResumeLa recherche canadienne sur la mobilite sociale intergenerationnelle fait etat d'une solide mobilite ascendante chez les enfants d'immigres. Certains groupes sont toutefois exclus de cette tendance generale. C'est notamment le cas des enfants d'immigres philippins, qui, globalement, presentent une double anomalie : ils ne sont pas seulement moins diplomes que leurs parents mais aussi moins que les jeunes d'autres groupes racialises. Un phenomene qu'il est d'autant plus important de comprendre que les Philippines sont aujourd'hui le principal pays source d'immigration au Canada.S'appuyant sur des entrevues avec des responsables de la communaute philippine en complement des donnees statistiques, Philip Kelly degage trois facteurs qui modelent le parcours scolaire et professionnel des jeunes Canado-Philippins. Le premier concerne les ressources en temps et en argent des familles. Les parents ont des possibilites limitees sur le marche du travail en raison de leur niveau d'instruction et de leurs competences professionnelles. …