Preparing for the Boom
Prince George, B.C.- First Nations and rural communities have long been calling for an over arching plan that would address the cumulative impacts of multiple resource projects in their respective regions. Many areas have been earmarked for natural gas extraction, pipelines and mine development, all major projects which require significant work force presence and significant infrastructure.
A two day conference that starts today at the University of Northern B.C. hopes to examine some of the issues raised by such development.
. The Canadian Rural Revitalization Conference gets underway today at UNBC, and is hosted by the Community Development Institute at the University.
Marleen Morris, Co-Director of the CDI says the two days will have delegates from across Canada and the United States, looking at community change, aging populations and the changing demographics, resource developments and the impacts those developments will have on communities “We’ll also look at the role of policy at the local, provincial and federal levels of government and how that can help or impede making progress on some of those issues.”
Many of the issues are being faced today by rural and resource communities says Morris. “One of the things we have been looking at at the CDI, is fly in- fly out workers, or long distant commuting and the impact that has on the host community, the home community, the workers and their families because it’s all interconnected.”
She says there have been discussions with industry about work camps and what that means to long term operations.
“We are seeing people commuting, getting into long distant commuting, from all over the world. They are specialized highly trained work teams who travel from project to project all over the world. We will be seeing some of those work teams coming to Northern B.C. as these proposed projects unfold, and so just as we saw in Kitimat with the specialized work teams who worked on the smelter at RioTinto Alcan, they already know where they’re going to work next, so we can expect to see that kind of thing on the pipelines, and we can also expect to see that with the construction of the LNG facilities should those go ahead.”
Morris expects the two days to result in a better understanding of the impacts of resource development on rural communities as well as equipping communities to better deal with some of these impacts, “most importantly we’ll be creating networks of support and expertise that people can draw on as they go through this in the coming years.”
149 delegates will be taking part in the two day conference.
Comments
The thing to do now is to start training. Small local communities should be pressing Canada Manpower for courses in all aspects of these industries. That way the people living in them would be ready to go to work when it becomes available.
The idea of waiting for a project to start and then looking for people who can do the work, usually from afar, is what limits communities in their ability to supply workers.
Posted on Thursday, September 25, 2014 @ 5:43 AM by Give more
The idea of waiting for a project to start and then looking for people who can do the work, usually from afar, is what limits communities in their ability to supply workers.
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I disagree with this part of your statement, “…is what limits communities in their ability to supply workers.”
The biggest limitation to growth is the inordinate number of lazy people in this country. We’ve raised the past generation or two with the belief that society will look after them.
The problem is less kids are being born to replace the ones dying off. The amount of tradespeople we are losing to retirement is huge and we are not replacing them at the rate we need to.
Axman you are so swift to paint an entire generation or two the exact same with your ignorance.. Try giving individuals a chance rather than having such a poor view of them you dont see them clearly.
Editor’s Note:
This comment has been edited to remove a personal attack
Posted on Thursday, September 25, 2014 @ 8:53 AM by P Val
The public gravy train can’t last forever.
“The amount of tradespeople we are losing to retirement is huge and we are not replacing them at the rate we need to. ”
That’s only partially true; trades require hard work and that’s something we’ve raised our kids to avoid.
Editor’s note:
This comment has been edited to remove a personal attack
Several years ago, BC’s apprenticeship program was changed to make it cheaper for industry. Cheaper for industry, in this case, makes it more difficult for today’s apprentices to become journeymen. We have fewer tradesmen now because we are training fewer, not because there are fewer people wanting to become tradesmen. Industry prefers temporary foreign workers because it is cheaper for them. In the long run it means there will be fewer people who can purchase industry’s goods and services.
I am sorry but I have agree with axman on that one. P Val unless you work amongst the younger generation you would have no idea what it is like. Or maybe you are fortunate enough to be working with a select few.
I’ve worked with many 20 somethings in Prince George. Like every group there are some lazy one’s but very few. these kids work illegal shift’s, most work multiple jobs at minimum wage or close to it. They can’t get a first year apprenticeship because companies only want 2nd year and better. Try saving for tuition on minimum wage? My generation could find good summer work in a mill or setting chockers,automation and mechanization have ended that. To bad forest policy and industry has lost the idea of social license in B.C.
If the boom only gets to the cusp does the boom make a sound?
Editor’s Note:
This comment has been edited to remove a personal attack
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Personal attack? Where? I saw none in either P Val’s comment or my response. Maybe my skin’s just a bit thicker.
Why not just censor the entire comment? Now I have a comment attributed to me that is not what I stated.
Didnt have time to read your post before was edited Axman..but if the owners of this site want to edit thats fine.. I can handle it as well.
Well ladies and gents I have worked in a few different fields and what I have found is it is the person.. not the age that makes them a good worker or one not so good.
I know work with people from 22 to 60 and there are some excellent workers.. some good workers and some damn lazy ones.. and their ages range from 22 to 60 :) I find the older people that I would label as lazy seem to have the ” I dont need to do more than the bare minimum because I have done enough already” or so close to retirement they dont care.. or have never cared just because of who they are.
I have trained numerous brand shiney new employees as well and again I have had the pleasure of working with some real stand up ones and ones that need to be spoon fed.
I still go back to it being the person.
It isn’t lazy young people it is a broken apprenticeship program. Yes there are young people that feel once they have come out of school they should be making $20.00 or more, but maybe we should be looking at our society for raising them. But I think that most of the problem is that industries, do not want to train people. I like the system in the Netherlands, industries have to do apprenticeship programs and they because of it they hold on to their employee’s and don’t treat them as “throw aways” in fact if they don’t have work for them they would rather retrain them than lose them.
I have to agree with PVAL most young workers want to learn & better them selves but when you get a 45-50 year old in the mix & he has an attitude or just plain lazy I have a problem with that. But not for long. bye bye.
Plain and simple ,, regardless of age you either have a strong work ethic or you don’t . way to many silver spooned around… nothing was ever handed to me .Work hard in any circle if it should be in studies or on the job,,, you will be rewarded , plain and simple , attitude also is paramount.
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