Our industry does need those people who are motivated and want to work, no question. For us, as far as looking at the foreign worker is concerned, only about 400 people a year are coming in and saying they're automotive service technicians. It's a very small pool. So we do need to access those people who want to get into the industry.
The key there, I think, from our experience, is essential skills levels. People may have the desire to work in the industry, and for key occupations for our industry, they do need to go through the apprenticeship system, but having foundational skills in reading, numeracy, and document use, and thinking skills are key for people to get into our industry and succeed. They need those foundational skills just to get in, but once they're there, the rate of technological change is just absolutely astounding.
I know for the professional development training that we do, advanced electronics is a huge part of that and there is a huge demand by the employers. A lot of their employees who have been working in the industry five, ten, or fifteen years are having a hard time learning and understanding these advanced concepts, because they can't read a wiring diagram. Somehow they've gotten through, they're into the workplace, they've made it for so long, working in the capacity they're in, but with these advanced technologies that are coming in, they just can't keep up with it. So those foundational skills are so incredibly important for people to have, coming in.
Absolutely we want and need motivated workers, but as a way to provide these people, to set them up for success by giving them the level of skills that they need to have for specific industry occupations, we really need to partner with the education community and the apprenticeship community to ensure that we are setting up these young people or transitional workers for success.