Human Resources Committee on Nov. 25th, 2025

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

I'm interested in hearing from interested parties what programs ought to be exempted. Then we'll take action accordingly.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

What I'm hearing from interested parties is that you should simply not undertake this change at all, rather than hold out the theoretical possibility of an exemption. It sounds like you don't have any immediately planned.

I want to also note that the budget says that this particular change would effectively be a cut in outlays to students of $1 billion. Would any proposed exemptions reduce the savings, or do you think you can make exemptions and still stay within that figure of $1 billion?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

Mr. Chair, I'm not going to engage in hypothetical mathematics right now. I think what we need to hear is what the proposed exemptions might be. If there are exemptions that—

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Effectively, that answers my question. You're saying it's hypothetical. That answers my question, which is that you don't have any exemptions planned.

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

Well, we haven't had any asked for yet. If you do have parties who are interested, please have them contact my office. I'd be very interested to speak with them.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Again, I don't understand the rationale for the change at all. Why make the change and then undo it with maybe some exemptions that would change the budget numbers?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

I will point out to the MP that the default—

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

I'm sorry. I want to get in one more question before the end.

You announced in the budget a foreign credential recognition action fund, so-called. The government already has, and has had for a long time, a foreign credential recognition program. Is this a second fund to do the same things the first fund is supposed to be doing and is not doing? Why is there the existence of a new parallel fund as opposed to increasing the amount in the original fund or making changes to make it effective?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

It's a different kind of approach that supports provinces and territories that are largely in the space of having the key to foreign credential recognition—

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

But that's what the first fund is supposed to do.

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

This fund will support provinces and territories to share information, to be able to work with the regulatory bodies, to be able to more quickly improve their processes so that they can make faster—

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Minister, I hear what you're saying, but that is exactly the mandate of the previous fund. Could you tell me precisely what the mandate is of the second fund that's different from the first fund? Do you have two funds that are doing essentially the same thing?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

I think the previous approach was much more focused on individuals who were seeking to have their credentials recognized. That will continue, by the way. People will be able to apply for loans to help with the administrative and financial costs of seeking foreign credential recognition.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Why have two funds? Why not have one fund that does this work—

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

What we are in, as I would remind you—

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

—especially when it's not working right now?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

—is an unprecedented time, when we are seeing real challenges and real commitment by provinces and territories to do this work together. In fact, it's on my agenda later—

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

I agree that there are real challenges. I don't understand why you have two funds.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Thank you, Mr. Genuis.

We now move to Madame Desrochers.

Ms. Desrochers, you have the floor for five minutes.

[Caroline Desrochers, Liberal, Trois-Rivières, QC]

Thank you Mr. Chair.

I'd like to come back to the topic of the forestry sector, which we had started talking about earlier.

As Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Housing and Infrastructure, I have visited many prefabricated building businesses in the past few months.

Last week, I visited a company where entire walls were built using Canadian lumber. I know that our commitments will double the rate of homebuilding and that this will greatly help the forestry industry. In fact, I met with workers at Arbec Forest Products, who were thankful for the measures taken by the government. We're also in the process of implementing these measures. We know that this is a difficult time for workers in the forestry industry.

Can you talk a bit about the measures that the government is implementing to protect these workers during these challenging times?

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

Thank you for the question.

We have done a lot for employers who are affected by the tariffs imposed by the United States, particularly in the forestry sector.

In addition to some of the EI measures I spoke about earlier—which I can repeat but won't, in the interest of time—we've also committed an additional $500 million, through provinces and territories, for training in the tariff-exposed sectors—forestry being one of those sectors. Why is that important? You spoke about modular housing, but there are also, for example, people who produce timber and lumber that may not be suited for the specifications and the building codes that need that lumber, and so those mills are rapidly transitioning to new equipment, new products and, in some cases, new markets. In many cases, that means new skills for employees. We've been there to support provinces, territories and employers with helping their employees rapidly upskill.

Again, the worst-case scenario for any company is when they have to lay off a whole bunch of employees and, then, try to find them again when their business restarts. Those employees disappear into the labour market, their skills get stale, in some cases, and it gets harder for a company to have the workforce they need to restart. This is why an approach that keeps workers attached to the workforce and supports them with their training needs is so important.

[Caroline Desrochers, Liberal, Trois-Rivières, QC]

Thank you very much.

Can you talk a bit about how budget 2025 expands the union training and innovation program? We've been talking a lot in this committee about the importance of skilled trades and ensuring that we prepare workers for the work that's going to be needed in the coming years, with all the projects we have as a country. If you can talk a bit about that, that would be helpful.

[Patty Hajdu, Liberal, Thunder Bay—Superior North, ON]

Yes. The union training program has been a really important pillar of the approach we have in building up skilled trades. Unions do a fantastic job of training and helping young people through the process of getting from apprentice to Red Seal. Actually, my son is a skilled tradesperson. He's with the operating engineers. Having watched his journey, from joining the union to becoming a Red Seal crane operator, I think it's really impressive to see what unions do to get young people these skills—and not just young people, by the way. Many people go back to the trades after completing a course of study at college or university, because these jobs are so high paying.

We've supported the unions to accelerate that training and attract more people to the trades because, as you point out, there are hundreds of thousands of tradespeople who are due to retire in the next five years, leaving an even bigger gap between what we need and what we have in terms of the skilled trades workforce.

This budget also includes another $75 million for unions, in a way that they have asked for, that will help flexibly support them with the space they need. In some cases, unions are doing this training in very cramped or aged spaces, and it will allow them to use these monies in a more flexible way so that they can not only attract people but get people through the skilled trades.

I'll just give a huge shout-out to all of the skilled trades in the Canadian building trades union, as well as many others that are doing this important work every day. It is very important that young skilled tradespeople, or people who are studying the skilled trades, have places as apprentices so they can get those hours and complete their apprenticeships. For that, they work closely with employers to make sure that employers are able to receive those apprentices.

This is really an “all hands on deck” moment. The government has to support unions, the unions have to do their great work training new apprentices and corporations have to commit to having apprenticeships in their work plans.

[Caroline Desrochers, Liberal, Trois-Rivières, QC]

Thank you, Minister.

[The Chair, Liberal, Bobby Morrissey]

Thank you, Ms. Desrochers.

Mr. Genuis, you have five minutes.