I think you've identified a crucial issue for not only the broad issue of productivity but for competitiveness and what your committee is focusing on today.
Let me start off by asking: In a global economy, where you can buy goods and services and technology and labour services and knowledge from anywhere around the world, what will make a difference in any business? There are two things, I think: leadership and people. Business is just an organization of people, and unless you are able to mobilize those people to achieve successful outcomes, you're not going to have a successful business.
Given that, there are huge issues that companies are facing. We often talk about skill levels and training. I think the most pressing issue is how you mobilize the people in your organization and how you make sure they have the capabilities to work in a productive environment. So the issues about health, issues about education, issues about worker responsibility.... One of the biggest problems that many employers face is the lack of people who come to them with basic employability skills and who are willing to take responsibility for the health and safety of others in the workplace. This is one major reason why they're turned down for employment.
So we have a lot of work to do socially, but also within companies, I think, to respond to these issues.