The Honourable Candice Bergen, Minister of State (Social Development)
September 11, 2014
Melbourne, Australia

Mr. Chairman and colleagues,

I am honoured to be here today, on behalf of the Government of Canada, to talk about the many ways our government is helping to ensure Canadians have the skills and training they need in today’s economy.

The Government of Canada’s top priorities are: creating jobs, economic growth and long-term prosperity.

Over the last few years, we took significant steps to increase the participation of all Canadians in the labour market and ensure they have the skills employers need.

Let me start with an overview of our current economic situation.

Canada’s economy is performing well in the context of the global economic recovery.

Since the depths of the global recession, Canada has created over one million net new jobs.

Since implementing our Economic Action Plan during the global recession in 2009, Canada has achieved one of the best job creation records, some of the strongest income growth, and one of the best economic performances in the G7.  

To add to that, hundreds of major resource projects are also scheduled to come on stream over the next decade.

And we have ratified or signed in principle free trade agreements with dozens of countries around the world, expanding and diversifying export markets.

This translates into a wealth of economic opportunity for Canadians. 

However, we’re still facing critical challenges; namely, ensuring we have enough people with the right skills for the jobs of the future.

Currently, we are experiencing significant skills shortages in certain regions and industries, for instance in the construction, minining and petroleum sectors.

We’re addressing this by moving toward a better way to match skills training with in-demand jobs.

Specifically, we’re working in partnership with provincial and territorial governments, businesses, unions, and educational and training institutions to ensure Canadians have the skills employers are looking for in today’s economy. For example, we are doing this through: the Canada Job Grant, the Canada Apprentice Loan, and the Youth Employment Strategy.

Employers in particular will have a central role in training decisions.

We have recently renegotiated training agreements between the Government of Canada and our provincial/territorial governments to put a greater emphasis on ensuring employers are involved in training decisions.

Following the lead of our G20 partner, Germany, we are encouraging a “parity of esteem” between university education and apprenticeship.

Namely, we are seeking to dispel the myth that a university degree has more social standing or value than apprenticeship or technical training.

We need to ensure Canadian youth are aware of the jobs that are in demand in today’s economy.

I am talking about jobs in the skilled trades, as well as in fields like science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

Another way our government is helping young Canadians enter the workforce is with a new focus on apprenticeship training.

Apprenticeship training is a key component of our post-secondary education and training system and an important contributor to Canada’s competitive edge.

We offer a number of programs to support apprenticeship training and encourage people, particularly youth, to enter the skilled trades, which are in high demand.

In fact, we are going to need a million skilled trade workers just by the end of this decade. With our population aging, there are a lot of opportunities for other groups that are under-represented in the labour force.

Youth, new Canadians, people with disabilities, Aboriginal people—they all represent a real untapped potential. We have to go the extra mile to help them put their talents to work.

Canada can’t afford to let any qualified people sit on the sidelines. That’s why we are working with provinces and regulators to recognize the credentials of new Canadians more quickly.

There are also approximately 800,000 people with disabilities—half of whom hold a post-secondary degree, yet remain unemployed. That needs to change.  I often say that all Canadians who want to work—who have the ability to work—should not face any additional barriers.

And lastly, we are taking a close look at how we can help more Aboriginal people to participate in the labour market.

The fact is that many of the large-scale natural resource projects on the horizon are situated in rural and remote areas of Canada.

So it only makes sense that we train and recruit employees from the local population. That definitely includes Canada’s Aboriginal people.

With all of these upcoming economic opportunities, combined with skills shortages in a number of regions and industries, we have a challenging road ahead. 

However, I can confidently say that we are on the right track.

By getting in at the ground level, involving employers, educators and all levels of government, we are keeping Canada on the road of economic growth and prosperity.

Thank you.