Workers offered yoga, PlayStations as companies face labour crunch in the West

14 hours ago

REGINA — It used to be that Christmas marked the time when employees might look to their boss for a bonus, but a growing labour shortage in Western Canada has prompted some businesses to offer extra goodies no matter the season.

Workers are being wooed with everything from pet insurance to PlayStations to yoga.

Twice a week, office staff at Scott Plastics Ltd. in Sidney, B.C., can slip away from the tensions of the day-to-day workplace and into a yoga class. It’s an idea that the company launched about a year ago to help keep workers happy.

“We started doing it just for a small group of office staff, really for a bit of break,” said Robin Richardson, Scott’s vice-president of operations. “Whilst they go out and have walks at their break time, I felt that some additional relaxation … was a good idea.”

“They seem to really enjoy it and the net result of it was after a while a number of the male office staff asked if they could join as well.”

It might seem like an odd incentive for a company that manufactures the Scotty range of sport fishing, marine, outdoor and firefighting equipment and makes custom injection moulding.

But Richardson said it’s been good for employees - and for business.

“We were basically looking for something that was going to be beneficial to them and at the same time basically probably improve the work performance. I think they’d all say that it does both,” he said.

It’s just one example of what a company is doing to help keep staff in a tight labour market.

The shortage of staff is “hitting hard right across the West,” said Laura Jones, vice-president for Western Canada for the Canadian Federation of Independent Business.

The federation estimates that almost 40 per cent of Saskatchewan employers had trouble finding workers last year. In Alberta the number rose to half.

The group recently asked small business owners in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia if they’ve done anything different to retain or attract employees over the past three years as a result of labour shortages.

More than 50 per cent said they had.

“I was floored, frankly, by how many people said yes,” Jones said from her Vancouver office. “It’s pretty neat some of the things they’ve tried.”

“Many are going beyond the obvious and doing things like signing bonuses or adding perks like golf trips, family days, dinners out.”

Jones said employees aren’t just looking for more money - they want things that enhance their quality of life.

“They are looking for things like ‘Can I bring my dog to work?’ and in some cases in a small business that’s possible.”

Yes, even Fluffy and Fido are getting attention. Home Depot, for example, offers pet insurance to its employees.

Other companies, like Regina-based NorthPoint Energy Solutions Inc., have stepped up with something more tangible. The subsidiary of SaskPower offered all 35 employees the choice of a PlayStation 3, a television or a GPS unit at the end of last year.

“Essentially people can look at that, they’ll probably have it for several years, and they’ll be able to take pride in saying, ‘My company gave that to me,’ ” said Grant Ring, NorthPoint’s chief executive officer.

“By and large, people get so little recognition in companies that I think the average person is surprised if they get a couple of good thank yous every so often.”

NorthPoint competes with companies outside of Saskatchewan across Canada and in the United States. Ring said he thinks the incentive makes a difference in helping to keep workers.

“People feel that they belong, that they can develop and grow within the company and that they’re appreciated,” he said.

“We’re not at all competing per se on bonus plans and other incentive plans; we just don’t have that in our structure. So what we want to do is show other ways that we can recognize our employees.”

While workers use the PlayStations, it’s employers who may have to up their game as the labour crunch grows.

Alberta’s government estimates that by 2016, the province could experience a shortage of up to 109,000 workers across all sectors. Saskatchewan Labour Minister Rob Norris said if his province’s economic boom continues on its current path, it will be short as many as 12,000 workers in just three to five years.

On the other hand, places hit hard by the loss of manufacturing jobs are trying to come up with ways to take advantage of the western shortage.

Eddie Francis, the mayor of Windsor, Ont., is touting a plan to help residents of his city commute to jobs in Western Canada. Francis wants mayors from Regina, Saskatoon, Edmonton and Calgary to put their heads together to develop a program to eliminate or reduce the cost of travel between the cities.

“If we’re able to do that, effectively what we’re doing is creating a shuttle where employees can go work .. then come back home on the weekend,” said Francis.

Francis called it “a win-win situation.” Western cities would get highly skilled workers and Windsor would benefit when they brought their paycheques home.

One day after floating the idea, Francis said he was inundated with calls from companies in Saskatchewan.

In the meantime, employers like Richardson in B.C. are concentrating on making work a little nicer for those workers they do have.

“If you’ve got a happier workplace, then you’re less likely to lose staff.”

Stelmach announces minimum wage increase

Tony Seskus, Calgary Herald

Published: Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Alberta’s minimum wage will increase on April 1, rising to $8.40 from $8 per hour, Premier Ed Stelmach announced today.

Speaking to reporters in Edmonton, Stelmach said the hike is in keeping with the government’s decision last year that minimum wage increases would be based on the average weekly wage index for Alberta.

The index is based on Statistics Canada’s annual survey of employment, payroll and hours.
“With our vibrant economy (and) low unemployment, most employers are paying more than minimum wage,” Stelmach said.
About 70,000 or 3.5 per cent of working Albertans make minimum wage. The majority are 15 to 19 year olds working in the food service and hospitality industries. Stelmach said the announcement was timely as many students prepare to find summer jobs.

“This will ensure that minimum-wage earners share in Alberta’s continuing economic prosperity,” he added.
Alberta will have the third highest minimum wage among provinces, behind only Ontario ($8.75) and Manitoba ($8.50).

tseskus@theherald.canwest.com

Geoffrey Scotton,
Calgary Herald

Published: Monday, March 17, 2008

CALGARY
- Alberta’s manufacturing sector started 2008 on a financially positive
note, with the value of shipments from the province’s factories,
refineries and assembly facilities rising 0.9 per cent from January
2007 to more than $5.5 billion.

The positive performance in
January followed an annual gain in 2007, when the sector posted record
output for the fifth consecutive year despite year-end weakness, with
sales for the year rising about one per cent to more than $67 billion.

January’s
rebound in Alberta from a 1.2 per cent drop in December - the fourth
decline in five months - was led by gains among energy products,
Statistics Canada said. The gains were attributable to improved prices.

“Manufacturing sales in the western provinces were led by Alberta
(up 0.9 per cent) in January, as a two-per-cent price increase assisted
petroleum and coal product manufacturers in the stalwart oil patch,”
StatsCan said in an analysis.

Manufacturing shipments also picked
up nationally in January, rising 1.3 per cent to $49.3 billion from
December, when the country posted a three-year low, marked by a
3.7-per-cent decline from the previous month. Despite the
month-to-month improvement, January’s overall sales were the lowest
since March 2005.

gscotton@theherald.canwest.com

Evans says U.S. credit crisis unlikely to derail provincial investment plans

Tony Seskus and Tony Seskus, Calgary Herald, Archie McLean,
The Edmonton Journal, With files from Renata D’Aliesio,
Calgary Herald; The Edmonton Journal; Canwest News Service

Alberta’s new finance minister doesn’t expect a downturn in the U.S. economy to torpedo the province’s spending plans.

Iris Evans, who is planning how the province will invest in key areas such
as health and education, said Monday the billions of investment dollars
destined for the oilsands provide a buffer for the economy other
jurisdictions don’t have.

The escalating credit crisis in the
U.S. rattled North American stocks Monday, stirring fears of a pending
recession. But even as oil prices slid by more than $4 US per barrel,
Evans said Alberta is “relatively well off” because of the energy
industry.

“I don’t see it having an effect on spending plans,” Evans said,
adding there could be an impact if the problems drag on. “But at this
stage, they’re not ringing any alarm bells.”

The provincial government is expected to release its budget by early May.

Economists agree Alberta is well-positioned to weather an economic storm, but some
local industries are already hurting from the U.S. slowdown. And
Canadian investors who’ve poured their savings into equity markets are
being impacted by the market jitters.

Mike Percy, dean of the University of Alberta School of Business, warned that Albertans could
feel the pinch of the North American credit crunch.

“It’s clear that the sub-prime fiasco and the general crunch in credit markets is
going to affect everyone, regardless of where they live,” Percy said.

“You will find a tightening up of credit conditions and, whether you live in
Alberta or Ontario. In these types of credit crunches, no one or no
region is immune. Either credit will be unavailable if you have a
spotty record, or it will be available to you at a higher cost than it
had been.”

The Toronto Stock Exchange’s main index fell sharply
on Monday, reflecting weaker commodity prices and further worries over
how a stumbling U.S. economy will affect the rest of the world.

Canada’s main stock index dropped to its lowest point in five weeks, led by
Royal Bank of Canada and other financial companies. The drop came after
U.S. investment bank Bear Stearns Cos. was sold for $2 per share –
less than one-tenth of its market value as recently as Friday — to
avoid collapse.

In Ottawa, the federal finance department stressed that the domestic banking system is solid and
well-capitalized, but acknowledged Canada is not bullet-proof to market
uncertainty.

“As an open trading economy, Canada is not immune to
the growing uncertainty in the United States and on global markets,”
said Finance spokesman David Gamble.

In Edmonton, Evans said Alberta’s economy is on solid ground with the long-term investment of
the oilsands unaffected by the ebb and flow of markets.

“Alberta will be relatively well off because we’re safer,” she said. “I think
the long-term investments in the oilsands really protect us, so there’s
a sustainability to our economy that isn’t there elsewhere.”

Brett Gartner, senior economist at the Canada West Foundation, said the slowdown in the U.S. is “real and it’s deep.”

“But I am still holding strong to my belief and my view that Alberta
– and the West in general — are fairly well positioned to fare better
than the rest of Canada and will not be dragged down completely by the
U.S.,” Gartner said. Gartner said some of the good news for Alberta is
the strength of the economies in China and India, which keeps energy
markets strong.

However, Percy cautioned the provincial
government has significant economic challenges. The province will want
to meet public demand for infrastructure without “overheating an
already heated economy,” he said.

Some sectors are still being hit hard.

Alberta’s $11-billion forestry industry, the province’s
third-largest economic sector, is alarmed by its financial state and
the fallout for 47,000 workers.

Brady Whittaker, the executive of the Alberta Forest Products Association, points to high energy and
utility costs, a buoyant Canadian dollar, the softwood lumber agreement
with the U.S., the American housing crash and the province’s mountain
pine beetle infestation as challenges for the industry.

In the past year, 1,000 forestry jobs have been cut, while 1,500 to 2,000
indirect positions, such as logging and transport contracts, have
evaporated.

Like the forestry industry, Alberta’s cattle
producers are suffering, too — and looking for export markets outside
of the sluggish U.S.

Erik Butters, chairman of the Alberta Beef
Producers, said the industry is facing a double-whammy: a Canadian
dollar that rose rapidly and soaring feed prices due to the biofuels
boom.

“We probably could sort of withstand one or the other,”
Butters said. “But to have them both at once has proven extremely
difficult.”

But Butters is expecting a turnaround through higher food prices.

“It would be nice to just get back to a profitable margin because we are far from it right now,” he said.

© The Edmonton Journal 2008

VICTORIA, BRITISH COLUMBIA–(Marketwire - March 10, 2008) - The Canadian Construction Association has honoured excellence within the Canadian construction industry by recognizing the achievements of individuals, projects, and associations at its annual awards ceremony. The awards were presented during CCA’s 90th Annual conference in Victoria, British Columbia.

The following awards and recipients were announced at the awards ceremony:

CCA Person of the Year Award: The 2007 recipient is Mr. Leo McArthur, President and CEO of the Miller Group of Companies located in Markham, Ontario. Leo has been an icon within the Canadian construction industry, having been among the first nominees to the Ontario Road Builders’ Association Hall of Honour. In addition to growing Miller into a company employing over 3,000 people with operations in 6 provinces and the United States, Leo has sat on numerous industry Boards and Committees in both Canada and the US. His impressive community work earned him the CCA Community Leader award in 2006. Leo has truly stood out as a leader in the industry and in his community.

CCA General Contractor Award of Excellence: The 2007 recipient is Mr. Alfonso Argento, President and Chief Operating Office of Seven Brothers Construction in Montreal, Quebec. Alfonso has served as the President of the Association de la construction du Quebec - Montreal, Vice-President of the provincial association de la construction du Quebec, and was the 2006 Chairman of the Canadian Construction Association. He also sat on the Board of the Hopital Riviere-des-Prairies and the Musee Pointe-a-Calliere, and is currently a member of the fundraising team for the Ecole de technologie superieure, a Quebec engineering school.

CCA Trade Contractor Award of Excellence: The 2007 recipient is Mr. Dave Pelletier, President of D & G Mechanical Ltd located in Kelowna, British Columbia. Dave has served as President of the British Columbia Construction Association, and served on the Executive Committees of the Southern Interior Construction Association and the Canadian Construction Association, where he also has served as Chair of the Standard Practices Council.

CCA Environmental Achievement Award: The 2007 recipient is Windmill Development Group of Ottawa, Ontario for their Vento Project, located in Calgary, Alberta. The Vento Project is one of Canada’s only LEED Platinum certified projects, and in fact was awarded the highest LEED point total for a residential mixed use project in North America. The Vento is a mixed business and affordable housing complex built on a brownfield, and located close to public transit and green spaces. Its low flow appliances and harvested rainwater systems reduce water use; its purchase of green energy, use of photocell lighting and timers reduce energy use; and 61% of the waste generated during construction was diverted away from landfills. It also served as a teaching project for many contractors and designers in the Calgary area.

CCA Roadbuilders Award of Excellence, sponsored by On-Site Magazine: The 2007 recipient is Mr. Doug Woods, President of Cope Construction located in Sarnia, Ontario. He is a Past President of the Ontario Sewer and Watermain Construction Association, Past President of the Ontario Hot Mix Producers Association, Past President of the Sarnia Heavy Construction Association, and has sat on the Boards of the Ontario Road Builders Association and the Construction Safety Association of Ontario. He has also been the Past President of the Kinsmen Club of Sarnia, leading a major fight against cystic fibrosis.

CCA National Safety Award, sponsored by Vipond Inc.: The 2007 recipient is the Ledcor Group of Companies headquartered in Edmonton, Alberta. Ledcor has developed a health, safety and environmental program for all its construction divisions. Anytime a new project is developed, Ledcor develops a tailored safety program for the project, which is supplemented by drug and alcohol testing, a safe work practices manual and mentoring. Such a heavy emphasis on safety has enabled Ledcor to realize a million Accident Free hours at its Suncor Expansion project in Fort McMurray and 2 million Accident Free hours at its Long Lake Opti Nexen Project in Fort McMurray.

CCA Member Association Award of Excellence: The 2007 recipient is l’association de la construction du Quebec - region de Quebec. ACQ - Quebec celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2007, a milestone that was celebrated with a weeklong celebration in spring 2007. ACQ-Quebec has also taken the lead in supporting the progress of many mega-projects in the Quebec region, leading to thousands of new construction jobs. Its plansroom is state of the art, including a lamination service for plans. Continuing education, promotion of Gold Seal, and training are key services that have been improved. Since the beginning of 2006, ACQ-Quebec has built on a successful membership drive by attracting some 230 new businesses.

An honourable mention was also awarded to the Calgary Construction Association.

CCA Community Leader Award, sponsored by Ed. Brunet et associes inc.: The 2007 recipient is Ms. Shirley Westeinde, Chair of the Westeinde Group of Companies located in Ottawa, Ontario. Aside from her industry activities which saw her take over as the first female Chair of the Canadian Construction Association, Shirley’s community efforts are impressive. Today, she Chairs “Success by Six”, a program to provide physical and mental nurturing to children entering school. She also Chairs the Board of Governors at Algonquin College, is a member of the Leadership Table on Homelessness. She has been involved with or sat on the Boards of well over a dozen local and regional not-for-profit organizations and charities in the Ottawa and Eastern Ontario region, and has been recognized by numerous awards for her various community endeavours.

Oil & Gas Outlook

By Mike Byfield

Ominous clouds loom on the energy sector’s horizon: recession in the United States, anti-trade rhetoric from American presidential contenders, tightening environmental legislation across North America and the like. Even so, some petroleum managers and analysts remain optimistic about the future. “The drilling downturn in Alberta, low storage inventories and a tight international market for LNG [liquid natural gas] will generate a significant rally in natural gas prices beginning as early as this summer,” predicts Len Kerkovius, a senior research analyst with McLean & Partners Wealth Management Ltd. Bob Keiller, CEO of Production Services Network (PSN), is even more confident about the longer-term outlook. “Western Canada represents a fantastic international source for growth in the oil and gas sector,” says the Scottish oilman (shown below), whose global company is now establishing an engineering hub in Calgary.

“The fundamental factor is the price of oil,” comments Jerry Taylor, a senior fellow with the Cato Institute. The Washington-based scholar notes that crude values surged in a major way on six occasions over the past century, often prompting speculation that world supplies were at the point of permanently diminishing. “Of course, that concern proved groundless. But there is a difference this time. In the past, oil price increases were always triggered by supply shortages or disruptions. The dramatic jumps that we’ve experienced in recent years have been driven by demand - we’ve just experienced the longest period of prosperity in history - and that’s new,” Taylor says.

The American boom appears to be over at last. “We believe the U.S. has already entered a recessionary period,” says Anil Tahiliani, research director at McLean & Partners. For many economists, a recession is defined as two or more consecutive quarters of negative growth in GDP (Gross Domestic Product). Although the Americans have not yet recorded even one monthly decline, economic growth below the 49th parallel has all but disappeared. That slowdown raises basic questions: Do high oil prices trigger recession in consuming countries? Will oil demand slacken in a recessionary U.S. and possibly elsewhere? And if oil demand does weaken, will crude prices drop in response?

“Our research into the last few recessions indicates that crude demand in the U.S. and globally did not decline much,” Tahiliani says. In fact, oil consumption is strikingly unresponsive to higher prices. Even though American gasoline rocketed from $1 per gallon to about $3 within the past few years, drivers there are pumping as much fuel as ever into their tanks. So Tahiliani doubts that crude over $100 per barrel is the prime culprit in the current slowdown.

After OPEC engineered a four-fold jump in crude prices during the 1970s, North America went into a recession that persisted into the early ’80s. Cato’s Taylor is not convinced that a repeat of that debacle will occur now. “First, it’s not certain that higher oil prices were in fact responsible for that recession,” he cautions. “Also, federally imposed wage and price controls were in place at the time, which impeded the economy’s capacity to adjust promptly to higher energy prices. That’s not the situation now. And interest rates rose to crippling heights in the late 1970s. Today interest rates are coming down, not going up.”

“The million-dollar question is the global impact of a slowdown in the U.S.,” Tahiliani suggests. The United States has powered much of the world’s recent prosperity through heavy, debt-financed imports. Its net trade imbalance reached $838 billion in 2006. But the country’s capacity to continue buying with borrowed funds has been hobbled by record public and private debt - the national credit card may be maxed out. Fortunately, however, China and India may be less dependent on exporting to the U.S. than previously. “An increasing percentage of Asia’s economic activity occurs within the region,” Tahiliani says. “Asian oil demand may bear up despite a recession in the U.S.”

Americans are scheduled to elect a new president on November 4. In hard times, U.S. voters typically shift leftward, expecting their federal government to cushion the blow for the most vulnerable as well as jump-start the economy again. The leading Democratic candidates, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, are liberal senators who advocate a larger spending role for government in health care, education and elsewhere. And both presidential contenders have played heavily on fears that the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) with Mexico and Canada has caused job losses in the U.S.

George Eynon, vice-president of the Canadian Energy Research Institute (CERI), acknowledges some concern over this issue. “The Americans have a dynamic political process and you can never completely rule out the possibility of major policy changes,” he says. But NAFTA also has formidable strengths. The Cato Institute, among many others, insists that free trade has generated a net employment gain for the country, with the creation of well-paid jobs more than making up for the loss of less skilled work. Furthermore, Eynon notes that Canada provides 15% of American oil and natural gas supply along with a big chunk of its electricity. “The trade treaty is an important component of American energy security and that’s not going to change for the foreseeable future,” he says.

CERI, which tracks international energy trends, does not see the political hostility of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez (shown here) toward neighbouring Colombia as a large economic concern, nor does he believe that Chavez is likely to make good on his threats to choke exports to the U.S. “Venezuela is not a really big piece of the global oil market to start with,” Eynon observes. The Latin American nation, whose economy is already fragile, cannot afford to shut in much crude production. If Chavez diverts his oil to customers in Asia or Europe, the overall international supply-demand balance will not be affected and the U.S. will buy elsewhere. Nor do other customers have the refining capacity to process the heavy, sulphur-laden crude exported by Venezuela.

Environmental policies in the U.S. and Canada do concern Eynon. “Regulatory interventions designed to minimize climate change are not necessarily bad for petroleum producers but the industry must maintain an ongoing dialogue with those jurisdictions,” he says. The U.S. Energy Security Act already places restrictions on federal use of fuels derived from high-carbon sources like oilsands bitumen. A California-led alliance of states and provinces (British Columbia and Manitoba) has adopted regulations designed to restrict future consumption of high-carbon fuels. Beginning July 1, B.C. will start phasing in a direct consumer tax on carbon fuels. And the federal government just announced stringent carbon sequestration standards for Canadian bitumen projects coming on stream in 2012 or later.

Natural gas prices, which sagged badly last fall, are a crucial factor for conventional producers in the gas-prone Western Sedimentary Basin. Although prices have recovered recently, Kerkovius notes that further softening may occur later this spring. By mid-summer, though, the McLean analyst expects to see longer-term price gains. Gas storage inventories coming out of the winter season are lower than they’ve been for the past three years. Despite aggressive drilling in the U.S., production is not rising. Canadian gas output has declined due to lower drilling activity. Nor does Kerkovius think North American demand will draw in a flood of cheap LNG. “Liquefaction facilities are not coming on stream overseas as quickly as the market requires,” he forecasts. And the gas price recovery would become a spike if next winter is unusually cold or a hurricane ravages the U.S. Gulf Coast.

Alistair Green, business development director for Production Services Network, says Alberta’s recent squabbling over royalty rates will soon pass. PSN is an engineering and service contractor based in Scotland with a world-wide payroll of 8,000. The company just acquired Calgary’s Tartan Engineering, which will act as its expansion platform for Western Canada. “We have both NOCs [state-owned national oil companies] and IOCs [non-government international oil companies] as clients. At this point, IOCs have access to just 16%-18% of the world’s oil,” Green (shown here) says. “For those producers, the oilsands in particular have a powerful appeal. Thanks to its energy resources and political stability, this region has a tremendous future.”

Source: DOB Magazine

Mar 10, 2008 04:30 AM

David Crane
Global Issues Columnist

What job delivered the biggest opportunity growth in the years 2001-06? If you answered “retail sales clerk” you would have been right. For both men and women, retail sales had by far the strongest growth in jobs over that period.

While this reflects strong consumer spending in Canada, it also raises a more worrisome question on whether we are employing more and more people to sell products and services made elsewhere.

It used to be that there were far more Canadians employed in manufacturing than in retail sales. In 2001, there were 379,000 more people employed in manufacturing than in retail sales. But by 2006 the gap had narrowed to just 81,400, according to 2006 census data from Statistics Canada.

The Harper government says we needn’t worry because we are shifting away from manufacturing to resource industries, notably development of the Alberta oil sands. But despite the fast growth in oil and gas industry jobs, the mining and oil and gas industries accounted for just 1.4 per cent of all Canadian jobs in 2006, with manufacturing accounting for 11.8 per cent.

The paradox is that despite falling employment, manufacturing faces a skilled labour shortage. And this could damage the future of manufacturing in Canada because the world is in a global skills race and investment will go to where the skilled workers can be found. Moreover, Canada’s manufacturing future depends on a high-skill workforce because, to survive and grow, Canadian companies have to be high-value manufacturers.

There are several reasons for this shortage, as Andrew Sharpe, who heads the Centre for the Study of Living Standards, explained in a recent report, “Apprenticeship Issues and Challenges Facing Canadian Manufacturing Industries.”

One problem, Sharpe said, is that the manufacturing companies have to compete with the resource and construction industries for many skilled trades. While the resource and construction industries have been enjoying robust and profitable growth, manufacturers have been squeezed by the high dollar and tougher market conditions.

This means manufacturers find it hard to compete for or retain skilled workers since they don’t have the same flexibility to pay workers more. “Reported skilled labour shortages in manufacturing are no mirage,” Sharpe said.

Sharpe argues that manufacturers, governments, unions and colleges have to become much more concerned with training. For example, apprenticeship programs, which matter for many skilled jobs in manufacturing, should include more time in college so that young Canadians get both a college diploma and trades certificate. More provinces could also follow Ontario’s Youth Apprenticeship Program, which allows high school students to start learning the basics of trades while still in high school.

In fact, the need for much greater attention to education and training cuts across many areas of our economy. Statistics Canada says we rely heavily on immigrants for skills.

In 2001-2006, some 51 per cent of immigrants aged 25 to 64 had a university degree, compared to 20 per cent of Canadians. Some 25 per cent of recent immigrants had a degree in engineering, compared to just 6 per cent of Canadian-born degree holders. And 6 per cent of recent immigrants had studied computer and information sciences, compared to 2 per cent of Canadian graduates.

If we are going to be more than a nation of shopkeepers, we had better pay much more attention to producing products and services we can sell to the rest of the world. The place to start is with ensuring our people have the highest quality education and skills found anywhere in the world.

Sarah McGinnis, Calgary Herald; with files from Canwest News Service

Published: Saturday, March 08, 2008

Local companies suffering under a labour crisis could end up the winners in an international competition that will bring the world’s best trade workers to Calgary.

Momentum is building for WorldSkills Calgary 2009, which will see more than 900 talented youth from 48 countries competing for medals in every skilled trade imaginable.

On Friday, federal Human Resources and Social Development Minister Monte Solberg pledged $13.4 million towards hosting WorldSkills from Sept. 1 to 6, 2009.

“This is the ultimate recruiting event for Calgary employers,” said Adam Legge, vice-president and chief economist for Calgary Economic Development.

“We have a labour shortage and it’s forecasted to continue in the future. . . . If companies want to hire the world’s best, there is no better place than Calgary WorldSkills 2009 for them to be recruiting at.”

WorldSkills is expected to cost $68 million — with the provincial government donating $24 million.

Its main focus is about solving the international shortage of skilled workers before it becomes an economic crisis.

The shortage of qualified labour hit a record high in 2007, with 309,000 jobs remaining vacant for at least four months, according to the Canadian Federation of Independent Business.

Canada’s unemployment rate hit a 33-year low in February at 5.8 per cent.

Programs such as the federal apprenticeship incentive grant — of up to $2,000 per person over two years — have been designed to lure youth into the trades.

WorldSkills takes that a step further, allowing local students to get a hands-on feel for a variety of possible future careers through these international competitions.

smcginnis@theherald.canwest.com

Source: StatsCan

Employment growth continued in February with gains estimated at 43,000, pushing Canada’s employment rate to a new record high (63.9%). For the second straight month, the unemployment rate held steady at its 33-year low of 5.8%. Employment growth over the last 12 months stands at 361,000 (+2.2%).

Similar to January, employment growth in February was entirely attributable to an increase in full time. Over the past 12 months, full-time work has grown at three times the pace of part-time employment.

Employment growth in February was mainly in construction; public administration; and professional, scientific and technical services. These gains were partly offset by declines in manufacturing and natural resources.

In February, for the second consecutive month, strength in employment came from private sector employees. Overall employment growth over the past 12 months, however, has been the result of gains in the public sector.

Almost all of February’s employment growth was realized in Ontario. Large gains in construction; business, building and other support services; and public administration were partly offset by the continued decline in manufacturing employment.

Wage growth remained strong in February, with a year-over-year increase in average hourly wages estimated at 4.9%. This was well above the most recent increase of 2.2% in consumer prices. February also marked the seventh consecutive month with a year-over-year increase in average hourly wages at, or above, 4%.

Strong service sector growth in February

Following little change in January, service sector employment grew by almost 56,000 in February. Public administration saw employment gains of an estimated 16,000 in February, for total growth of 10.5% (+87,000) over the previous 12 months. Employment in professional, scientific and technical services also increased by 16,000 and has grown by 7.0% (+78,000) since February 2007.

Construction up, manufacturing and natural resources down

In February, employment in construction increased by an estimated 21,000, all in Ontario. Nationally, employment in this industry is up 8.5% (+94,000) from 12 months ago.

Manufacturing employment declined by 24,000 in February, bringing total losses over the last 12 months to 106,000 (-5.1%). Manufacturing now represents 11.6% of total employment, a record low and far from the 15.0% share observed at the end of 2002, the start of the most recent decline.

Employment in natural resources was down in February (-9,000). Over the previous 12 months, this industry declined by 4.2%, with most of the losses in support activities for the mining, oil and gas sector.

Ontario labour market strengthens in February

Ontario recorded strong employment growth in February (+46,000), nearly all in full-time work. These latest gains pushed the overall unemployment rate in the province down 0.2 percentage points to 6.1%. Over the last 12 months, employment growth in Ontario stands at 2.0%, just slightly below the national average (+2.2%).

Although manufacturing in Ontario continued to lose workers in February (-20,000), these declines were more than offset by strength in construction (+31,000); business, building and other support services (+20,000), as well as public administration (+11,000).

While employment in Quebec was little changed in February, over the last 12 months employment growth (+2.4% or 92,000) was above the national average. Despite weakness in manufacturing, employment in the province has grown steadily since February 2007 in other industries of the goods sector and in services. In February, the unemployment rate, at 7.0%, continued to hover around its 33-year low.

Labour market remains robust in Western Canada

In February, employment in Saskatchewan increased by 3,300, bringing total gains since last September, when the current upward trend began, to an estimated 12,000 (+2.5%). The unemployment rate in February, at 4.1%, was among the lowest in the country.

Although little changed in February, employment in Alberta was up 3.0% (+58,000) from a year earlier, while the unemployment rate, at 3.5%, remained below that of all other provinces. Meanwhile, the province’s participation rate (the share of the working-age population that is working or looking for work) remained at a record high of 74.5% for the second consecutive month, the highest in Canada.

As with Alberta, employment in British Columbia was unchanged in February. Since February 2007, however, employment has increased by 2.3% (+52,000), driven by strength in construction. This growth has been somewhat tempered by a decline in manufacturing over this period, most notably in wood products. At 4.1% in February, the unemployment rate was unchanged from a month earlier and remains among the lowest in Canada.

New Brunswick’s labour market continues to grow

New Brunswick was the only province in Atlantic Canada to experience a notable employment gain in February (+2,700). At the same time, the participation rate reached a record high of 65.0%. February’s increase in employment extends an upward trend that began in October 2006, with gains over this period totalling an estimated 17,000 (+4.8%). Nearly half of this increase has been in the past 12 months, all in the service sector, most notably in professional, scientific and technical services.

Employment in Nova Scotia fell by an estimated 3,800 in February and the unemployment rate edged up to 7.7%. This decline leaves overall employment in the province at about the same level as 12 months earlier.

OTTAWA — Canada’s workforce is aging dramatically as the baby boom generation slides into retirement, census data released yesterday shows, and labour analysts are sounding alarm bells about the economic fallout if shortages in information technology, skilled labour and health care are allowed to materialize.

Statistics Canada says 15.3 per cent of Canadian workers are 55 or older and nearing retirement and for the first time, there are just as many Canadian workers over 40 as under.

The combined force of retiring boomers and declining fertility rates have conspired to erode the ratio of retirees to replacement workers.

In 2006, there were 1.9 Canadians aged 20-34 entering the workforce for every person aged 55-64 leaving it. There were 2.7 replacement workers for every retiree five years ago and, 25 years ago, there were 3.7.

Statistics Canada analyst Geoff Bowlby says it could take the labour market 20 years to correct itself.

“We know the Canadian workforce is getting older. We know that it is inevitable that baby boomers approaching retirement will eventually retire or leave the labour market,” Bowlby said.

“That will have an impact on the labour market well into the future, probably for the next two decades.”

Industry watchers say governments and corporations across the country are unprepared for the labour shortages that will result.

“Right now, many organizations are in denial about the whole issue,” said Linda Duxbury, a labour specialist at Carleton University’s Sprott School of Business.

“Any government sector, any public sector, doesn’t matter if it’s municipal, provincial or federal, are going to have real big issues. The other big group that’s going to have huge issues is health care and education.”

Between 2001 and 2006, the country’s overall annual employment growth dominated that of the G7 nations — rising at 1.7 per cent each year.

Alberta’s thriving oil and gas industries and B.C.’s booming construction industry accounted for one-third of the surging employment rate hike.

Researchers have been warning for years about potential labour shortages across Canada, yet labour market analysts say employers and governments have not responded, and they are now predicting a widespread shortage of workers impacting a broad range of occupations.

The year opened with a Conference Board of Canada report warning that 90,000 jobs in the tech industry need to be filled in the next three years to avoid a $10-billion blow to the economy.

A shortage of the right kind of workers can damage a healthy economy because the labour market and economy are so tightly bound. When the ratio of workers arriving to the workplace dips below the number leaving it, it creates a drag on the economy and stagnates growth.

The looming worker shortage is compounded by a glut of middle-aged workers whose knowledge base is quickly becoming obsolete.

“We’re in bit of a transition time,” said Linda Franklin, president of Colleges Ontario, a group representing the province’s 24 colleges of applied arts and technology.

“We have workers who are desperately in need of retraining so that they’re able to do other jobs that are crying out for people. . . . As time goes forward, as the baby boomers retire and as we have fewer young people coming into the workforce, we are going to face a very serious crisis.”

For those entering or established in the workforce, the seller’s market could produce a set of employees who will demand better wages, benefits and working conditions or they will threaten to walk.

Some say the thriving Alberta economy is a microcosm of what’s to come for the nation.

Dan Kelly, Western Canadian vice-president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, says several firms there are tolerating corporate theft rather than fire staff they cannot easily replace.

“They’re so desperate to hang onto any staff they can,” he said. “They can’t afford to get rid of them.”

Companies that spent the last three years clamouring for the best workers — or any workers — to fill jobs in the economic boom, find some who worked the oilsands of Fort McMurray have marched over to Vancouver for top-dollar construction jobs ahead of the 2010 Olympics.

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty has warned that labour shortages are one of the “most daunting economic challenges” Canada will face in coming years.

In January, he said Ottawa needs to find ways to help Canada hold onto its skilled workers and draw talented immigrants to the country to help avert an economic nightmare.

But just a few days later there were media reports about immigrants from France, highly prized and ardently recruited, packing up in droves and going home because they are working at menial jobs and struggling to make ends meet, suggesting employers and governments are only paying lip service to immigrants.

BY THE NUMBERS

Some key numbers culled from the 2006 census on work, education and commuting, released yesterday by Statistics Canada.

- 1.4: Percentage annual decline in manufacturing jobs since 2001. The sector lost 136,700 jobs during the five-year period, with the auto industry in central Canada being hit especially hard.

- 1.7: Canada’s average annual employment growth, in percentage, between 2001 and 2006 — the highest among G7 countries.

- 1.8: Annual percentage increase of retail trade jobs since 2001. More than 1.8 million Canadians work in retail jobs.

- 2.6: Average annual employment growth rate of Northwest Territories and Nunavut. The opening of new diamond mines explains why the territories outstripped the national average.

- 3.0: Unemployment rate among those who took education studies as a post-secondary degree — the lowest rate for any field of study. The next lowest was Bible studies (3.2 per cent).

- 3.4 : Percentage of the country’s total workforce that moved to a different province or territory between 2001 and 2006.

- 15: Percentage of Canadians with less than a high school education.

- 15.8 : Employment rate gap between aboriginal Canadians (65.8 per cent) and non-aboriginals (81.6 per cent). The gap closed from 19.1 in 2001.

- 18.4 : Percentage of Canadians who spent unpaid time caring for seniors.

- 21.2: Percentage of foreign-born workers in the Canadian workforce.

- 24: Percentage increase since 2001 of adults aged 25 to 64 who have a university degree.

- 33: Percentage of workers in Vancouver who speak neither English or French on the job.

- 36.3: Proportion of ministers of religion aged 55 and over.

- 51.9: Median age of a farmer in Canada.