Job market in Sudbury, Ont., tough for international students, says newcomer

When Vinay Khokhar arrived in Sudbury, Ont., as an international student two years ago, he says it took him a month to get a part-time job at McDonald's.

"I was so desperate to get a job, I was literally handing off my resumeverywhere," he said.

"Every shop, every restaurant like McDonald's, Tim Hortons, every food court, construction companies. Everywhere."

Khokhar came to Sudbury from India to study at Cambrian College. He now works as a personal support worker, but has also remainedat McDonald's, where he's a hiring manager.

He saidfour to five people drop off their resumes at his McDonald's location every day. Many of them are international students.

"When I did the interview the last time, there were almost 40 to 45 international students who were looking for a job," he said.

"And almost every one of them, they have been here for the last four to six months and they haven't gotten a job yet."

Nancy Rivest,general manager of employment and immigrant services at the YMCA of Northeastern Ontario, saidthere are currently about5,000 international students in Sudburyand a large number of them are looking for work.

"We see, I would say approximately 500 students per month, at least," she said. "And at times that number is higher."

Rivest saidsome students are looking for work the entire time they're in Sudbury, while others are able to find jobs relatively quickly.

At the YMCA, she helps those international students better understand the Canadian labour market and local expectations from employers.

"Their resums often need help just because again, different countries have different ways of doing their resums," Rivest said.

Dhwani Bhatia, organizational change manager at Spark Employment Services in Sudbury, saidinternational students looking for work need to be patient and should look into upgrading their skills, where necessary.

"Be confident in your skills and showcase that to the employers," she said.

Workhours cut for international students

Starting in the fall, international students in Canada will be limited to working 24 hours per week off-campus, down from 40 hours.

"To be clear, the purpose of the international student program is to study and not to work," Immigration Minister Marc Miller told reporters when he made the announcement in April.

Khokhar agreedinternational students' main priority should be their studies, but addedthe new restrictions will make it difficult for many to live in Canada while they go to school.

"I don't think anyone can survive working 20 hours in a week. And that's on minimum wage," he said.