Next steps for Ukrainian newcomers in Nova Scotia

Now that the 319 Ukrainian refugees have landed safely in Halifax, the next step for them is settling.

The Ukrainian Canadian Congress estimates about 200 will stay in Nova Scotia.

Jennifer Watts, the CEO of the ImmigrantServices Association of Nova Scotia (ISANS), says her organization will be helping the newcomers find places to live, work on their language skills, and in some cases secureemployment.

Watts spoke with CBC Radio's Maritime Noon on Friday. This conversationhas been edited for length and clarity.

The Ukrainians landed in Halifax Friday evening. What was the last 24 hours like for you and your organization?

Well, it's always a huge, intensive exercise to co-ordinate. And often the information we have of people who are arriving is very last minute and may not be fully there. So it's always one of expectation.How many people will actually arrive? Who will they be? What specific needs might they have? So it's exciting, it's challenging, but it's also a very great honour to be involved in these types of movements of people.

Ukrainians land in Halifax

2 years ago

Duration 2:17

More than 300 Ukrainian refugees landed in Nova Scotia on Thursday evening. A big crowd was waiting to greet them at the airport. The CBC's Colleen Jones was there.

We know some of the Ukrainians left the airport with their host families. Where did the others go?

So we have people in temporary accommodation in the area. So now the process begins to help them catch up on some sleepand begin to do some of the basic things to be able to begin their lives here in Nova Scotia. This includes opening bank accounts, getting their social insurance numbers, having an orientation to Nova Scotia So this has all been set up in terms of programs that people will be able to access. So as people are catching up on their sleep, there are programs to begin to make those steps forward on connecting them to their lives here in Nova Scotia.

Do you have a better understanding of who was on the plane and what their needs are?

Well, for sure, we have a mixture of people who arrived different age groups and different family composition. For families that are arriving with children, having their children settled and engaged will be important. People are very anxious about this they're exhausted, but also very grateful to be here, but also very worried about friends and family who are still in either Ukraine or in other parts of Europe. So there's a lot of emotional things going on for people, which we are supporting. I was at one of the locations last night and people were saying, 'I really want to know how to get a job.' Those are the types of programs that we're able to support them with.

How do you try to pair them up then matching their ...skills with the job openings that are in the community?

We do a very good needs assessment. So understanding what their background is, their language level, their educational and work experience, and what their aspirations are as well. So very much individually tailored. And we really see our role as actually kind of accompanying people on their new journey here.

As we work with them, we understand what the local labour market is here because we work with a lot of employers. We have an understanding of where a need is at this point in time, so our employment specialist really ... begins to assess, OK, we see this person, we understand what their background and training is, we know what the labour market is here in Nova Scotia. And then we begin to work with employers and with the clients to make sure that the match happens. So there's a lot of intensive work in getting people's resums ready, but also doing some very clear analysis about where it makes sense to be linking people into the labour market.

How will the language training roll out?

The first thing that happens is that people have a language assessment. So there's a partner that we work with, the provincial partner, and so we work with that as a language assessment.

They have to go through an assessment and once they're assessed, then they're on a list to go into a language program. For people who are feeling fairly confident in their English, then it may be supporting them throughself-help things that they can do, techniques that they can do to improve their English. So there's a variety of strategies and techniques that can be used to support people and language acquisition for sure.

How much are you involved with helping them find permanent housing?

As anyone would know in this province and, in fact, in this country, finding permanent housing is very, very challenging at this point in time. So we've been working with a group co-ordinated through the province in terms of looking at housing options. So we're working with our local partner here, the Centre for Immigration for the YMCA, as well as the Ukrainian Canadian Council to look at some options and try to pull together resources.

In this particular case, Ukrainians who are arriving are certainly encouraged to make their own connections and will be provided with options of how to do that, but also looking at various other opportunities that can support them both in the short term, but then also transition into more permanent housing. Without a doubt, it is a challenging housing market right now, so it's sort of all hands on deck in terms of looking at the opportunities and the short-term opportunities as well as the longer opportunities to support that.

Were Ukrainians who arrived earlier able to find accommodations and jobs?

Yes, and some have found permanent accommodations as well. So we have people coming in and registering for our services as well. It really depends on the individual and I think that's the important thing, that everyone coming through has their individual story and opportunities. Some people have been able to make connections and find employment and housing. Other people are still in a transition stage. So it really varies.

I think the other thing I would point out is that there are also a number of other refugees that are coming into our community as well. We've seen an increase of the federal government to support more refugees. So from Syria, Eritrea, Sudan, different places, as well as the very strong commitment that the federal government has to the Afghanistan situation. So a number of Afghan nationals are arriving. So in the context of the wider kind of support, there are many refugees that are looking for support, but also bringing a lot of opportunity to our community in terms of their skills, their labour and their contribution to our community. So it's a very interesting time to be working in the settlement community right now.