Temporary foreign workers no fix for LNG skill shortage: CLC
Posted April 5, 2014 4:06 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – The final report from Premier Christy Clark’s Liquefied Natural Gas Working Group has found BC has a huge gap when it comes to labour needed to extract the resource. The Canadian Labour Congress is warning governments temporary foreign workers are not the answer.
Senior Economist Angella MacEwan says the shortage isn’t to do with workers, it’s to do with companies not stepping up to train employees and the government not investing enough in creating apprenticeship programs. If the government allows companies to use temporary foreign workers to fill empty spots, MacEwan is concerned that will never change.
“We think that the Temporary Foreign Worker program is a disincentive for employers to develop those types of training programs within their company. What they’re saying is a shortage we’re saying is just a lack of them being able to train workers,” says MacEwen.
MacEwan adds the perception of a skilled worker shortage in our country is skewed. She claims as many people in our province educated in science and technology are unemployed as workers with degrees in humanities.
“Canadian workers are one of the most qualified workforces in the world. We have a great education,” says MacEwan, but adds employers seem to be hesitant to make the long term investment in training employees.
Meanwhile, BC’s Jobs Minister Shirley Bond assures the province is committed to giving British Columbians first dibs on LNG jobs. “Everyone agreed – we need to train British Columbian first, then look to Canadians, then skilled immigrants, and then TFWs as a last resort,” Bond wrote in an email statement.
Bond also referred to the province, Federal government, LNG industry and labour groups committing to work together to get British Columbians ready for LNG jobs. She calls the commitment “the kind of co-operation LNG proponents told us they haven’t seen elsewhere,” and says the report came from people on the ground looking for real solutions.
The report released Thursday included fifteen recommendations on skills training, including setting a deadline of July 1st to develop a structure with representation from industry, organized labour, First Nations, and governments to address workforce planning issues.
