Labour & Skill Shortage

8/7/2019 Labour & Skill Shortage

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Labour & Skill

Shortage

Philip Whelan, PresidentWhelan Affiliated Services



AGENDA

Is there a labour & skill shortage?Why?

Where?Solutions?



So the Question is«Does a Labour and Skill ShortageReally Exist?

-According to Minister Joan Burke (March 2006), ³employers fromacross many industries, including those in the traditional resourcebased industries, are«facing increasing demands for skilled workers tokeep pace with new technologies and to remain competitive«yet theyare having difficulty finding and keeping the skilled workers theyneed«this is an issue that many other jurisdictions are facing, bothnationally and globally«´

-By the year 2020, the labour shortage in Canada is expected to reach950,000 workers

Report of the Newfoundland and Labrador Skills Task Force 2007

Conference Board of Canada 2000



WHY?

� Greying Workforce� Fewer Entrants to the

Workforce� Increase in Activities� Fewer People

Encouraged into Trades



GREYING WORKFORCE

� By 2011, nearly 1/5 th of baby boomers willbe at least 61 years of age

� Aging workforce is not unique to Canadabut what distinguishes our country is therelatively large size of the baby boom

generation

CBC News Greying workforce could mean labour shortages: Statistics canada 2003



FEWER ENTRANTS TO THE

WORKFORCE� In addition there are fewer youthentering the labour force.

� In 2001, there was an average of 2.7 job force entrants aged 20-34for every person over the age of 55. Twenty years ago this ratiowas 3.7.

� This combined with decliningbirth rates, has pushed age of

Canadian labour force from 37.1years in 1991 to 39 years in2001.





INCREASE IN ACTIVITIES ± several major industrial projects ± will exert substantial demands on the labour force. ± the projects include: Hibernia, Terra Nova, White Rose, IOC

Mining Operations, Voisey¶s Bay, Hebron Project, New Refinery,Lower Churchill Project«

� other industries, businesses and public and private-sector institutions will continue to demand skilled workers .

� If there is no increase in size of available labour pool?� Similarly, there is a national and international demand for skilled

workers




FEWER PEOPLE ENCOURAGED

INTO TRADES� In Newfoundland and Labrador, as in other provinces, we did notencourage students to enter the skilled trades are often perceivedas second-choice or even ³last-resort´ career options with littlepotential for advancement.

� Over the years it has been drilled into young people, that aUniversity education was the best option for securing a rewardingcareer upon graduation.




WHERE DO SHORTAGES

EXIST?� According to Statistics Canada, the potential for worker shortages ismost pronounced in the health care, education and constructionsectors. ± In 2001, nearly one-quarter of specialists in the medical field

were aged 55 and over ± In 1991, there were almost five nurses aged 20-34 for every

nurse aged 55 and over but by 2001 that ratio decreased to twoyoung nurses for every one 55 or older

± Universities and colleges could also face shortages of professors. In 2001 almost 29% of professors were 55+ - much

higher than 19% who were that age a decade earlier. ± In construction, similar trends of aging workers and low number of younger replacements exist for just about all trades andsupervisors..




SOLUTIONS?

� Changing Attitudes About the Trades� Improving Apprenticeship Programs� Access for Under-Represented

Groups� Retaining and Recruiting Skilled

Workers� Assessing and Responding to Industry

Needs

� Immigration



CHANGING ATTITUDES ABOUT

THE TRADES� Educating people about the

opportunities available to tradespeople

� Increasing access to programs sothat performances can be assessedand competency ensured throughnontraditional means

� Developing bridges that helpeliminate financial, physical, socialand geographic barriers




IMPROVING APPRENTICESHIP

PROGRAMS� Many apprentices encounter difficulty logging hours or returning toschool to complete programs because of distance and time awayfrom employment

� Actions needs be aimed at enhancing access to programs andensuring that they can be completed.

� A more seamless transition to apprenticeship programs from highschool

� Alternative delivery means� Increasing opportunities for work experience� Enhancing certification of certified journeypersons to meet industry

needs, etc.




ACCESS FOR UNDER-

REPRESENTED GROUPS� Under-represented or under-utilizedgroups constitute a valuable but oftenuntapped source of skilled labour

� Women,

� Aboriginal people,� persons with disabilities,� displaced workers,� low-skilled� older workers

� Ensure that these groups haveappropriate access and support torelevant education and trainingopportunities in the skilled trades andtechincal professions




RETAINING AND RECRUITING

SKILLED WORKERS� Competition exists all across the provinces for skilled workers,

particularly in Alberta where unemployment rates are the lowest inNorth America and wages are the highest in Canada

� For Newfoundland and Labrador, to encourage skilled trades andtechnical professionals to remain or return to the province actionsmust be increased to improve retention incentives and recruitmentand to provide increased opportunities for continuing, full timeemployment in the province




ASSESSING AND RESPONDING

TO INDUSTRY NEEDS� While skill shortages exist in all regions and industries, specific

sectors are facing unique skill challenges due to increasedcompetition from other provinces, a rapidly aging workforce and

training-related issues

� Development of specific mechanisms to anticipate future demandsand identification of gaps are necessary to ensure that resourcesare in place to meet needs when identified.




IMMIGRATION� Immigrants have made major strides in the Canadian labour force

and will play a larger role in the years ahead

� Immigrants who landed in Canada during the 1990s, and were in thelabour force in 2001, accounted for almost 70% of the total growth of the labour force over the decade (CBC, 2007).

� According to Statistics Canada ³If current immigration ratescontinue, it is possible that immigration could account for virtually alllabour force growth by 2011´.

� Federal and provincial governments have introduced measures toenhance Canadian immigration and labour mobility such as allowingtemporary Canadian visa holders to apply for permanent residency.

Are Immigrants Our Future?Canadian Visa Bureau 2007

Documents

Labour & Skill Shortage