HUMA Committee News Release
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Standing Committee on Human Resources, Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities |
HOUSE OF COMMONS CHAMBRE DES COMMUNES OTTAWA, CANADA K1A 0A6 |
Comité permanent des ressources humaines, du développement social et de la condition des personnes handicapées |
For immediate release
NEWS RELEASE
Employability in Canada: Preparing for the Future
Ottawa, April 02, 2008 -
Today, Dean Allison, MP for Niagara West - Glanbrook and Chair of the Standing Committee on Human Resources, Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities, tabled a report in the House of Commons entitled Employability in Canada: Preparing for the Future.
Framed in the context of skills shortages that are expected to emerge as Canada’s labour force ages, the Committee embarked on a study covering a wide range of employability issues including, for example, investments in human capital, increased labour force participation, worker mobility, the recognition of foreign workers’ credentials, immigration and the use of temporary foreign workers.
The Committee’s report proposes a number of measures to bolster the participation of under-represented groups in the labour market as well as increase investments in education and training, both of which contribute to improving productivity and economic prosperity.
The report contains 70 recommendations, not all of which were unanimously endorsed. Among others, the report calls for:
both levels of government to work together to develop our human resources planning capability by expanding the sector council model which has existed in Canada since the late 1980s;
mobility assistance, full compliance with the mobility provisions in Chapter 7 of the Agreement on Internal Trade, and a pan-Canadian approach for assessing and recognizing credentials, especially foreign credentials;
a coherent pan-Canadian adult learning strategy;
continued improvements in support for post-secondary students and capacity-building initiatives in the post-secondary system;
EI pilot projects to examine ways to enhance the employability of specific groups of workers;
measures that facilitate employment among older workers;
increased funding for the Opportunities Fund and the development of new tax incentives to encourage employers to make the necessary accommodations to hire and retain workers with disabilities;
an expansion of the Working Income Tax Benefit;
a national early learning and child care system; and
new measures to help newly arrived immigrants make a successful transition into the Canadian labour market.
Dean Allison said, “There is little doubt that Canada’s aging labour force will present significant challenges to policy makers in the years ahead.” But he added that “Committee members hope that the report’s proposals will help meet the employment needs of many groups in the Canadian labour market and ensure that an adequate supply of skills exists in the years to come.”
The Committee requested a comprehensive response from the Government within 120 days.
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