Thank you, Francis.
Thank you, committee members, for the opportunity to speak to you today.
My name is Michelle Branigan. I'm the CEO of EHRC, Electricity Human Resources Canada. Our role at EHRC is to keep the lights on by preparing and empowering a world-class workforce for the entire electricity industry. As a national non-profit, we are an unbiased convenor of stakeholders that work together to ensure that we have a workforce that is safety-focused, highly skilled, diverse and productive.
We conduct labour market research to understand what the supply and demand labour needs are for the sector, and then translate that into actionable programs to fill identified labour market gaps.
Electricity and Canada depend on its essential workers 24-7, but this is not a just-in-time industry. Over 80% of our workers work in highly technical jobs, such as the trades and engineering, and it can take five to 10 years to reach full competency in a role, especially in nuclear. We need to be able to plan well in advance for labour market needs. That's going to take coordination from employers, labour, policy-makers and educators to make sure that the electricity system can support new demand loads driven by increased electrification and, of course, innovation in our technology and our business processes, such as SMRs and energy storage.
As we transition away from fossil fuels to increased renewables and electrification, there is a need to make sure no one is left behind. There will be workers who will need to upskill or re-skill as jobs sunset or evolve, and we need to ensure those workers are given the opportunity and the support they need to do so. In addition, any transition to clean energy must be built upon inclusive policies. We have an ethical obligation to ensure that anybody in our society feels capable of pursuing a career, regardless of their gender, their background or any other parts of their identity.
To end, the sector has the potential to be a key enabler of the just transition, and we appreciate the opportunity to be engaged in this discussion today.
Thank you for your time.