As the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, it is my pleasure to welcome all of you to the Skills Canada British Columbia Provincial Competition.
Canada’s workforce needs more skilled trade workers. Your skills and expertise are essential to Canada’s economy and our way of life. All through the pandemic, skilled tradespeople have been critical to essential sectors, and will have an even greater role to play in our economic recovery.
Between 2019 and 2028, about 700,000 skilled trade workers are expected to retire. Through this competition, you are investing your time and energy into a skill that our workforce will be seeking more and more in the years to come.
When Canadians are contemplating a new career, we want them to consider entering the skilled trades and to understand the exciting, well-paying opportunities that they present. That’s why, as Canada’s Minister of Employment and Workforce Development, I am so focused on supporting youth in the skilled trades.
It’s so important that we ensure that all Canadians – including those from key groups who face barriers such as youth, women, newcomers, Indigenous people, persons with disabilities, and visible minorities — get the opportunity to explore and prepare for good careers.
To promote the skilled trades as a first choice career, the Government of Canada is investing nearly $1 billion annually in apprenticeship supports through grants, loans, tax credits, Employment Insurance benefits during in-school training, project funding, and support for the Red Seal program.
We’re also starting the Canadian Apprenticeship Strategy, which offers a suite of skills and training programs to encourage youth to consider a career in the skilled trades, and to support apprentices and key apprenticeship stakeholders to participate and succeed across a variety of fields.
Finally, I am excited to share that we launched a national advertising campaign to promote the skilled trades as a strong first-choice career path for youth and young adults. The campaign is supported by a website, Canada.ca/Skilled-Trades, which gathers information about the 300 skilled trades in Canada, the Red Seal Trade designation, the most in-demand trades per region as well as available financial support offered by the Government of Canada. I hope you visit and share this site with those in your networks.
Together, we can make sure more young Canadians understand the well-paying, rewarding careers that the skilled trades have to offer.
Best of luck to you in the competitions, and have fun!
The Honourable Carla Qualtrough, P.C., M.P