Work Camp Phenomenon Under Microscope
Tuesday, June 18, 2013 @ 4:20 AM
Prince George, B.C.- The resource boom in Northern B.C. is having an impact on how Northern Health prepares for the future.
As major projects move forward, Northern Health is trying to pin point the pressures that will be placed on existing services or what future services may be required as a result of the growing number of workcamps. Part two of a three part report has been delivered to Northern Health’s Board of Directors. This report examined the history of workcamps , development of “instant communities” and the cycles those communities ride as they develop and change.
The impact of workcamps “Is an issue that is intriguing to us” says Dr. Charles Jago, Chair of the Board of Directors for Northern Health . “You have a high level of economic activity taking place and you’re not having commensurate community growth, in fact, these work camps may, or may not, be having a direct impact on adjacent or near distance communities. So we’re trying to understand that phenomena.”
“It is a distinctive stage in the development of northern B.C.” adds Dr. Jago, “and just what the long term implications are at this point are not very clear to anybody.”
“We are actually just in the process of refreshing the physician human resource plan for the future” says Northern Health CEO Cathy Ulrich “We are also looking at the other health professional groups across the North.” Ulrich says the expansion of nursing seats at universities, and the Northern Medical program are two initiatives that will have a major impact on recruitment and retention in the North as the resource boom progresses.
Northern Health is already working on a master programming and master plan for the Tumbler Ridge Health Centre. That work sparked by the expected population growth brought on by increasing mining activity in that area.
There are billions of dollars worth of projects on the horizon, mining, pipelines, natural gas, LNG, and Site C, all requiring a workforce for construction, and when complete, maintenance and operation. While many projects have yet to receive final approval, some could be coming on line within the next couple of years and that doesn’t leave much time for planning. “I think the future is here now, not two years away” says Dr. Jago. He notes there is already significant camp activity underway in the province , “It’s not something we are expecting to happen, it’s happening now.”
He says Northern Health’s development of a detailed analysis of the impact of workcamps will be critical when it comes time to enter dialogue with the Provincial Government about levels of service “You can’t go in without a clear understanding of the phenomena and the implications of it. To engage government you have to have your facts and you have to have empirical evidence that you can present and that’s what we’re doing.”
He says if the forecast for economic development holds true, the workcamp phenomena, which is already significant, will be ever greater.
It is too early to say what the final report (due this fall) on workcamps and their impact will reveal, it could be the final report will support a case to have the University Hospital of Northern B.C. developed into a full trauma centre, or perhaps support the call for an improved Air Ambulance program , but Dr. Jago isn’t ready to say what needs might be on the radar “Anything could be on the radar and we haven’t got to that point right now. “ He says the focus right now is to “Assess if the existing workcamps are having an impact on emergency services, are they having an impact on physician services? So we’re trying to get our minds around that so we can then say these are the critical areas to address. Right now its premature for us to propose solutions to a problem that we don’t fully understand.”
Northern Health is the only health authority in the province which is conducting this kind of analysis on the impact of workcamps but time is of the essence “We’ve got to do it in a timely fashion” says Dr. Jago, “We’ve got to be on top of this issue and help government get on top of it.”
Comments
âYou have a high level of economic activity taking place and youâre not having commensurate community growth, in fact, these work camps may, or may not, be having a direct impact on adjacent or near distance communities. So weâre trying to understand that phenomena.â
Mount Milligan Gold Mine north of Fort St. James is a good example. Very little growth for both FSJ and Mackenzie, but lots of fly-in camp jobs for people from all over BC and the USA.
Many mines work that way and more likely will in the future if local communities cannot support family living in its truest sense with many more amenities than small towns can offer, transportation is a cost of doing business, camps get better, and skilled labour more scarce.
So, refine the job multiplier downwards is the warning to the econmists and city planners and look at leakage of money from this region to other regions.
Its good to keep camp jobs seperate from local communites so that you dont end up like fort mcmurray where even the local residences are priced right out of their own community.
There’s no need to bring your whole family to live in the nearest community for these camp jobs. It has very little to do with what the nearby communities have to offer (or not offer).
For better or worse, these companies will fly workers in and out of the remote locations in the name of giving workers a perk and to compete for the small pool of skilled labour.
Its about labor arbitrage. No different than globalization. The cost of training and paying people to relocate to adjacent communities costs more than just flying in a work crew from the big cities.
The question for Northern Health relates to what Gus is talking about. Do they refine the job multiplier down as it relates to health care and thus the medical services that could be expected as well. If they count the employees of these resource operations as having health care in their home communities, than do the local communities closest to the resource operations get down graded to glorified ambulance outposts from the hospitals they have today?
You should take a drive up to Mackenzie Gus. I think you would be surprised by the activity.It isnt so affordable anymore though.New lots selling from 70-150,000.Northman has it right.
Had a look at Mack’s real estate market, decent prices, but nothing overly expensive compared to Prince George prices.
http://www.royallepagemackenzierealty.com/properties.html
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