Thank you for letting me continue, Mr. Chair.
So of the 19 people who were involved in the skills training in construction, 19 have already finished their sentences, all 19, and landed employment in the construction trades, according to the Correctional Service of Canada. Again, this is from the CBC website.
Among them was a fellow named Jessie Hoover, who said the most complicated project he had ever worked on prior to the house was a birdhouse. He's now an apprentice working in the community framing houses. He said:
Some of the skills that I learned in this project would be, you know, good work ethic, coming to work on time, working hard when you're at work, plus the carpentry side of it, learning how to frame the house from the ground up.
I bring that point up because we also have a list of job placements of the 2,500 offenders who were mentioned earlier. The construction trades, by far and away, have the top ranking. Some of the others are: chefs; cooks; butchers; metal forming/shaping and erecting trades; welders and blacksmiths; automotive/autobody service technicians and mechanics; carpenters, cabinet-makers, and related retail and sales occupations; and professional occupations in social sciences, education, government, and retail. The list is longer.
One of the most rehabilitative, healing things we've witnessed in the prisons we've all attended is that having something meaningful to do gives you a sense of accomplishment, and nothing's better for that than having a job.
Thank you, Mr. Leeman, for being here and witnessing to us on that front. That takes great courage on your part.