National Adult Literacy Database

The authors of this document have used data from the International Adult Literacy and Skills Survey (IALSS) to analyse the role cognitive skills play in the fact that immigrants earn less than their Canadian-born counterparts.

Their analysis shows that the cognitive skills of immigrants differ from those of workers born in Canada. As well, the authors note that immigrants educated abroad have much lower skills and earnings than immigrants who received their education in Canada.

The authors note that there is no evidence that the gap in earnings is caused by employers paying equally productive immigrants less than their Canadian-born counterparts.