My point wasn't initially that they weren't better or equally qualified. That all came about because someone earlier said that my true point was it was just about having the ""right" skin color/birthplace"; i.e., that I was somehow being racist.

My point is that it's counter-productive to, on the one hand, tell citizens to look abroad for employment while, on the other, allowing immigration at levels that capitalises on the job that are available.

Past that, if you were to say that an immigrant came to another country for a number of possible reasons and, in doing so, found employment. Employment that probably wasn't available in their own homeland. You're saying that's fine. I don't think that anyone argues that. But, when the result of said immigration is that the actual citizens of that country now have to look abroad for employment ... isn't just the slightest bit screwy to you? It's okay for you to come to my country but now I have to leave because there's a now a lack of jobs?

Which is why I initially said that I would be interested to know how many of those people were actually immigrants versus native residents. If those 13K people were immigrant than it might make more sense. But if they are not then the question becomes how many jobs have been consumed by immigration? Further, how many jobs are being created (or predicted to be created) and, if it is a negligible number, why are you allowing so many immigrants to enter the country?

But to directly answer your question ...

If they aren't the better hire, how did they get the job?

You would have to prove that they were, in fact, the "better" hire and not just the "cheaper" hire or the "under the table" hire or even the flat-out "illegal" hire before anyone could answer that.

You would also need to demonstrate, if they were the "better" hire, why they left their own country to begin with.

Finally, if the expectation is that the tax-payer funds the programs that support the immigrants and refugees ... why in the world would it ever make sense to send your citizens abroad were the money they earn won't be taxed and won't be spent internally in a manner that supports and facilitates the growth of the economy?