Immigration: What challenges prevent migrants from obtaining suitable jobs for their qualifications?

Some countries are full of educated people who are urgently needed for their skills.But there are barriers that prevent the exploitation of these skills with the appropriate jobs, which leads to "not exploiting minds".

In 2019, when Muhammad al -Dhaheri left the Yemeni city of Sanaa, which was destroyed by the bombs and moved to the US state of Michigan, he believed that he would be able to continue his work as a computer programmer, especially as he has experience in this field for 15 years, in addition to a higher university degree.

However, it was not so easy, says Al -Dhahiri, who is 42 years old now.He applied for more than 100 jobs within the following two years, but he was receiving rejection after the other.

The employment requests were often asked about his experience in the United States, which was a big dilemma, as he needed local experience to get a job, but at the same time he needed a job in order to obtain local experience!.

It was especially frustrated because, based on job descriptions, he was fully qualified to get these jobs, and he was not demanding a high salary.

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Meanwhile, Al -Dhahiri needed to earn money.He says: "I used to work in many jobs that have nothing to do.

Al -Dhahiri was not happy, and he wanted his four sons to see as they always saw him: as a professional programmer in the information technology sector.

Teenage taps, from the presentation of a dignity as a vehicle and prepared by Mays Baqi.

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The turning point came when a friend told him about a government program called "International Talent Solutions in the State of Michigan", which aims to reduce the employment barriers facing professionals coming from other countries.

Al -Dhahiri spent the next six months in the presence of courses organized by this program, at night to improve his English and update his skills in the field of information technology so that he can get a good job to suit his skills.

For example, his CV was written in a long and detailed Yemeni coordination.His coach in the "International Talent Solutions in the State of Michigan" explained that the systems of tracking applicants that many companies use are possible to automatically exclude his CV due to small differences in coordination.

The training came seven months ago from now, when he was appointed in the Technical Support Department of a hospital.But his story explains to what extent can it be difficult and exhausting for an educated professional who seeks to work in the same job after migration.

For a set of reasons, including licensing obstacles and language issues and discrimination, many immigrants cannot use their skills in the new countries they have moved, and they end up working in low -wage jobs and require less skills than those they previously occupied..

This phenomenon, which is sometimes known as "non -exploitation of minds", leads to the loss of both parties - the immigrant and the new country to which it is transmitted - as the skills of these people are not exploited as it should.A number of support programs work to bridge this gap, but the problem is still large and structural.

Why is the phenomenon of "non -exploitation of minds" spread on a large scale?

Some of the most obvious data comes from "not using minds" from the United States, as there is "suffering between 20 percent and 25 percent of university migrants from unemployment," according to Jin Batalova, who analyzes immigration data at the Immigration Policy Institute, which adds:"So they are either unemployed or working in jobs that do not require more than high school," for example, as children's nannies, cashiers, or drivers.

Some groups are likely to be unemployed in particular, especially immigrants who have brown skin and those with Spanish origin, and the least mastery of English and asylum seekers.

The patterns also differ according to the profession, as an analysis conducted by the Institute of Migration Policy indicates that in the United States, 15 percent of international health and medicine graduates are unemployed, compared to nine percent of local trainers..

According to Batalova, the phenomenon of "not using minds" has become more prevalent due to immigration and education trends.For example, the percentage of high skills refugees is increasing, and at the same time the percentage of jobs that require degrees and scientific degrees increases."The professions that require a license that is difficult to identify and reconcile across the international borders," Batalova says..

There are many reasons why the educated person is unable to employ his skills after reaching a new country.Peruv it and legal obstacles can be large.Even if the degrees and scientific qualifications are considered valid across the border, the displaced people may not be able to provide evidence for them.

Also, some immigration cases prevent people from working.Other problems include limited linguistic efficiency and limited social networks (which often provides information and contacts to work).

Political pressure can also prevent skilled immigrants from working.Local -born workers - especially in weak economies - may feel dissatisfied if they feel that workers born abroad receive help in jobs that require skills.

In general, the policies that focus on short -term gains may end up with the loss of long -term benefits.For example, many resettlement programs were designed to help refugees achieve self -sufficiency as soon as possible.But on the ground, according to Batalova, this means that people with professional backgrounds are being paid "to take on any job, and these jobs are usually low skills, without functional development, so people find themselves somewhat trapped within that vicious circle".

The economic outcome of not using minds

However, the system that directs migrants to jobs that do not use all their skills has negative repercussions, as the Institute of Immigration Policy estimated the wages lost for unemployed immigrants in the United States at approximately 40 billion dollars (29.5 billion pounds) every year.

The reason for this is that - as it is clear from the experience of Al -Dhahiri - until a job is found in a sector with relatively few licensing requirements, it is very difficult..But working in jobs that requires the same skills can be especially difficult in professions such as health care, which requires exhausting and expensive requirements for licensing.

The dentist who has to start a program to obtain a degree of scratch - instead of just getting an additional course to obtain a qualification compatible with his original qualification - may decide that driving a taxi is the only possible path.

The story of Abigil Sandoval highlights some of these challenges.After training her as a doctor, she was able to practice medicine only for one year in the Venezuelan state of Kogidis before she had to leave, as part of the refugee and migrant crisis in Venezuela.

In 2015, Sandoval went to Panama, where she worked as a medical assistant.In 2017, she immigrated to Argentina to obtain a graduate degree in aesthetic medicine.

It was difficult for Sandoval, now 31, to adapt to every new culture and every new approach to patient care.However, even after two attempts to resume her career, and to obtain an additional degree, she could not continue to work in the medical field, and she was forced to resign due to the unfair treatment and much less bad wage than her Argentine colleagues were getting.."They did not appreciate my work because I am immigrant," Sandoval says..

Sandoval had to find an alternative.During the epidemic, she and her husband began a commercial activity to sell pizza based on home delivery, and she gained much more pizza than she was gaining medicine in Buenos Aires..

Sandoval says about it..

However, Sandoval preferred to return to medicine, but it should have been "in a place where they appreciated all knowledge and respect the health workers", including the migratory workforce..

It is clear that even in the presence of a common language, discrimination can impeding the professional life of immigrants.Sandoval was not the only one that suffers from this, as it found one of the investigative studies of the Venezuelan who lived in Argentina that 36 percent of them were unemployed, and 52 percent suffered from convincing unemployment, although most of them were educated and the middle class upon their arrival.

How can the problem of "not exploiting minds" can be addressed?

The serious governments will have to face the problem of "not using minds"..For example, the expansion of the number of sites that newborn nurses can conduct language tests in which it reduces one of the obstacles that prevent their work.

Inside the European Union countries, there is some mutual recognition of scientific degrees and coordination of professional requirements.Batalova says that the ASEAN countries (the Association of Southeast Asian Countries) also try to reduce barriers that prevent the integration of high skills employment..

Regional and government cooperation is one of the main ways to reduce the phenomenon of "not exploiting minds" - but it does not solve in a magically in all problems that keep skilled people away from the work that suits them..Here, employers must play their role as it should.

"We know that employers' unwillingness to use these workers is real, and it represents a very difficult barrier to overcome it - but it is not impossible.".

Of course, the discrimination must be eliminated, of course.But employers can also be educated regarding scientific qualifications in other countries, in addition to the exclusionary effects of traditional employment operations.

Annie Venton, director of the "International Talent Solutions in the State of Michigan", who joined Al Dhahiri, understands the frequency of companies in this regard, given that employers may think that "there are high levels of unknown things" when dealing with foreign nationals.

But she says that the rates of workers in companies tend to be much higher for workers born abroad compared to those born in the United States, which is just one argument to facilitate their employment..

In Michigan, Al -Dhahiri was relatively lucky, because he has long been used to speaking English because his wife is American, as he previously worked with English speakers in a non -governmental organization in Yemen.

"It helped me a lot when I came here.I did not face the difficulty facing some people regarding the language..

The technical support function that Al -Dhahiri obtained the same was a part -time and short -term job at the beginning, but his contract has since become full -time and was extended for a year..

It is not the job that Al -Dhahiri dreams of, because it does not enable him to use his full skills as a programmer, but he is happy to return to the technology sector.Al -Dhahiri hopes that this job is just a step to return to the professional ladder, and that he can use the references and experiences he got there to apply in his career life.

Al Dhaheri says about this opportunity: "After suffering that lasted for two years, I am definitely happy.".The challenge in the coming years will be to ensure that people who are able, such as Al Dhahiri and Sandoval, are not excluded from the jobs that they need..