Social Capital and Employment

This article reports the findings of in-depth interviews with 50 South Asian newcomer women in Toronto regarding the role of social capital in obtaining employment. Two kinds of social capital emerged from the data: preexisting social capital and self-created social capital. Preexisting informal and formal social capital facilitated the newcomers’ settlement by providing information, orientation, resources, or actual employment. Self-created social capital offered opportunities for the newcomers to find more appropriate jobs that were in line with their areas of expertise.