In this thesis I use the case study of Portuguese construction workers in Toronto to provide an assessment of how Canada’s skill-based immigrant selection policies treat workers with low human capital. Government rhetoric and much academic writing has presented skill-based immigration programs as responding effectively to the needs of the labour market, and as a progressive move away from the racist and particularistic exclusions present in previous policies. However, the case study presented in this thesis provides a less optimistic reading of the situation. A persistent labour shortage in manual trades, and a selection system that excludes ‘blue collar’ workers from permanent membership, suggest an immigration policy that is neither in synch with the needs of the labour market nor justly administered. Through a discursive policy analysis, I critique Canadian citizenship and immigration policy in two areas. First, policies have been built on flawed assumptions about how certain segments of the labour market function, leading them to place too high a premium on human capital. Second, workers with low human capital tend to be denied permanent membership and held on precarious legal statuses. The result is a differential access to key social, civic and economic rights depending on a migrant’s skill category. An image of ‘fragmented citizenship’ therefore appears more realistic than writings proclaiming an expansion of universal rights and the emergence of a postnational mode of belonging. The new exclusions of skill-based selection systems have not gone unchallenged. In the case of Toronto’s Portuguese community, protests in 2006 surrounding the deportation of undocumented construction workers served to visibly challenge the state’s definition of what constitutes a ‘desirable citizen’. The protests generated wide public support by engaging a traditional logic of national citizenship, arguing that the Portuguese fit the bill as ‘good Canadians’, though this came at the cost of reinforcing the barriers to entry for other groups of migrants.

In this thesis I use the case study of Portuguese construction workers in Toronto to provide an assessment of how Canada’s skill-based immigrant selection policies treat workers with low human capital. Government rhetoric and much academic writing has presented skill-based immigration programs as responding effectively to the needs of the labour market, and as a progressive move away from the racist and particularistic exclusions present in previous policies. However, the case study presented in this thesis provides a less optimistic reading of the situation. A persistent labour shortage in manual trades, and a selection system that excludes ‘blue collar’ workers from permanent membership, suggest an immigration policy that is neither in synch with the needs of the labour market nor justly administered. Through a discursive policy analysis, I critique Canadian citizenship and immigration policy in two areas. First, policies have been built on flawed assumptions about how certain segments of the labour market function, leading them to place too high a premium on human capital. Second, workers with low human capital tend to be denied permanent membership and held on precarious legal statuses. The result is a differential access to key social, civic and economic rights depending on a migrant’s skill category. An image of ‘fragmented citizenship’ therefore appears more realistic than writings proclaiming an expansion of universal rights and the emergence of a postnational mode of belonging. The new exclusions of skill-based selection systems have not gone unchallenged. In the case of Toronto’s Portuguese community, protests in 2006 surrounding the deportation of undocumented construction workers served to visibly challenge the state’s definition of what constitutes a ‘desirable citizen’. The protests generated wide public support by engaging a traditional logic of national citizenship, arguing that the Portuguese fit the bill as ‘good Canadians’, though this came at the cost of reinforcing the barriers to entry for other groups of migrants.

In this thesis I use the case study of Portuguese construction workers in Toronto to provide an assessment of how Canada’s skill-based immigrant selection policies treat workers with low human capital. Government rhetoric and much academic writing has presented skill-based immigration programs as responding effectively to the needs of the labour market, and as a progressive move away from the racist and particularistic exclusions present in previous policies. However, the case study presented in this thesis provides a less optimistic reading of the situation. A persistent labour shortage in manual trades, and a selection system that excludes ‘blue collar’ workers from permanent membership, suggest an immigration policy that is neither in synch with the needs of the labour market nor justly administered. Through a discursive policy analysis, I critique Canadian citizenship and immigration policy in two areas. First, policies have been built on flawed assumptions about how certain segments of the labour market function, leading them to place too high a premium on human capital. Second, workers with low human capital tend to be denied permanent membership and held on precarious legal statuses. The result is a differential access to key social, civic and economic rights depending on a migrant’s skill category. An image of ‘fragmented citizenship’ therefore appears more realistic than writings proclaiming an expansion of universal rights and the emergence of a postnational mode of belonging. The new exclusions of skill-based selection systems have not gone unchallenged. In the case of Toronto’s Portuguese community, protests in 2006 surrounding the deportation of undocumented construction workers served to visibly challenge the state’s definition of what constitutes a ‘desirable citizen’. The protests generated wide public support by engaging a traditional logic of national citizenship, arguing that the Portuguese fit the bill as ‘good Canadians’, though this came at the cost of reinforcing the barriers to entry for other groups of migrants. / Arts, Faculty of / Geography, Department of / Graduate

Cette thèse en sociolinguistique a pour objectif d'illustrer la relation qui existe entre langue, dans ses pratiques et représentations, et identité au sein de la "communauté portugaise" de Montréal. Considérant le contexte particulier de Montréal, où deux langues, le français et l'anglais, dominent le panorama linguistique, nous avons observé les pratiques langagières quotidiennes des membres de la "communauté portugaise" et analysé l'influence de ces pratiques sur les (re)présentations identitaires. Tout d'abord, nous avons réalisé l'analyse linguistique des pratiques langagières quotidiennes en langue portugaise, qui nous a permis d'observer le processus d'évolution des formes et de dégager sept "points de fragilité" de la structure du portugais parlé dans le groupe, conséquences de la situation du contact de langues. Dans un deuxième temps, l'analyse du discours épilinguistique nous a permis d'observer les dynamiques identitaires individuelles et collectives au sein du groupe. Le statut du portugais, véhiculé dans les discours, lui permet de se perpétuer comme valeur fondamentale de l'identité « communautaire » dans le contexte politique et sociale multiculturel de la ville québécoise. / This dissertation provides insight into the complex process of how the Portuguese language, as practised within the "Portuguese community" in Montreal, is evolving and how it is changing the group's identity (re)presentations. This community, created from the migration process that began in the 1950s, is an example of linguistic integration in the particular context of Montreal where French and English dominate the linguistic landscape. The findings indicate the dynamic of the Portuguese language within the group and the evolution of the practice through the analysis of seven "weak points" in the language's structure that are consequences of its contact with the two dominant languages. In addition, based on epilinguistic discourse analysis, the research shows how the Portuguese language and its representations may help in understanding the complex process of defining the group's identity through language practises. / Esta tese aborda a evolução da língua portuguesa em contexto da diáspora, e em particular a influência das práticas linguísticas nas (re)presentações identitárias da "comunidade portuguesa" de Montreal. Através duma pesquisa sociolinguística sobre as mudanças da língua em situação de contacto com outras línguas, a nossa análise linguística identificou sete "elementos de fragilidade" da estrutura da língua, através do processo de erosão da língua falada dentro do grupo, sublinhando as particularidades do contexto de contacto entre línguas. Em segundo lugar, procedemos a uma análise do discurso epilinguístico, tendo observado diferentes discursos sobre as representações da língua e das suas práticas dentro do grupo, sublinhando estas últimas enquanto marcadores fundamentais da identidade da comunidade em estudo. / Questa tesi nasce dallo studio del processo evolutivo della pratica orale della lingua portoghese all'interno della "comunità portoghese" di Montreal, e in particolare del come le pratiche della lingua possano influenzare le (rap)presentazioni identitarie dei membri del gruppo nelle diverse generazioni. All'interno di una comunità minoritaria, in un contesto particolare come quello della città del Québec, dove due lingue, il francese e l'inglese, dominano il panorama linguistico, la nostra ricerca sociolinguistica ci ha permesso di osservare il percorso d'erosione del portoghese all'interno della comunità, attraverso il distaccamento di sette "punti di fragilità" della struttura della lingua portoghese, conseguenza della situazione di contatto tra le lingue. L'analisi si propone, inoltre, d'illustrare il ruolo fondamentale della lingua nel processo identitario attraverso le sue pratiche, in quanto strumento di preservazione dell'eredità culturale e linguistica propria del gruppo. In quest'ottica, la lingua è vista come una manifestazione d'identità e d'appartenenza al gruppo. / Esta tesis aborda la temática de la evolución de la lengua portuguesa en un contexto de la migración y en particular la influencia de las prácticas lingüísticas en lo que se refiere a las (re)presentaciones identitarias. Dentro de un contexto particular como el de la "comunidad portuguesa" de Montreal, en un contexto urbano dominado por dos idiomas, el francés y el inglés, nuestro estudio se concentra sobre el análisis lingüístico de siete "elementos de fragilidad" de la estructura de la lengua portuguesa hablada dentro la comunidad por sus miembros como consecuencia de la situación de contacto. Por otra parte, considerando esta visión de erosión de la lengua portuguesa, gracias al análisis del discurso epilingüístico que fue realizado, podemos ilustrar varios discursos que se crean sobre las diferentes definiciones del idioma y de sus prácticas, en particular con respecto a la práctica de la lengua como marca fundamental de la identidad del grupo.