The first report from the Pathway to Prosperity consultations has been publicly released at the ACAATO (Association of Colleges of Applied Arts and Technology of Ontario) conference in Sudbury on Feb. 19.

The report, What We Heard, is a summary of the consultations held throughout Ontario last fall, and an assessment of the challenges ahead as Ontario and Canada try to address the workforce challenges of the 21st century.

More than 2,000 individuals came to the consultations to present their views. More than 600 organizations were represented. Information was provided through open forums, breakfast meetings, written submissions and responses provided on the Pathway to Prosperity website.

The consultations involved a wide range of participants representing employers, students, educators, labour and government. For example, input was received from Algoma Steel, the Ontario Grape Growers Association, the C.D. Howe Institute, the Greater Sudbury Chamber of Commerce, the Peterborough and District Labour Council, Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters, the Simcoe Muskoka Catholic District School Board, the United Way of Niagara Falls, and Métis Nation of Ontario.

The consultations confirmed that people throughout the province are concerned about Canada’s ability to address the challenges of globalization, rapidly changing technology and an aging workforce. There are fears that Canada faces a major skills shortage and there is no coordinated plan to address this.

The 60-page report, What We Heard, lists five priorities that emerged from the consultations:
1. Relevant skills – we need both a higher level of skills (both hard and soft) and a greater number of people with skills;
2. Flexible system – we need a more versatile postsecondary education and training system that can accommodate diverse needs of learners and employers;
3. Improved labour force participation – we need to increase the potential of the workforce by better including traditionally underrepresented groups;
4. Better planning – we must have long-term labour market planning where employer needs are identified early; and
5. Investments – we need the capacity to train people for the skills our economy demands.

The Pathway to Prosperity discussion paper asked people what should go into a National Skills Strategy. In the consultations, participants were clear that a comprehensive strategy should be set nationally but implemented locally.

While this first report is primarily a summary of the input and ideas received, it does provide direction on the next steps needed in Ontario and Canada in order to strengthen the country’s competitive advantage. In our province and our country, we need:

Leadership: We need leaders to provide the vision, the direction and the incentive to make change happen. The Prime Minister and the First Ministers must assume a leadership role in setting the agenda for a National Skills Strategy.

Benchmarks: For a vision to be meaningful, we must be able to set specific goals so we are confident that we are getting the results we want. We must establish measurable targets and assessment standards.

Planning: There needs to be greater co-ordination and co-operation among the players in our system. Federal and provincial governments must put a comprehensive plan in place so that we can meet our future education and training needs.

The report will be presented to Premier Dalton McGuinty and the First Ministers at the Summit on Postsecondary Education and Skills Training on Feb. 23 and Feb. 24 in Ottawa.

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For more information, contact:
Rob Savage
Director of Communications
416-0744 ext. 239