Official Languages committee  Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. The New Brunswick Federation of Labour welcomes the opportunity to present to the Standing Committee on Official Languages and share labour's view on the economic situation of Canada’s minority linguistic communities. Since our foundation in 1913

Official Languages committee  I guess I would agree with that. I grew up in the north, and it's true that most people don't have a high school education. It would be smart and wise, and as I said, with regard to francophone women in particular, a vast majority don't have a high school education. So moneys nee

Official Languages committee  I guess the quick answer is that there are certain avenues there, but as we all know in this room, post-secondary education isn't for everybody. I think that's where we lack. The government has a real focus on getting people to university and getting them trained in those fields,

Official Languages committee  I think we have the critical mass by all means, but I don't think that it's happening. That being said, take a mechanic, for example. To be a mechanic today takes a higher level of skill in computer knowledge and technological knowledge than maybe 30 years ago. So, yes, I think

Official Languages committee  It's 21% in the north.

Official Languages committee  I believe that was true at one time. As I've had someone tell me who used to work in the logging industry, you didn't need grade 12 to go into the woods and cut a cord of pulp and sell. But these days, with technology coming in, you do need grade 12 and beyond to run a harvester

Official Languages committee  Personally, from the New Brunswick Federation of Labour's point of view, we sit on numerous committees and coalitions helping to build the province and trying to come up with solutions. These coalitions or groups, if you will, committees, are made up of educational institutions,

Official Languages committee  That's not a problem. We've called for a moratorium largely because of not enough health regulations and not knowing the health implications of unconventional fracking. One may and will make the argument that fracking has been done for a century, and yes, it has. This unconventi

Official Languages committee  Sorry, sir, but it is not the unconventional fracking that will be done in New Brunswick. It is conventional fracking. It has been proven safe—largely.

Official Languages committee  No. I agree with you—

Official Languages committee  I do agree with you, and this may not happen too often. But I will agree with you that, you know, it.... Also, DDT was safe, and asbestos was safe, and we now know that.... So why, without knowing it's safe, would we risk that and put future generations at risk? But the other i

Official Languages committee  The beautiful thing about this—it goes back to what you're saying—is that every group or every government always says they have the best regulations. Whoever comes along afterwards says they always have the best, so—

Official Languages committee  —I'm wondering if we have the best regulations for it as we go forward.

International Trade committee  Thank you, Chair. On behalf of the 40,000 members of the New Brunswick Federation of Labour, we want to thank you for giving us the opportunity to present our views on the impact on Canada of the possible Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement. I want to begin by expressing my sin

International Trade committee  I personally haven't, but I know some of my colleagues were part of those discussions.