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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: December 5th, 2005
MC2 Commences Feasibility Project for Trades and Technology Centre to Address Forecasted Labour Shortage
In September of this year, Salmon Arm Economic Development (SAED) and Community stakeholders, Okanagan College (OC), Shuswap Construction Industry Professionals and School District #83, began working towards addressing the soon to be labour crisis that is forecasted to hit across North America, with particularly strong impacts on many sectors in British Columbia and more specifically, the Okanagan/ Shuswap area. Together, these representatives have proposed an inquiry into the feasibility of a Trades and Technology Centre, which would offer extensive Trades training courses in Salmon Arm.
MC2 Communications Inc., a Calgary based organization, has been hired to lead the feasibility project for the proposed Okanagan Trades and Technology Centre. MC2 is known for its strong background in marketing analysis with trades and technology organizations, conduction of organization surveys, and boasts a significant background of experience in working with the Federal Government of Canada.
Due to the recent acquisition of Okanagan University College (OUC) by the University of British Columbia (UBC), the new Okanagan College (OC) has the potential to access a portion of twenty million dollars in capital funding. MC2 will be seeking to determine the need for additional and/ or niche trades and technical training in the Okanagan/ Shuswap area and within neighbouring provinces, with a focus on potential partners, facilities, types of programs and funding. Following the completion of the feasibility project, it is anticipated that SAED and OC will be able to commence with applications for the funding. The need to focus on trades and technology spurs from recent demographic reports that have called to our attention the fact that an immense labour shortage is in the very near future. For the next 9 years in North America, an average of 350,000 people turn 50 years old every month, while at the same time in the year 2000 the birth rate dropped to an all time low of 1.5 children per woman. These numbers mean that "by the year 2010, for the first time in our history, our workforce is expected to shrink as declining birthrates combined with an aging workforce see more people exiting than entering the workforce". This statement needs to be addressed, in part by increasing capacity in training programs, to ensure that available workers are trained and thus able to fill position openings. Lynda Wilson, Dean of Salmon Arm OC stated that "At the current time all sectors that involve trades training are experiencing skill shortages, and OC is committed to working with any business or organization to pursue collaboration and partnership to address the skill shortages".
Specific to the manufacturing sector, two key issues as outlined by local manufacturers in 2004, include the difficulty to find skilled/ qualified employees, and the difficulty with managing growth in the sector. With a decreasing amount of available workers, and the increasing product demand, both manufacturers and current educational institutions will be faced with a crisis— the former will not be able to produce, and the latter will have difficulty meeting training demands. Shuswap Manufacturers further noted there is a lack of a variety of Trades employees available to meet the current demands, combined with a lack of available local courses to train new employees. Lynda Wilson commented that "it is fair to say that in the past the presence of trades training in the region has been limited … the proposed centre would totally focus on labour force needs of businesses and industries in the province". The proposed Trades and Technology Centre will address the above mentioned concerns through serving both potential employers and employees in the community by providing easy access to training and increased cooperative educational placements. Working not in competition with, but rather, alongside other local training facilities, the proposed Centre will provide many benefits to local communities. Such benefits include serving local job creation and retention goals, creating economic diversification, enhancing industry attraction and external investment in the community and increasing youth retention in the region.
Throughout the duration of the feasibility project, which will conclude on or before March 31st, 2006, MC2 will be contacting companies and organizations throughout the region for their input regarding the proposed centre’s potential, and also welcomes concerned companies and organizations to contact MC2 directly at the contact information listed below.
Mr. Camille Morin (P) 403.836.4665
