Workforce utilization of visible and linguistic minorities in Canadian nursing STEPHANIE PREMJI PhD 1 and JOSEPHINE B. ETOWA PhD, RN 2 1 Assistant Professor, School of Labour Studies & Department of Health, Aging and Society, McMaster University, Hamilton, ON, Canada and 2 Associate Professor, School of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, ON, Canada Introduction CanadaÕs visible minority population 1 is growing much faster than its total population with a 27.2% increase between 2001 and 2006 vs. a 5.4% growth in the general population (Statistics Canada 2008a). It has been projected that by 2017, approximately 20% of the population could be a visible minority, with that pro- portion surpassing 50% in Toronto and Vancouver (Statistics Canada 2007). At the same time, the pro- portion of allophones, or individuals whose mother tongue is neither English nor French, has gone up from 18 to 20.1% in the last 5 years. The growth in the Correspondence Stephanie Premji School of Labour Studies & Department of Health, Aging and Society McMaster University Hamilton Ontario L8S4L8 Canada E-mail: spremji@mcmaster.ca PREMJI S. & ETOWA J.B. (2012) Journal of Nursing Management Workforce utilization of visible and linguistic minorities in Canadian nursing Aim This study seeks to develop a diversity profile of the nursing workforce in Canada and its major cities. Background There is ample evidence of ethnic and linguistic segregation in the Canadian labour market. However, it is unknown if there is equitable representa- tion of visible and linguistic minorities in nursing professions. Methods We cross-tabulated aggregate data from Statistics CanadaÕs 2006 Census. Analyses examined the distribution of visible and linguistic minorities, including visible minority sub-groups, among health managers, head nurses, registered nurses, licensed nurses and nurse aides for Canada and major cities as well as by gender. Results In Canada and its major cities, a pyramidal structure was found whereby visible and linguistic minorities, women in particular, were under-represented in managerial positions and over-represented in lower ranking positions. Blacks and Filipinos were generally well represented across nursing professions; however, other visible minority sub-groups lacked representation. Conclusions Diversity initiatives at all levels can play a role in promoting better access to and quality of care for minority populations through the increased cultural and linguistic competence of care providers and organizations. Implications for Nursing Management Efforts to increase diversity in nursing need to be accompanied by commitment and resources to effectively manage diversity within organizations. Keywords: cultural competence, diversity, minorities, nursing, workforce utilization Accepted for publication: 11 May 2012 1 Visible minority is defined by Statistics Canada (2008b) as Ôpersons, other than Aboriginal peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colourÕ. Visible minority sub-groups include: Chinese, South Asian, Black, Filipino, Latin American, Southeast Asian, Arab, West Asian, Korean and Japanese. Journal of Nursing Management, 2012 DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2834.2012.01442.x ª 2012 Blackwell Publishing Ltd 1