Finding a job as a refugee: The dimensions of hospitality
Working, studying, and feeling welcomed are central dimensions of the integration process. We discuss the issue of immigrants rights to the city from the point of view of hospitality, i.e. the place given to refugees, as illustrated by the case of employment. Quebec welcomed more than 26,000 refugees between 2011 and 2015. Given that refugees may face particular challenges (pre-migratory trajectories, language barrier, level of education), this action research aims to better understand their professional integration and the employability resources involved in this process. To achieve this, we met with seventeen community workers and fourteen refugees in Montreal and in other cities in the province of Quebec. Hospitality has emerged as a fundamental dimension during the interviews, from the points of view of both the refugees and the community workers. This article explores how hospitality is a gateway to living together, specifically through employment, but more broadly through social life.