By Lucy-Claire Saunders

"When you are asked if you can do a job, tell ‘em, ‘Certainly I can!’ Then get busy and find out how to do it."

That’s not bad advice from former American president Theodore Roosevelt, especially for anyone thinking of attending the fourth annual Mega Job Fair on July 24 at the Surrey Convention Centre.

Hosted by the Progressive Intercultural Community Services Society (PICS), a nonprofit organization that provides free services to newcomers to Canada, the Mega fair is expected to draw over 5,000 job hunters.

"The job fair is designed to meet the needs of the community," says PICS employment director Satbir Cheema. "For new immigrants and even for the average job-seeker, the fair will help them meet employers under one roof in one day. Otherwise it may take five months just to set up an appointment."

In May, Metro Vancouver had an unemployment rate of just over four per cent, which is reasonably low compared to the rest of the province, where it averages about seven per cent.

Nevertheless, labour is in short supply, prompting the provincial and federal government to tweak immigration policy to stream in more newcomers to fill the gap.

British Columbia welcomes almost 40,000 newcomers each year — including business people, skilled workers, international students and refugees — from almost 200 countries.

"Through their knowledge, experience and contacts within Asia Pacific markets newcomers to B.C. will help the province realize its economic potential and reach its goal of $76 billion in increased trade by 2020," wrote Attorney General Wally Oppal in a recent statement.

Twenty years ago, "B.C. was one of the most internationally export-oriented economies in the country," according to a BC Statistics report late last month. "But this is no longer the case."

"In fact, 2007 marked the fourth straight year in which B.C.’s international imports of goods and services were higher than the value of its exports — and the size of the gap is growing," it added.

Propped up by the explosion in residential construction and a robust service sector, B.C.’s growth is not built on a lasting foundation, cautions the BC Stats analysis report.

In an attempt to create a well-oiled export machine, B.C.’s Liberal Government and the federal Conservative Government have set their sights on the immigrant population.

In recent months, increased funding for immigrant services has come from all levels in an attempt to foster sustained and prolonged economic growth.

The Mega job fair, created four years ago to encourage a thriving immigrant workforce, offers all types of jobs from the mailroom to the boardroom.

"Last year over 600 people were hired on the spot while hundreds more were invited to future interviews," said Cheema from PICS office in Surrey.

So dust off that power suit, print out that resume and get busy finding out how to get the job done.