Good afternoon. Thank you for the opportunity to speak today.
My name is Karen McNeil. I'm the senior vice-president of programs and services at Achēv. I'm joined by my colleague Tania Amaral, director of women, employment and newcomer services. She has some intimate program knowledge.
For more than 30 years, Achēv has provided free services to Canadians and newcomers to Canada. Today we're one of the largest non-profit providers of employment, newcomer, language, youth and women's services across the GTA, with programming across Canada. Each year, more than 50,000 women and girls access Achēv's services in person, virtually or through a hybrid format. Our approach recognizes the unique barriers women face in securing employment, settling in a new community and building the networks they need to thrive.
Today we'd like to speak about immigrant women and girls, who represent almost half of our women clients. It's estimated that by 2031, one-third of the Canadian female population will be immigrants. We know that immigrant and racialized women in Canada face numerous barriers to meaningful employment. These barriers have been exacerbated by the pandemic, and include a lack of work-related networks, family caregiving responsibilities, sometimes language barriers and gendered or racial discrimination. Even when women immigrants are employed, they're more likely to be underemployed, work part time or in precarious employment situations, and be poorly paid compared with their Canadian-born counterparts. This has a significant impact on these women's everyday lives and their mental health.
Our clients experience many challenges when they move to Canada. Newcomer women in particular often face multiple stressors on their mental health and well-being. They often have the primary responsibility for establishing a new home, getting their kids into school, caring for elderly parents and finding a job. It's really not easy. Many are socially and linguistically isolated, and lack self-esteem and financial security. We've also seen the unique struggles that international students are facing. These include young women living far from home, some with enormous pressure to succeed, facing loneliness and limited financial resources and supports.
Every woman brings her own story of her personal struggle, and I'd like to share one with you today. Priya is a single mother. She obtained a master's degree in economics from her home country, but was working as a cashier at Walmart. Priya was stressed, tired and worried about how she would be able to handle her life and parenting. She couldn't leave her survival job, because that was the only source of income for her family. She was heavily depressed due to this dilemma. Her employment coach at Achēv was able to share a lot of resources and connect her with a woman's wellness program offered by a community partner. This enabled Priya to receive the support needed to improve her well-being and successfully secure a new and better-paying job where she felt respected.
One of the biggest issues we've seen in addressing the mental health needs of newcomer women and girls is the stigma around mental illness in their communities. In some cultures, mental health-related issues are highly stigmatized. As a result, sometimes it's difficult for them to acknowledge that they're dealing with mental disorders and should seek help. This leads to longer-term suffering. We've heard from some young women that, even when they've gathered the courage to tell their parents that they're struggling mentally and need help, they often don't know where to turn.
This is why we believe that integrating more mental health supports into newcomer, settlement, language and employment programs are critical to address the stigma and provide culturally appropriate intervention. More awareness of mental health with our newcomer communities will help women and girls access the supports they need, bridge the generational gap and encourage family conversations.
We're proud of the mental health wraparound support that we're able to provide women in some of our programs, including inviting mental health service providers into our workshop sessions, incorporating self-care practices into programs and sharing open resources, but these programs are not enough. We recommend more multi-year government-funded opportunities for community-based organizations like Achēv to include these wraparound supports for every woman or girl who needs them. We've seen first-hand the power that sharing real lived experiences and creating safe spaces to discuss mental health has had on the betterment of our newcomer women clients.
Thank you for the opportunity to share our insights today. We look forward to answering any questions you might have.