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‘Such a difficult life in Canada’: Ukrainian immigrants leaving because it’s so expensive

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Not long after Russia began bombing Ukraine, Oleksii Martynenko packed his bags and fled Kremenchuk, a once-tranquil but now war-torn city roughly 190 miles (300 kilometres) from Kyiv. He moved to Stockholm and took a job as a line cook. One year later, as his work visa approached expiry, he relocated to Canada’s largest city.

The continental change of scenery proved challenging for the Ukrainian immigrant. It took Martynenko about two months to find a comparable job in Toronto’s bustling downtown, about an hour’s commute from his apartment in the city’s suburbs. It wasn’t enough to pay the bills, so he soon took a second job, also as a line cook, and now works seven days a week in fast-paced kitchens.

The strenuous work and high cost of living has taken its toll. Martynenko, 44, is now planning a return to Sweden. His monthly expenses in Toronto include roughly $100 for a phone plan , $150 for public transit, $400 for groceries, and $1,000 for a room in a rooming house, where the kitchen and bathroom are shared among four tenants. Any money left over is sent back to family still in Ukraine. At least in Stockholm he earned enough to have savings, he said.

“I’m tired all the time now,” Martynenko said in an interview. “I want to go back to Europe because it’s such a difficult life in Canada.”

Canada has long been a choice destination for newcomers seeking a better life in a prosperous nation. Nearly a quarter of all Canadians are immigrants and the country has welcomed nearly 200,000 Ukrainians since the war’s outset. But the daily grind of life in Canada’s busiest metropolises — not just Toronto but also Vancouver, Montreal and Calgary — along with soaring costs is making it increasingly hard to get by.

Trudeau’s ambitious plans

Social service organizations have warned that the country’s most vulnerable citizens — often newcomers — are affected most by higher prices, especially in housing. Andrei Zavialov, a settlement worker with Ukrainian Canadian Social Services Toronto, said he knows of at least 15 Ukrainians who have returned to their home country from the Greater Toronto Area since the war broke out. There isn’t one predominant reason for leaving, he said, but expenses are among the most cited factors.

“An individual becomes unable to find money, but they need to pay for very high rent, groceries,” said Zavialov. “And such expenses hit an immigrant’s pocket strongly. No job, no money, they return to Ukraine where everything is familiar.”

Anecdotal stories like these are supported by new research suggesting that more newcomers have chosen to leave Canada in recent years as worsening housing affordability, a strained health-care system, and underemployment spark disillusionment with the opportunities the country offers.

An acceleration of that trend would undermine Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s ambitious plans to stave off economic backsliding through relaxed immigration policies. Like many developed countries, Canada’s birthrate is declining and the population would shrink were it not for new arrivals. Real gross domestic product per capita has stagnated over the past decade, while soaring home prices have far outpaced disposable income.

The Trudeau government’s solution is a target of roughly half a million new permanent residents a year, on top of a recent boom in arrivals that pushed Canada’s annual population growth rate to 2.7 per cent in 2022, the fastest pace among advanced economies.

The challenge now is retaining them. Newcomers have to navigate a web of problems, starting with housing costs. Even smaller Canadian cities are facing tight rental supply as higher interest rates have discouraged would-be buyers, creating fierce competition for rental units. The average cost of rent in Canada hit a record $2,149 in September, up more than 11 per cent from a year prior, according to research firm Urbanation. In Toronto, it was $2,614, which represents almost the entire pretax income of a person working full-time for minimum wage.

Other costs are also rising. While inflation is decelerating, it’s still running at 3.8 per cent, “much too high for comfort,” according Benjamin Reitzes, a rates and macro strategist at the Bank of Montreal. Grocery costs increased 5.8 per cent annually in September, while gas prices jumped 7.5 per cent.

To be sure, many newcomers are keen to stay in the country. Zavialov said most Ukrainian newcomers he’s interacted with have expressed strong admiration for Canada — its diverse population, socialized health-care system and fraying but still-strong social net. The decision whether to return to Ukraine or stay in Canada is also inspired by factors beyond expenses — proximity to war, safety, or a sense of patriotic duty.

 

‘Want to help my country’

A combination of those considerations prompted Anna-Maria Lyakhovetska to plan a return to Ukraine as soon as it’s safe. The 17-year-old moved to Germany after her father died in the war, and then relocated to Canada, arriving in Toronto just seven months ago. Now she wants to go back, in part to escape the hurdles of life in a new country and in part to aid the war effort. Russia’s invasion, she said, encouraged her to pursue a career in political organizing.

“It’s expensive living here,” she said. “But I also want to go back to help my country.”

The bulk of Canada’s Ukrainian immigrant intake is clustered in Ontario, the country’s most populous province, according social services group Operation Ukrainian Safe Haven. Based on financial assistance data, 40 per cent of recent Ukrainian immigrants have settled in Ontario while 21.4 per cent landed in Alberta and 10.3 per cent went to Manitoba.

Oleksandr Halyk, 50, arrived in Canada with his 25-year-old son in March, directly from Ukraine. An engineer back home, he took a job as a cabinet maker in north Toronto because he lacked a convertible degree. His son, meanwhile, found a better paying job at an airport.

 

“For my son, I think that he will stay here for a long time and probably build his future,” Halyk said. “But for me, to tell the truth, a life in Canada is much more expensive than in Ukraine, or in Europe. There, I have experience, and I can find work with a good salary.”

— with assistance from Randy Thanthong-Knight.

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CP NewsAlert: Two people confirmed killed when Vancouver Island road washed out

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PORT ALBERNI, B.C. – RCMP say the body of a second person has been found inside their vehicle after a road washed away amid pouring rain on the west coast of Vancouver Island.

Police say two vehicles went into the Sarita River when Bamfield Road washed out on Saturday as an atmospheric river hammered southern B.C.

The body of the other driver was found Sunday.

More coming.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



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Sonia Furstenau staying on as B.C. Greens leader in wake of indecisive election

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The B.C. Greens say Sonia Furstenau will be staying on as party leader, despite losing her seat in the legislature in Saturday’s provincial election.

The party says in a statement that its two newly elected MLAs, Jeremy Valeriote and Rob Botterell, support Furstenau’s leadership as they “navigate the prospect of having the balance of power in the legislature.”

Neither the NDP led by Premier David Eby nor the B.C. Conservatives led by John Rustad secured a majority in the election, with two recounts set to take place from Oct. 26 to 28.

Eby says in a news conference that while the election outcome is uncertain, it’s “very likely” that the NDP would need the support of others to pass legislation.

He says he reached out to Furstenau on election night to congratulate her on the Greens’ showing.

But he says the Green party has told the NDP they are “not ready yet” for a conversation about a minority government deal.

The Conservatives went from taking less than two per cent of the vote in 2020 to being elected or leading in 45 ridings, two short of a majority and only one behind the NDP.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 22, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.



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Toronto FC captain Jonathan Osorio making a difference off the pitch as well as on it

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Toronto FC captain Jonathan Osorio is making a difference, 4,175 kilometres away from home.

The 32-year-old Canadian international midfielder, whose parents hail from Colombia, has been working with the Canadian Colombian Children’s Organization, a charity whose goal is to help disadvantaged youth in the South American country.

Osorio has worked behind the scenes, with no fanfare.

Until now, with his benevolence resulting in becoming Toronto FC’s nominee for the Audi Goals Drive Progress Impact Award, which honours an MLS player “who showed outstanding dedication to charitable efforts and serving the community” during the 2024 season.”

Other nominees include Vancouver Whitecaps midfielder Sebastian Berhalter and CF Montreal goalkeeper Jonathan Sirois.

The winner will be announced in late November.

The Canadian Colombian Children’s Organization (CCCO) is run entirely by volunteers like Monica Figueredo and Claudia Soler. Founded in 1991, it received charitable status in 2005.

The charity currently has four projects on the go: two in Medellin and one each in Armenia and Barranquilla.

They include a school, a home for young girls whose parents are addicted to drugs, after-school and weekend programs for children in a disadvantaged neighbourhood, and nutrition and education help for underprivileged youth.

The organization heard about Osorio and was put in contact with him via an intermediary, which led to a lunch meeting. Osorio did his due diligence and soon got back to the charity with his decision.

“It was something that I wanted to be a part of right away,” said Osorio, whose lone regret is that he didn’t get involved sooner.

“I’m fortunate now that to help more now that I could have back then,” he added. “The timing actually worked out for everybody. For the last three years I have donated to their cause and we’ve built a couple of (football) fields in different cities over there in the schools.”

His father visited one of the sites in Armenia close to his hometown.

“He said it was amazing, the kids, how grateful they are to be able to play on any pitch, really,” said Osorio. “But to be playing on a new pitch, they’re just so grateful and so humble.

“It really makes it worth it being part of this organization.”

The collaboration has also made Osorio take stock.

“We’re very fortunate here in Canada, I think, for the most part. Kids get to go to school and have a roof over their head and things like that. In Colombia, it’s not really the same case. My father and his family grew up in tough conditions, so giving back is like giving back to my father.”

Osorio’s help has been a godsend to the charity.

“We were so surprised with how willing he was,” said Soler.

The TFC skipper has helped pay for a football field in Armenia as well as an ambitious sports complex under construction in Barranquilla.

“It’s been great for them,” Figueredo said of the pitch in Armenia. “Because when they go to school, now they have a proper place to train.”

Osorio has also sent videos encouraging the kids to stay active — as well as shipping soccer balls and signed jerseys their way.

“They know more about Jonathan than the other players in Colombia,” Figueredo said. “That’s the funny part. Even though he’s far away, they’ve connected with him.”

“They feel that they have a future, that they can do more,” she added. “Seeing that was really, really great.”

The kids also followed Osorio through the 2022 World Cup and this summer’s Copa America.

Back home, Osorio has also attended the charity’s annual golf tournament, helping raise funds.

A Toronto native, he has long donated four tickets for every TFC home game to the Hospital for Sick Children.

Vancouver’s Berhalter was nominated for his involvement in the Whitecaps’ partnership with B.C. Children’s Hospital while Montreal’s Sirois was chosen for his work with the Montreal Impact Foundation.

Follow @NeilMDavidson on X platform, formerly known as Twitter

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 21, 2024.



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