Take a look in the mirror bond. your fine government took away a huge part of funding for apprenticeships. Then tried to replace your incompetance with foreign workers… that failed as well.. but nice work blaming it on all of Canada.

I agree with P Val. And I would like to remind the government that Phil Hochstein doesn’t speak for workers he actually speaks for anti union contractors so listening to him in the past was a mistake that led to the demise of the apprenticeship program and continuing to listen to him will be a bigger mistake. This is just my opinion of course.

Industry needs to take some of that responsibility.
They are the ones hiring journey persons.
A journey person used to be called a master crafts person. That designation comes with the responsibility to train apprentices.

That has not been happening.

Is Canada a welfare state?
Why do we always need to beg the government for handouts all the time?

Business needs to invest in new talent. It is governments role to enable, facilitate, and support with legislation.

Well, Bond says that she is not satisfied that the apprenticeship program is working the best it can.
Well Minister Bond I would suggest that you and your politicians get back into your offices and do something about it instead of running all over the country for photops. You have had over 10 years to do something about these type of problems and another study is certainly not required.The shortage of workers are fabricated numbers – how about all the forestry workers and others who are unemployed – start training them now to become plumbers, machinists, etc.

the onus on training in the past was on the employer in many situations. Now it has shifted to the worker. The costs of taking courses is high enough many cannot take advantage of the training and are stuck in lower paid jobs. It becomes a vicious circle. So much of the issue comes down to the dollars needed to go into the trades. Wish things could revert to the old “master crafts” person doing the training and employers holding the responsibility to train their workers.

If Industry or Business need the Tradesmen, let Industry do the training, after all it’s for there own Survival ! Next I don’t believe in a Million Jobs available out there, I think this is wish full Thinking !

Why is it up to the government to fund training? If you want to be a teacher or lawyer or nurse you figure out how to pay for tuition. If you want to be a welder or plumber you expect the government to pay your way?

““There still needs to be a fundamental shift in the way people think of trades in our country “ says Bond. She says when you ask to parents about what they want their children to do with their lives, they never say they want them to be a machinist, a plumber or a pipe fitter. She says when she talks to young people she reminds them “the plumber drives a jaguar.””

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Who cares what parents what their children to do with their lives? It’s more important for the kids and young adults to figure that out for themselves and then put a plan in action to make it happen.

As for a plumber driving a jaguar, again, who cares? Is one’s measure of success their ability to purchase a luxury car at some point in their life? If so, I can list 10 occupations off the top of my head that will get someone to that “pinnacle” more effectively than being a plumber.

People should do whatever the heck they want and we should encourage them to do that instead of bickering about which career path is best. There are more than enough jobs in the trades to go around and there are more than enough jobs that require a university education to go around. Find a career you enjoy, put in the work to succeed and enjoy your life.

A million jobs out there? Bond must be getting her facts from Green. Ok, so why are so many people unemployed??????

Interceptor.. you really dont think post secondary students are paying the full bill for their schooling do you ? I certainly hope not.. Its also partially funded by the government.

You probably dont know this as well either. The government doesnt completely fund the apprenticeships.

As for her stupid statement about ” plumbers drive Jaguars” how ignorant is she. I know lots of parents who hope their children will go into trades.. she again shows how out of touch with reality she is.

Nmg you missed the point. All through school it is a subtle push to uni. And trades are looked down appon.

“the plumber drives a jaguar.” .. therein lies the problem in a nutshell. If people are choosing careers solely on how much money they can make then they will jump ship at the first opportunity. What needs to happen is instilling in the next workforce generation what once was important, and that is quality of workmanship and pride in the work you can do. Whether you want to be a plumber, carpenter, machinist, lawyer, surgeon or whatever, they need to have a like for that type of work otherwise quality, service, etc suffers.

I think some people are over-analyzing the jaguar comment.

Some people are motivated by money. Some are motivated by job satifaction. Some are motivated by the hours and conditions of work. Some do or don’t want to travel. Some are motivated by a combination of the above. So what?

oneman: “A million jobs out there? Bond must be getting her facts from Green. Ok, so why are so many people unemployed??????”

We have mid single digit unemployment. I’d say the vast majority are employed.

jb says “We have mid single digit unemployment. I’d say the vast majority are employed.”
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JB … you absolutely correct … however, keep the local stat of a govt reported reduced number in the workforce month after month in the PG area … the permanent number of residents in the North continues to decrease

“Nmg you missed the point. All through school it is a subtle push to uni. And trades are looked down apron”

No I get Bond’s point, I just don’t think that it’s an issue.

Generally speaking, I think people will end up doing whatever they want to do. There aren’t many plumbers trapped in a lawyer’s body, nor are there many carpenters who would’ve preferred to be a chemical engineer.

There is no point in “selling” the trades over anything else, nor is there any point in pushing university over the trades. I think we should simply be honest in telling young people about various career options, what the work entails, how to get there, what type of investment is required, etc. We should even do skills or other assessments to see what types of jobs may make more sense for people. Let’s prepare people for the job market as best we can, but let’s get away from selling one type of career over another.

I know people are supportive of the path that they chose, but it’s really irrelevant at the end of the day. With the labour shortages that will be occurring across every sector in the years ahead, most anyone who acquires any skill will be employable. Heck, there’s a good chance that they could all drive a Jaguar as well. Of course, they may not make enough to keep it running, LOL ;)

I guess to say it another way, I simply see no way that Canada will have enough people in the job market to meet the demand for all of the jobs that will be out there.

There will be nurse shortages, lawyer shortages, welder shortages, heavy duty mechanic shortages, economist shortages, IT shortages and roofer shortages. Take your pick and be happy. About the only shortage we won’t have will be for politicians. In many cases, that is unfortunate. Some of those probably could go unfilled without any significant impact.

“the permanent number of residents in the North continues to decrease”

Actually not during the last census …. the two censuses prior there was a drop.

“Some of those probably could go unfilled without any significant impact.”

We have a good example here. We actually do not need a Mayor. As long as we have a City Manager, we will manage.

;-)

In the early 80’s I know that apprenticeships were tied in with EI and they oversaw the program. They made sure that when required work hours were reached, the apprentice went to school. This ensured that a 4 year program took 4 years and that employers sponsored a full program. EI also helped prospects fill out the paperwork required and answered questions and concerns from both apprentices and employers. Today many apprentices are able to get one or two years in and then have difficulty finding an employer willing to hire them. Some have said that they are working but their employer claims they can’t spare them when the classes are scheduled. Maybe our present government should look to the past to solve some of their current issues.

“I simply see no way that Canada will have enough people in the job market to meet the demand for all of the jobs that will be out there.”

Classic example of an upstart business running on insufficient capitalization and operation capacity – promoting products and service through market expansion and then falling flat and even dying when people demand the products being offered and the orders cannot be filled or the products and service are not up to the level promised due to an untrained, unskilled and inexperienced workforce.

Thus we will follow the path of most other developed countries and buy the workforce from the rest of the world.

Of course, the underdeveloped countries, such as China, have tons of underemployed people working at low tech jobs making a bare living income, and ready to move into the modern industrial revolution. India is not far behind.

Hey you just described Canada’s Oil and Gas sector circa 2025 ;)

“She says it means the Province will have to look beyond B.C.’s borders, and work to bring those workers back to B.C.”

Wait a minute. I could swear we stole those doctors and other health care workers from the rest of the world in the first place when we did not educate enough doctors ourselves. The same with engineers, machinists, mechanics, hospitality industry workers, janitors, technical sales staff, and on and on.

We are a province of immigrants and will continue to be a province of immigrants.

What exactly is new with this picture?

There will be stiff competition for skilled workers in the future.

Companies and Management will have to have a change in attitude, and start to protect their workforce or they will be facing some serious consequences. Any CEO’s or Managers, that are waiting for the Government to solve this problem, will probably end up on their asses in the parking lot.

Workers will have options for the next 10/20 years, in areas like Kitimat, Terrace, Prince Rupert, Highway 37, Tumbler Ridge, Ft, St John, and of course Alberta. Those who pay good money, and treat their employee’s well will come out on top,. Those who act like a..h…s, will pay the price.

Skilled workers from Prince George can pick a job anywhere they please in this day and age. Prince George could very will end up losing skilled workers to other area’s. That’s the real threat.

Wow, talk about being completely out of touch! Shirley, I don’t think your words are much of a comfort to the 500 sawmill workers in Houston and Quesnel who just lost their jobs!

Feeding us shite and calling it pudding again.

Shirley could be successful in the balloon touring business, with the BC Liberals backing her, the amount of hot air available could preclude the need for propane powered flames.
Anyway, this government had the chance to improve the trades training situation in B.C. and address the looming shortage that many of us predicted starting around 1997.By the time the Liberals got their turn in office, the problem was well under way. They could have seen this coming, instead, they dismantled the joint apprenticeship board, a relatively successful institution, and waited for industry to pick up the slack. For the most part, industry did not pick up said slack, after all, there were still enough skilled people around for us to get by for a few more years. All of this smoke and mirrors and foaming at the mouth about “skilled labour shortages” yes it is true, but as usual, the government, any government, is years and years behind, and ineffective to the point of hilarity.
metalman.

“She predicts 2016 will be a peak construction year in B.C. “That means we are going to need a lot of people in particular professions during that time” says Bond.”

There is the problem identified so clearly right there. If one looks at the construction industry in Canada, it averages about 6% of the total workforce. The peaks of 7% plus and valleys of 4 to 5% and sometimes less depend on location in economic cycles.

The core get to stay in the communities they can call home while the specialists as well as the additional workers added on at peak times get to live more like nomads in their own land and sometimes even in other lands depending on the quality of the skill sets they have.

There is nothing permanent about most of the skilled trades anymore.

So, it is best if people cannot join the core group that can be sustained by a community during the down cycles, that they get used to relocating based on jobs or have a broader set of knowledge and skills to smooth out the peaks and valleys.

“any government, is years and years behind, and ineffective to the point of hilarity.”

What a bunch of crock. We do not live in a country which has central planning with 5 year plans that are adhered to. We have a country which is lead by private enterprises. If they cannot take care of understanding where their industry is going, and preparing according to their standards, how the hell should the government?

THAT is what the problem is as far as I am concerned.

I know a couple of nomad “ticket” holders; one in plumbing, the other in welding. The plumber has a 2 year contract in Kitimat and travels there and back to PG (where he kind of still lives?). The welder also has a 2 year contract at Rigbey Island Terminal, straight $35 an hour, no benefits, nothing else, except worker’s comp.

Take it or leave it! Once the two year expansion projects are done, move on to another part of BC. Some life…

Oops; “Ridley” Island Terminal.

I don’t know how to describe their work lifestyle… kind of like a high paid “Carney” lifestyle?

The bottom line is that the trades sector has been virtually ignored by the school system for the last 30 yrs.Industry also plays a huge part. Before 2007 most large companies would rob apprentices from the smaller companies, now they can’t do that and all of a sudden there is a trades shortage. We knew this was coming, large companies were too cheap in the late 90’s to address it, now they should have to pay.

“What a bunch of crock”

My point is that government is ‘reacting’ to a crisis, years too late.

You are correct in stating that this countrys’ governments do not have 5 year plans, they have 3 or 4 year plans, and they are all about re-election strategies.
I also agree with you (!) in that business should (also) plan further ahead when trends (such as fewer skilled workers) begin to become noticable.
It is impossible for any small business to counteract this trend on any noticable scale, hiring and training a few apprentices helps of course, but how many can you support? Your skilled people are who get the work done, helping to keep the enterprise viable. Apprenti’ in general,
are a burden, until they learn enough to perform skilled tasks on their own.
metalman.