It's a great question.
I can speak to my own experience, having started in the education field. That was my training. I have a bachelor of science degree in education and a master of education degree as well.
When I left the military initially, there was no recognition of the decade's worth of experience I had instructing in the military, so I had to start at ground zero. I started my degree a bit later. I had to participate in the very basic level of instruction of a four-year degree at McGill, which seemed, I'll be honest, like a waste of time. There was no mechanism for me to say that I had 10 years' experience in instructing and that I was a senior, non-commissioned member who had done the following courses and was more advanced than the average education student.
That would be one avenue of approach. It's not just the skilled trades that could benefit from a translation of skills. It also speaks to a broader kind of incorporation of military culture within Canadian society. There are just so few of us, and so few employers know that we even exist. When we come in front of their desks with our CVs, leading with the military is usually a bad idea. That, unfortunately, is just the nature of the beast here in Canada.
To answer your question, I would say that there has to be a broader conversation. Putting veterans in the media in a successful light would start changing the culture and give a bit more recognition to the fact that we can contribute a lot of great work and competencies to people's companies and organizations.