Evidence of meeting #13 for Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities in the 45th Parliament, 1st session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was job.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Care Advocate and Graduate Student, Counselling Psychology, As an Individual
Yes.
Bloc
Marilène Gill Bloc Côte-Nord—Kawawachikamach—Nitassinan, QC
As a young person, you also interact with other young people and you have your personal experience. You're talking about social conditions outside your control that may make things more challenging.
Aside from this, have you made any other observations? I think that you also spoke about training and greater difficulty in accessing certain training programs. Would you like to discuss any other issues? We're talking about the challenges encountered. However, what could be done to make it easier for young people to find work?
Care Advocate and Graduate Student, Counselling Psychology, As an Individual
I think national data would be better. We keep very minimal data going from different provinces to be able to see that one province is doing well and another province isn't. I think keeping proper data on education and graduation rates or employment and income outcomes would be extremely beneficial, and requiring provinces to submit this data to StatsCan or the federal government each year. It would give us a better idea of how we can tackle this.
I think a big issue as well is with the education and post-secondary supports. People from care rush into post-secondary education as a way to escape the life of care and step up the economic ladder, when a lot of the time we aren't ready. Then when we go in, sometimes there will be tuition waivers, for example, but lots of data supports that solely providing these waivers isn't adequate enough.
There's been some research coming out of the Atlantic provinces, specifically by Dr. Jacqueline Gahagan. She found that creating wraparound supports through mental health, housing, financial stability, and providing all of those supports to people through post-secondary education was also a significant factor. What I've found is the only thing that really closes the wage gap from people from care compared to non-people from care is getting at the very least a college degree. There's a report called “'Half the time I felt like nobody loved me': The Costs of 'Aging Out' of State Guardianship in Ontario”. It estimates that people from care are making about $326,000 less than people not from care because they're primarily only going into minimum-wage or low-stability jobs, if they are even going into the employment market.
There are lots of nuances. There are homes for non-verbal autistic adults who most likely won't enter the job field. It's a very nuanced situation.
Bloc
Bloc
Marilène Gill Bloc Côte-Nord—Kawawachikamach—Nitassinan, QC
Okay.
Mr. Binger, you spoke about equal opportunities. Governments should ensure that everyone can benefit from equal opportunities at some point. I wouldn't call this some form of upgrade. I don't have the specific term for it.
Do you also believe that we need to reform employment insurance in order to give some young people the necessary resources to change their path after a job loss, when their income from working while studying doesn't cover all their needs?
Care Advocate and Graduate Student, Counselling Psychology, As an Individual
I think it would most certainly help, yes.
Liberal
Conservative
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
Thank you, Chair.
I'll have questions for both witnesses, but related to a common theme: early start in career planning.
Something I've talked a lot about is that in an increasingly challenging economy, with various factors rooted in government policy leading to challenges for young people, early career planning is more essential than ever. It helps young people acquire skills earlier and get into the job market earlier.
Mr. Gordon, one of the things Conservatives have proposed as part of our last platform is direct federal support for vocational programs, particularly related to the trades, starting in high schools. Some people have said that actually even earlier is important.
What's your take on some of the current realities around that? What can we do more of to encourage earlier awareness of the trades and opportunities for people to try these things out in their teen years?
Director of Canadian Training, United Association Canada
If this were the route that would happen, it could be valuable. I would stress safety at the forefront of all things to protect these youth, especially if you're looking at earlier ages than high school. In elementary school I participated—they used to have it back then—and I think it would be great to bring it back. However, there were dangers associated with it, certainly.
I would suggest this. The government could easily form a committee of professionals who have resources that could guide this process, give input to what those programs should be and what they should not be. This is so we're not empowering people to become victims of the underground economy, working for unscrupulous employers who would put them to work with minor skills and not a full trade qualification and competency within their purview.
That would be my recommendation.
Conservative
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
I think it's an interesting point that this earlier education can promote trades awareness, safety and learning about work in these areas but also acquaint people with some of the risks, such as the presence of unscrupulous practices that may exist in different places and how to be on guard against them.
Conservative
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
Thank you for that.
Mr. Binger, thank you for your testimony today.
I wonder if you could share a bit about some of the particular issues and challenges and the things we can do around early career planning for young people who are in care. What can be done to help expose young people in those situations to mentors and career opportunities that maybe they aren't being exposed to right now?
Care Advocate and Graduate Student, Counselling Psychology, As an Individual
That goes back to privatization and the regulatory body requirement. A lot of our staff have very low experience. They are fresh out of social work programs. These are the people working with kids with complex, multiple diagnoses a lot of the time. We need better training for the staff, or at least standardized training to help orient these kids toward them. We could also take privatization out so we don't have people who are solely running these homes for a profit incentive rather than for the outcomes of youth.
I know that I'm kind of just dancing on the topic of youth employment, but a lot of these issues stem from numerous other systemic issues that have led to care being the last place where a kid should grow up. There are constantly negative outcomes. I think we need to able to increase their well-being and their outcomes while they're in care and before they even focus on getting into employment.
Another one of the major issues with it is, I believe, section 23. It will be classes in elementary school for youth with behavioural issues. A lot of kids from care go in there, and they're doing school work, but they won't get a high school diploma out of it.
Conservative
Garnett Genuis Conservative Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB
Thank you.
In the last seconds I have, Mr. Gordon, can you comment on the best place for young people who are doing early career planning to get information about what trades are in demand and what kinds of careers they could be pursuing? How would you advise a young person in terms of accessing that information?
Director of Canadian Training, United Association Canada
That's a great question.
CBTU, Canada's Building Trades Unions, commissioned SkillPlan jointly funded with the federal government under UTIP to build a forum where they have guidance for introduction to all the trades that building trades represent and pathways, direct streamlines and some guidance. It even has live mentorship that you can tap into to get information directly from people participating as professionals in these trades.
Liberal
Liberal
Liberal
Natilien Joseph Liberal Longueuil—Saint-Hubert, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I want to thank Mr. Gordon and Mr. Binger for joining us.
My first question is for Mr. Gordon.
We've heard about how young people face barriers to getting into trades. These barriers include automation, new technology, jobs replaced by machines and the years of experience expected from young people fresh out of school. Yet we know that no one can gain experience without working.
Can you share some specific examples where working with the federal government has helped provide young people with quality and paid apprenticeships and promoted fair access to skilled trades?
Actually, I think that I'll use my time to ask Mr. Binger my question right away.
Mr. Binger, how could a better collaboration involving the federal government and community organizations reinforce the connection between mental health and youth employment programs?
I'm asking you this question because my constituency, Longueuil—Saint‑Hubert, has many community organizations. A better collaboration involving the government and community organizations could make a real difference in the lives of many young people in my constituency.
Care Advocate and Graduate Student, Counselling Psychology, As an Individual
I think at least within group homes, require group homes to have a clinical director as the person deciding the best outcomes for youth. That's in group homes. I don't know as much about foster care. They're a little bit out of my area of expertise. I think implementing clinical directors in managerial positions within the group homes themselves, to help the staff through factual and evidence-based mental health supports, would be probably the best approach for better mental health outcomes for at least group homes.
Director of Canadian Training, United Association Canada
Were you looking for me to answer as well?
