Human Resources committee  I think there are a couple of pieces to that. Certainly for our business we have a complex organizational profile. One of our businesses that's a crown corporation attempted to look at a modified work program to retain older workers and ran straight into their province's superannuation act and realized that they'd have to change the superannuation act in the province to bring those workers back or to keep them on modified work.

Human Resources committee  I would say there is definitely significant interest, particularly with trades positions. Everybody is short of trades positions. The re-skilling pieces are a really important one, and transition programs for workers are an area of interest we're actually trying to explore right now.

Human Resources committee  I'd like to know the federal government's role in technology development in that context. One of the challenges for our businesses that engage in new technology--and I know Colette would agree with me--is that they're small people. They are trying to grow and develop their businesses.

Human Resources committee  The electricity industry has significant apprenticeship programs across Canada. One of the interesting things that came out of the period of belt tightening in the 1990s was that many corporations saw apprenticeship programs as an extra. About 30% of our businesses as of 2004 did not have apprenticeship programs.

Human Resources committee  I'd like to respond to that. We're a well-paid business. People make a very solid salary in the electricity business at every level of the company. One of our challenges is to the point that Susan made earlier around career awareness. Recently the Ontario companies did a study that looked at people's awareness of trades in the business and found that general awareness was reasonably high among both parents and youth, in the 60% to 70% range, but awareness of opportunities in the utilities business was 2%.

Human Resources committee  I would say that the industry has tried very hard. We have a couple of challenges there. We rely on the educational institutions and their diversity profiles to support us. One of the things that I said to the deans of engineering in Canada when I spoke to them was that they have to do a better job so that we can do a better job.

Human Resources committee  Oh, it's an extremely broad spectrum. Our most critical worker shortage already exists today. Our study as of 2004, copies of which I will leave with the clerk, show that power line workers, the people who absolutely support the build and the maintenance as well as crisis intervention for your electrical workers, are already short.

Human Resources committee  The industry is very capable in terms of worker mobility because it is an industry that has depended, when it has needed somebody, typically on the jurisdiction next door. So they usually have a very good understanding of their colleagues' work and skills and capabilities. Our primary trades are mostly red seal, which means that they are of course part of a cross-Canada curriculum process.

Human Resources committee  I'd like to echo the remarks of my esteemed colleagues, but also, like Susan, come at it in a bit of a different perspective. I think one of the challenges that industry is facing is the change in our whole technology platform. The way we looked at work when the baby boomers came into the workforce is very different from the way it is now.

Human Resources committee  I would like to present that in a pan-Canadian context, because one of my roles as an executive director in the sector council program is to deal with all my different constituencies. To Norm's point, what's happening for us in the Canadian environment is that those jurisdictions that might not be described in our HR parlance as a recruiting destination--a place where whether you're from there or not, you'd want to go there--are really struggling to compete in this competitive labour market.

Human Resources committee  Good morning, Mr. Chairman, honourable members, ladies and gentlemen. Thank you very much for the opportunity to speak to you today. I would like to take the opportunity to share with you the perspective of a new sector council. We are just ten months old. The electricity and renewable energy industry is part of Canada's critical infrastructure.