Foreign workers to fill skill shortages.

With a shifting demographic, the majority of growth in the labour force is likely to come from people who received their education elsewhere in the world, according to Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters (CME).

Ian Howcroft, vice-president of CME's Ontario division, says finding ways to deal with the skills crises that is resulting from the loss of qualified people due to retirement is one of the main tasks of the CME right now.

"Our members are having a hard time identifying certain skilled trades people and, with demographics being what they are, that challenge is only going to intensify over the next five to 15 years," says Howcroft. "By 2020, over 50 per cent of those currently working will be retiring, so, if companies are currently experiencing skills challenges, that is only going to intensify over the next several years."

"As you see the mass exodus from the workplace, we don't have the birthrate or the population to fill these jobs over the next 15 years," he says. "Almost all of the job growth is going to come from the immigrant side. We have to find ways to make sure they come in with realistic expectations of what they can find. Employers need to know what equivalency ratings are, what organizations exist to take advantage of for recruitment purposes and make sure they're looking to this pool of talent that they might not otherwise think of."

Jobs that have trouble being filled even in areas of higher unemployment include skilled trades such as machining. Other areas even include management and communications positions. The medical field, including the shortage of doctors and nurses is a prime example, says Howcroft.

Linda Charvesio, spokesperson for the Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities (MTCU), says there are 120,000 immigrants coming to Ontario every year, and, of those, 70 per cent are highly skilled with college and university-level training and experience behind them.

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Working with the MTCU, the CME prepared a report highlighting some of the success stories in Ontario where companies have hired immigrants and some of the means people can use to find people with those skill sets they need for their own business.

"We were trying to highlight what some of those companies have done, including those that have a history and culture of looking to internationally trained workers; international companies like 3M that build on the international experience they've had," he says. "There are others that have mentoring programs that tie people together. Communication is an important part to be able to integrate people into the company. Some people have reported experiences that weren't positive because they felt isolated, they didn't understand the company culture."

There are a number of issues that challenge companies who are considering hiring internationally trained workers. The first is simply being aware of the resource that is available. There are a number of resources available, including agencies such as the Accessible Community Counselling and Employment Services (ACCES), the Centre for Foreign-Trained Professionals and Trades People (CFTPT) and the Ontario Council of Agencies Serving Immigrants (OCASI).

"Part of it is that many companies have always looked for Canadian experience," says Howcroft. "If someone doesn't have Canadian experience it doesn't mean they're not qualified to do a good job. They just don't have Canadian experience."

Another challenge is determining what the qualifications from another country translate to in Canada.

"If someone has a degree from the University of Toronto, everybody knows what that means," says Howcroft. "But if they have a degree from a university in another country or another city one has never really heard of, what does that mean?"

He says the World Education Services (WES), a non-profit international credential evaluation service in North America and partly funded by the Ontario government, can help companies assess the qualifications people have from other countries and what its equivalency in this province is.

Charvesio adds the Ontario government announced in January an additional $4 million over the next three years to strengthen bridge programs for internationally-trained individuals, including teachers, engineering technicians and technologists, pharmacists, medical professionals and technologists.

"There are a lot of cases where people have to be assessed to determine if they meet the appropriate requirements," she says. "We are also working with the various professional regulatory bodies."

Howcroft recommends a company look first at its own internal needs and then, rather than rely on traditional recruitment methods such as ads in the paper, look to those organizations that can hook them up with qualified internationally trained organizations.

The Canadian economy has experienced a slow-down in part due to the rising value of the Canadian dollar and other competitive challenges such as the softwood lumber dispute. Companies are also finding their own solutions for dealing with skills shortages.

"Still, even with those, we're hearing the skills shortage is there and continuing to grow," says Howcroft. "What we're trying to do is make sure companies are aware of this opportunity when they're trying to address that. People want to get the best person for the job. They may not get that if they don't consider this pool of talent that is already here in Canada."

www.cme-mec.ca

www.edu.gov.on.ca

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By ANDREW WAREING

Northern Ontario Business