Immigration task force disbands, newcomer attraction work continues

About five years ago a group of a few dozen agencies teamed up to figure out how to attract more newcomers to Sarnia-Lambton, to help with job vacancies in the older-than-average community. Fast forward and the Sarnia-Lambton Immigration Taskforce has a lot to celebrate, said Cari Meloche, a task force member with the Sarnia-Lambton Economic [...]

Article content About five years ago a group of a few dozen agencies teamed up to figure out how to attract more newcomers to Sarnia-Lambton, to help with job vacancies in the older-than-average community. Fast forward and the Sarnia-Lambton Immigration Taskforce has a lot to celebrate, said Cari Meloche, a task force member with the Sarnia-Lambton Economic Partnership. Recommended Videos That includes: • creating things the Sarnia-Lambton Newcomer Hub, providing employment and entrepreneurship supports for newcomers • participating in a Regional Economic Development through Immigration (REDI) pilot through Ontario’s Labour, Immigration, Training and Skills Development Ministry, to help staff hard-to-fill job openings in the community with foreign workers • launching a welcome app for community newcomers • and working with local employers to encourage more welcoming and inclusive workplaces, Meloche said.

About 2,000 newcomers have come to Sarnia-Lambton in that half-decade, helping boost the population and advance the local economy, she said. Now, the task force that laid the groundwork for those accomplishments is dissolving, its mandate complete, she said. The task force was always a short term entity, and “the intention was to build that foundation and then have the supporting community organizations continue the activities and work going forward,” Meloche said.

The economic partnership, Lambton College, and the Sarnia-Lambton Immigration Partnership are continuing the work, helping connect newcomers and employers with hard-to-fill positions, making the community more welcoming, and investing in local economic development, she said. “We will continue to have the support of our local leaders, it just wouldn’t be as a defined immigration task force.” There’s still more work to do when it comes to newcomer attraction, she said, with five million retirements across Canada projected in the next nine years.

“When you look at the retirees to worker ratio, in the 1970s you had one retiree for seven workers,” Meloche said. “By 2035, we’ve got one retiree for two workers. “The demand is still there (and) it’s going to continue to grow as our population ages.”

Lambton County recently endorsed applying for a second round of the provincial REDI program that would run from fall 2026 until the end of 2027, if Lambton is successful in the competitive application process, Meloche said. Hopes are to know later this summer, she said. Lambton participated in 2025 and successfully obtained 200 nominations for hard-to-fill job openings in areas where there were local labour force gaps, officials recently told county council.

Task force efforts helped with Lambton’s successful pitch for that first REDI pilot, Meloche said. “For the last five years we’ve been collectively working as leaders, and it wasn’t just one organization,” she said. “At one point in time we had over 30 individuals representing different organizations across the community.

With that support . . . we really built a strong foundation to now carry forward the initiatives and programs that have been super helpful in our community.” -with files from Paul Morden