Human Resources committee  I don't sing very well either, just so you know.

Human Resources committee  Shall I go with this one?

Human Resources committee  Since you didn't even hear the question, and I'm not even sure I remember it anymore.... I think it was how you ensure it's aligned better in terms of the training programs.

Human Resources committee  I think you have to start with better data. That's fundamental in all this, as it were. Data is the underlining value here. Whether it's data on the labour market information or what the training dollars are going to be spent on, the good data just isn't available, so I think that has to be the starting point for us.

Human Resources committee  I'll have to apologize. I think there were some gaps in the translation. I'll try my best. I think he was having a hard time keeping up with you, but I'll try my best.

Human Resources committee  I think I appeared before this committee a year and a half ago when those reforms were first announced. We supported the reforms in general. I know there are some specific elements of it that have caused people some problems. Some of our members have concerns over some of the reforms that were put in, in terms of seasonal employment and the ability to retain those workers year round.

Human Resources committee  By allowing companies to invest the money they contribute to the EI system into training new and existing hires, the program will leverage greater employee contributions, resonate better with the employers, and create better economic outcomes for Canada. Thank you for inviting me to participate today.

Human Resources committee  Thank you very much, Madam Chair. Good morning, members. Thank you for having me here today. I'm pleased to be here on behalf of Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters and our 10,000 members to discuss Canada's labour market development agreements. By way of background, more than 85% of CME members are small and medium-sized enterprises, representing every industrial sector, every export sector, and from all regions of the country.

International Trade committee  Just to add to that, a lot of what we're talking about in terms of labour mobility is within supply chain labour mobility, intra-company transfers or intra-related parties mobility, and so involves tier one suppliers and engineers. We're not talking about agricultural workers or someone not related to a core business on the manufacturing side of things.

International Trade committee  I'll talk about this more from a small business perspective, because that's where most of our members are situated. The thing they struggle with, whether concerning these countries or others, is finding market intelligence about what is really going on. For the support mechanisms around it—and rather than pure policy, it's more a question of the support mechanisms—we are always asked questions about such things, on the trade facilitation side, as to how Canadian companies can connect with local suppliers and local customers, how such things as the trade commissioner service out of DFAIT can be supportive, and what kind of market intelligence they can give them on what's emerging and where the good growth opportunities are, or how EDC functions in terms of promoting and supporting export insurance and finance activities that the companies need.

International Trade committee  I agree with what Pierre is saying about the opportunity to get in early in the negotiations to help set some of the framework for the negotiation. I think one of the challenges Canada finds itself in with the TPP is that we're getting into the agreement fairly late, and a lot of the rules and guidelines and set-up have already been established concerning what they're negotiating on.

International Trade committee  Do you want me to start?

International Trade committee  Exactly. I think it does a couple of things. One is that the Pacific Alliance, with Canada's involvement, should go beyond the existing FTAs, especially in some of the areas around labour mobility that Pierre was talking about in his testimony and that we mentioned as well. The other thing it does is it opens up new markets for us.

International Trade committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. My name is Mathew Wilson. I'm the vice-president of national policy with Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters. I'm pleased to be here on behalf of 10,000 members across Canada to discuss Canada's possible entry into the Pacific Alliance and to provide our support for the government on this initiative.

Human Resources committee  Sure. The Business Takes Action that was in place was a pretty powerful tool for us to get out not just to the manufacturing community but to employers as a whole. We still use a lot of the work that was developed there, like the guides on how to interview, how to promote, and the like.