UNEMPLOYMENT INCIDENCE OF IMMIGRANT MEN IN CANADA

The unemployment incidence of immigrant and non-immigrant men in Canad a is compared using 11 cross-sectional surveys spanning the years from 1982 to 1993. Recent immigrants are found to have higher unemployment probabilities than nonimmigrants with the difference being larger in recession years. Subsequently, measures of unemployment assimilation o f immigrants are found to be sensitive to the macroeconomic conditions of the survey years. The main implication of the results for policy i s that recent immigrants would benefit most from labour market program s that facilitate the transition of unemployed immigrants back to empl oyment during recessions.