Good morning, everyone. On behalf of the 3.3 million members of the Canadian Labour Congress, I want to thank you for the invitation to comment on issues related to the economic opportunities for young apprentices.
Before beginning to address economic opportunities for young apprentices, allow me to make some comments about the current situation for young workers in general. As the members of this committee would be aware, young workers were among the hardest hit segment of the labour market in the last recession, and the labour market prospects for young people continue to deteriorate. In September 2012, there were 173,000 fewer full-time jobs for youth aged 15 to 24 than there were back in September 2007.
The employment rate for youth aged 20 to 24 fell to 66.6% in September 2012, which is five percentage points lower than in September 2008.
All considered, the real unemployment rate for youth, including involuntary part-time and discouraged workers, was 19.6% in September 2012, which is 1.4% higher than last year. Even among young workers who have managed to find employment, conditions have deteriorated. Increasingly, young workers are facing employment that is low wage, precarious, part-time, and temporary, and the path between school and meaningful full-time employment is becoming increasingly non-linear. Education is still one of the greatest factors leading to a successful working career, but with increasing tuition fees and living expenses, post-secondary education has either fallen out of reach for many young people or left them saddled with massive debt that will take years to pay off.
Can you imagine how frustrating it is for young workers who are unemployed or underemployed to hear that Canada has a skills gap, that employers cannot find workers with skills they require? Every day I hear from young workers who would jump at the chance to find well-paid, productive employment and who would willingly enter training for the jobs that are currently not being filled.
One of the hopeful areas for young people seeking employment may well be the apprenticeable trades. Careers in the skilled trades are well paid and productive. Government and employers are suggesting that skilled jobs in the resource sector and in building and construction will be plentiful in the future. Even in our imperilled manufacturing sector, increased productivity and competitiveness will require a highly skilled workforce. Apprenticeship, which combines on-the-job training, centred on mentoring by skilled tradespeople and classroom education, is a proven and effective method of training skilled workers.
Canada has a well-designed system for interprovincial certification of more than 50 skilled trades. For more than 50 years, the Red Seal certification, which you've already heard about, has provided employers with the assurance that workers holding the Red Seal are qualified to work productively in that trade. It provides workers with a universally recognized credential, which increases their employability and mobility, as workers with a Red Seal can work in any of Canada's 13 jurisdictions.
Employers are crying for skilled workers. Young workers are crying for meaningful work, and we have a universally recognized system of interprovincial certification in the apprenticeship trades. So what is the problem?
There are several barriers we can identify that limit access of young people to the skilled trades.
First are traditional attitudes. It is often assumed that apprenticeship has been a pathway to work used by young people leaving high school and seeking post-secondary training. If this were true, we would expect the average age of people entering apprenticeship would be in the late teens, and this is not true in Canada.
In the late 1990s, the median age for people entering apprenticeships was 27. The latest information we have from 2010 indicates the average age of people registering for apprenticeships in the 10 most popular trades was in fact 30. Clearly, trades training has not been used as a direct pathway between high school and post-secondary training but rather as an option for people who have experience in the labour market already.
Many studies indicate that trades training has not been a first choice option for a vocational guidance system that is biased towards university as the prime destination for high school graduates. There has also been a traditional bias against participation of young women in apprenticeship training. Today is December 6, the national day of remembrance and action on violence against women, which was established to commemorate the 14 young women who were murdered at École Polytechnique for being women studying in a non-traditional field. This gender bias lives on, in that fewer than 10% of skilled tradespeople in Canada are women.
Second is the lack of employer investment. In order to begin and complete an apprenticeship, a young worker needs to find an employer who is willing to hire and train apprentices. It would seem to make sense that employers who are having difficulty finding skilled workers would see training the workers themselves through apprenticeships as a viable option. The Canadian Apprenticeship Forum has confirmed there's a positive return on investment in training for employers. Unfortunately, many employers do not hire apprentices and seem to prefer hiring fully qualified tradespeople who have been trained under the auspices of other employers.
Third is the lack of government commitment to apprenticeship. In recent years, government has provided incentives for hiring apprentices through employer tax credits and grants to apprenticeship in mid-training and completion. While these incentives are positive, they are not adequate. To meet the needs of employers for skilled workers, and the needs of young people to find satisfying, productive employment, we require a national strategy to put all the pieces together.
Central to this strategy should be the recognition that apprenticeship provides a proven, successful bridge between the worlds of formal education, vocational training, and work.
The strategy should include, first, engaging employers, workers, and unions to work with government to design and evaluate a national strategy for the development of apprenticeship opportunities. Currently, the Canadian Apprenticeship Forum provides a venue for this kind of discussion.
Second, we need measures to increase the profile of apprenticeship as a significant and viable post-secondary option for all young people, including young women, minorities, and other under-represented groups.
Third, we need to maintain high standards of training, remuneration, and safety. We know that skills training is a key component to increasing the productivity and competitiveness of our economy. Our future is not in a race to the bottom, but rather it is in the creation of a high productivity and high wage economy.
We know that many employers recognize the importance of addressing these issues. I can ensure you that the Canadian labour movement is also ready and willing to work to build our economy and to play its part in the creation of useful, productive jobs for young people.
Thank you.