Community Employment Resource Centre
“The
Problem: The country’s labour pool –
which is expected to shrink under the weight of an unprecedented retirement bulge
within the next five years – isn’t even close to producing enough skilled
trades people, home-grown or imported to meet demand.” The result is a potential crippling of the
economy- 2006-2008 is when skilled trades famine is expected to hit hardest (prediction
by Dofasco Inc.)
“The trades have
suffered from something of an image problem for many, many years” – Mr.
Williams, Chairman of Alberta Apprenticeship and Industry Training Board. This board advises the Alberta government on
labour market issues that relate to training and certification of people in
designated trades and occupations.
Statistics:
·
Since 1996,
the number of Canadians who have registered annually as apprentices has
increased – according to Stat Canada, there are about 200,000 registered
apprentices across Canada, however, actual completion rate has never exceeded
30,000 annually. This stat has remained
“flat as a board” for the past 20 years.
·
Currently
61,000 apprentices employed by 23,300 companies and 136 trades across Canada
Situation:
·
Aging of the
baby boomer population
·
Lack of
interest by young people in the trades
·
Dwindling
supply of skilled immigrants who used to eagerly line up at Canada’s door
looking for work and a fresh start
There are three main strategies being used across Canada to increase the supply of skilled trades people:
1. Grow
your own solution – get young Canadians interested in trades
2. Attract
and fast-track more skilled immigrants into jobs
3. Overhaul/tweak
the provincial apprenticeship training systems - shorten
Obstacles:
·
Parents –
most want kids to go to university
·
Government –
colleges and training schools receive less recognition and tighter budgets; at
high school level – budgets for technical courses are slashed (low enrolment)
so equipment is no longer being used in real world
·
Stigma –
jobs in trades are looked down upon; bias in this type of education (especially
in parent’s mind)
·
National
Image – Canada seen as squandering foreign talent – not preferred destination
of skilled immigrants due to confusing accreditation mess (lack
standardization), focus on knowing both official languages and not on language
of mathematics and technology
·
Unions/Trade
groups see some of the moves as an attempt by provincial Liberal government to
break unions and drive down wages by “de-skilling” the work
Ontario’s Plans:
·
Millions
poured into programs – high school technological classes and pre-apprenticeship
programs
·
10% Tax
credit for companies taking apprentices
·
Spending
$116 million on apprenticeship system
·
Planning a
diploma upon completion of this type of training
·
Recognition
of specific competencies without need to complete full training program (BC)
Case Study:
Dofasco
approach:
1. Needs
assessments
2. Apprenticeship
pool (Dofasco – 200)
3. Grade 8 science
week – students come to companies learning centre to complete experiments
4. Work in
conjunction with Skill Canada and the Canadian Apprenticeship Forum, Canadian
Manufacturers and Exporters, Canadian Steel Trade Employment Congress
5. Connections with
competitors to generate new programs with a technical curriculum and paid co-op
credited towards apprenticeship hours
6. Mentor local
high-school students
7. Launch local
skilled trades centre to act as protocol for other industries
Key: get entire community from schools to local
government involved with issue
“There are a lot
of people who’d like to leave high school and just do an apprenticeship
program. But technology has demanded
that people need more skill sets to do most jobs.”
Where ARE the
jobs?
·
Trades
within heavy manufacturing
·
Oil and gas
·
Industrial
and residential construction industries – tool & die makers, millwrights,
industrial electricians
·
Refrigeration
and air conditioning mechanics
·
Horticultural
technicians
·
General
carpenters
·
Construction
·
Boilermakers
·
Cooks