PCA executives accompany Minister Kenney on visit to Europe to study skills training

OTTAWA, March 17, 2014 /CNW/ - Today, the Progressive Contractors Association of Canada (PCA) marked the successful conclusion of a six-day visit to Germany and the United Kingdom by a delegation led by the Hon. Jason Kenney, Canada's Minister of Employment and Social Development.

Paul de Jong, President of PCA, and Sean Reid, PCA's Vice President, Federal and Ontario, were part of the delegation along with representatives from unions, business associations, post-secondary education, and non-profits.

The Canadian construction businesses that make up PCA have long identified skills shortages and mismatches across several key trades and sectors as one of the biggest threats to continued economic growth. This problem is getting increasingly serious, particularly as we develop more of Canada's abundant natural resources.

"To keep Canada prosperous, we need solutions to train growing numbers of workers for the skilled jobs of the future," said Paul de Jong, President of PCA. "PCA applauds Minister Kenney for the leadership he showed by organizing this delegation to learn from two countries that have been particularly successful at training skilled workers."

In Germany, the group's activities included:

• A meeting with Baden Wuerttemberg Employers' Association of the Metal and Electrical Industry (Südwestmetall),
• A visit to Baden Wuerttemberg Cooperative State University (DHBW),
• A visit to the Siemens Training Centre to learn about the company's training programs,
• Meetings with government officials including Sylvia Löhrmann, Deputy Premier and Minister of Schools and Education, State of Nordrhein Westfalen, Georg Schütte, State Secretary Minister of Education and Research (BMBF), and officials from the Ministry of Labour, Integration and Social Affairs, and
• A roundtable with stakeholders including Dr. Jörg Dräger, Member of Executive Board of Bertelsmann Stiftung, and members of the Association of German Chambers of Commerce and Industry (IHK).

In the United Kingdom, the group's activities included:

• A visit to the British Airport Authority (BAA) Academy,
• A visit to the College of Northwest London,
• A meeting with Mr. Doug Richard, entrepreneur, educator, founder of the School for Startups, and author of a Richard Review, a recent review of the national apprenticeship system.
• A roundtable with stakeholders.

The PCA representatives were particularly struck by the fact that there is far more that unites Canadian industry and other stakeholders than divides them when it comes to addressing the national skills shortage. "Boosting promotion of the dignity of work in the trades must be a top priority for industry to act on right now in partnership with government," added de Jong.

"This visit provided a great opportunity for Canadians to learn from our European friends about how they have made careers in the skilled trades appealing to young people and how they are training increasing numbers of skilled workers," said Sean Reid, PCA's Vice President, Federal and Ontario. "I look forward to applying what we learned to the work we are doing here at home, and I am confident that this visit will help the government continue to show leadership on this file."

"Canadian employers can and should play a greater role in our ‎skills training system," added Reid. "The challenge will be for provincial governments to break through divisive stakeholder politics to ensure fair and open participation of all industry participants."

About the Progressive Contractors Association of Canada (PCA)

PCA is the voice of progressive unionized employers in Canada's construction industry. PCA member companies employ more than 25,000 skilled construction workers across Canada, represented primarily by CLAC. Our member companies are responsible for 40 percent of energy and natural resource construction projects in British Columbia and Alberta and are leaders in infrastructure construction across Canada.

PCA's goal is to ensure that Canada has a fair and open construction industry, cooperative labour relations, and a robust, inclusive and highly-capable workforce. PCA believes in open competition in which no sector is given artificial and unfair advantage over another on the basis of union affiliation or lack thereof.

SOURCE: Progressive Contractors Association of Canada

Media inquiries: Paul de Jong, [email protected], 403-620-3781