More than 350,000 Native people will reach working age between 1996 and 2006
In the next four years, Canada will experience a significant increase in the size of the Aboriginal working-age population. In what amounts to an Aboriginal baby boom, more than 350,000 Native people will reach working age between 1996 and 2006.
Given stable labour-force participation rates, the Canadian workforce will need to absorb an additional 160,000 Aboriginals by 2006 to maintain current levels of employment. This daunting task will mean increasing the number of employed Native Canadians by 50 per cent.
A major difficulty in achieving this goal is that most of this large cohort of Native Canadians coming of working age will have insufficient education and limited job experience, restricting their ability to compete for jobs.
In a constantly changing labour market, Aboriginal Canadians are particularly vulnerable to changing labour market skill requirements. They trail other Canadians in technical and post-secondary education.
Native communities and the private and public sectors will have to implement creative solutions to narrow the education and employment gaps.
The Conference Board of Canada, which has been researching corporate-Aboriginal relations and Aboriginal economic development for the past 10 years, produced the 1998 report Economic prospects for Aboriginals, based on quantitative data, a survey of corporate practices and case studies.
Difficulties finding work
The geographical distribution of the population is a key barrier to improved employment opportunities. Employment opportunities on and near the reserves are limited and most of Canada’s Aboriginal population live outside the reasonable commuting range of urban centre employment.
More than 52 per cent of the Aboriginal population live in the four western provinces, but these provinces account for just more than one-quarter of the total jobs in Canada. The bulk of new jobs created between 1996 and 2006 will be in the service sector — concentrated in Quebec and Ontario — while fewer jobs will be available in provinces such as Saskatchewan and Manitoba with higher Aboriginal populations.
As a result, Aboriginal diversity issues are more acute in the West.
Additional factors preventing Aboriginals from greater participation in the workforce include:
•the relatively low education level of young people and high secondary school dropout rates compared to other Canadians;
•the low number of applicants even when jobs are available, due to information gaps as to what jobs are open and what skills are required;
•the lack of role models in such high demand careers as computer science, electronics, business, engineering and science; and
•educational institutions that do not provide sufficient education in math and science.
Research indicates Aboriginal leaders recognize the challenges they face in improving the education levels and employment prospects for their people.
They are working with other stakeholders to encourage youth to stay in school and to create wealth and employment in their communities. Leading Canadian companies have already taken action and implemented corporate-Aboriginal employment strategies to reduce this looming crisis.
Those making the effort and why
Companies leading the charge stress the importance of developing and implementing an Aboriginal workforce strategy. Those that have done so report being better able to:
•recruit and retain Aboriginal employees;
•build relationships with Aboriginal communities; and
•participate in multi-stakeholder training-to-employment partnerships to increase the number of Aboriginals employed in high-growth job sectors.
Companies surveyed for the 1998 Conference Board report cited a desire to promote diversity as the number one reason for employing Aboriginal Canadians. Other reasons include the need to obtain access to the skills of Aboriginals, and policies to support the communities in which the companies operate.
Developing the Aboriginal customer base and the fact that they may constitute the bulk of the local labour force were not seen as critical determinants of Aboriginal employment.
Strategies for recruitment and retention
Common recruitment strategies include providing career information and counselling in Aboriginal communities through career seminars and networking with local leaders. A strong outreach program leads to better mutual understanding of corporate and Aboriginal cultures, overcomes stereotypes and enhances the success rates for recruitment and retention.
Removing barriers to employment for Aboriginal Canadians is one of the crucial issues.
While cultural barriers failed to register as a key barrier in preventing employment, retaining Aboriginal employees clearly requires cultural sensitivity, support groups and mentoring programs.
Many companies have implemented cross-cultural training programs for employees in order to promote better understanding and appreciation of cultural differences. An awareness of history, culture and values for all employees is important. In-house Aboriginal advisory groups and liaison officers can build bridges between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal employees within the company.
However, one of the major reasons why companies don’t hire more Aboriginals is that not enough of them apply for jobs. Some leading corporations have set goals of employing Aboriginals in the same percentage as exists in the national workforce.
But, have found that the education, skills and experience of Aboriginals is often not compatible with corporate needs. Many Aboriginals have expressed feelings that working for corporations is not an attractive career option.
Perceptions have changed through better understanding of corporate career opportunities and corporate environments that respect and value a diversity of cultures, perspectives and values. In some cases Aboriginal communities have few role models in non-traditional employment areas to attract youth to these careers.
Corporations have shown they can work with Aboriginal communities, educational institutions and government to enhance employment prospects for Aboriginals.
The most common recruitment method for companies is to support educational institutions, training initiatives and scholarships for Aboriginal students. Recruitment strategies that reach out to Aboriginal communities, organizations and people are the second most likely method.
A co-ordinated effort on the education and skills front would make Aboriginals better prepared for employment opportunities in the private and public sectors. A co-operative approach would also help bridge the information gap as to identifying the jobs that are available, where they are located and how Aboriginal Canadians can compete for them.
Stelios Loizides is a senior research associate at the Conference Board of Canada. He can be reached at (613) 526-3090, ext. 346 or [email protected].
Given stable labour-force participation rates, the Canadian workforce will need to absorb an additional 160,000 Aboriginals by 2006 to maintain current levels of employment. This daunting task will mean increasing the number of employed Native Canadians by 50 per cent.
A major difficulty in achieving this goal is that most of this large cohort of Native Canadians coming of working age will have insufficient education and limited job experience, restricting their ability to compete for jobs.
In a constantly changing labour market, Aboriginal Canadians are particularly vulnerable to changing labour market skill requirements. They trail other Canadians in technical and post-secondary education.
Native communities and the private and public sectors will have to implement creative solutions to narrow the education and employment gaps.
The Conference Board of Canada, which has been researching corporate-Aboriginal relations and Aboriginal economic development for the past 10 years, produced the 1998 report Economic prospects for Aboriginals, based on quantitative data, a survey of corporate practices and case studies.
Difficulties finding work
The geographical distribution of the population is a key barrier to improved employment opportunities. Employment opportunities on and near the reserves are limited and most of Canada’s Aboriginal population live outside the reasonable commuting range of urban centre employment.
More than 52 per cent of the Aboriginal population live in the four western provinces, but these provinces account for just more than one-quarter of the total jobs in Canada. The bulk of new jobs created between 1996 and 2006 will be in the service sector — concentrated in Quebec and Ontario — while fewer jobs will be available in provinces such as Saskatchewan and Manitoba with higher Aboriginal populations.
As a result, Aboriginal diversity issues are more acute in the West.
Additional factors preventing Aboriginals from greater participation in the workforce include:
•the relatively low education level of young people and high secondary school dropout rates compared to other Canadians;
•the low number of applicants even when jobs are available, due to information gaps as to what jobs are open and what skills are required;
•the lack of role models in such high demand careers as computer science, electronics, business, engineering and science; and
•educational institutions that do not provide sufficient education in math and science.
Research indicates Aboriginal leaders recognize the challenges they face in improving the education levels and employment prospects for their people.
They are working with other stakeholders to encourage youth to stay in school and to create wealth and employment in their communities. Leading Canadian companies have already taken action and implemented corporate-Aboriginal employment strategies to reduce this looming crisis.
Those making the effort and why
Companies leading the charge stress the importance of developing and implementing an Aboriginal workforce strategy. Those that have done so report being better able to:
•recruit and retain Aboriginal employees;
•build relationships with Aboriginal communities; and
•participate in multi-stakeholder training-to-employment partnerships to increase the number of Aboriginals employed in high-growth job sectors.
Companies surveyed for the 1998 Conference Board report cited a desire to promote diversity as the number one reason for employing Aboriginal Canadians. Other reasons include the need to obtain access to the skills of Aboriginals, and policies to support the communities in which the companies operate.
Developing the Aboriginal customer base and the fact that they may constitute the bulk of the local labour force were not seen as critical determinants of Aboriginal employment.
Strategies for recruitment and retention
Common recruitment strategies include providing career information and counselling in Aboriginal communities through career seminars and networking with local leaders. A strong outreach program leads to better mutual understanding of corporate and Aboriginal cultures, overcomes stereotypes and enhances the success rates for recruitment and retention.
Removing barriers to employment for Aboriginal Canadians is one of the crucial issues.
While cultural barriers failed to register as a key barrier in preventing employment, retaining Aboriginal employees clearly requires cultural sensitivity, support groups and mentoring programs.
Many companies have implemented cross-cultural training programs for employees in order to promote better understanding and appreciation of cultural differences. An awareness of history, culture and values for all employees is important. In-house Aboriginal advisory groups and liaison officers can build bridges between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal employees within the company.
However, one of the major reasons why companies don’t hire more Aboriginals is that not enough of them apply for jobs. Some leading corporations have set goals of employing Aboriginals in the same percentage as exists in the national workforce.
But, have found that the education, skills and experience of Aboriginals is often not compatible with corporate needs. Many Aboriginals have expressed feelings that working for corporations is not an attractive career option.
Perceptions have changed through better understanding of corporate career opportunities and corporate environments that respect and value a diversity of cultures, perspectives and values. In some cases Aboriginal communities have few role models in non-traditional employment areas to attract youth to these careers.
Corporations have shown they can work with Aboriginal communities, educational institutions and government to enhance employment prospects for Aboriginals.
The most common recruitment method for companies is to support educational institutions, training initiatives and scholarships for Aboriginal students. Recruitment strategies that reach out to Aboriginal communities, organizations and people are the second most likely method.
A co-ordinated effort on the education and skills front would make Aboriginals better prepared for employment opportunities in the private and public sectors. A co-operative approach would also help bridge the information gap as to identifying the jobs that are available, where they are located and how Aboriginal Canadians can compete for them.
Stelios Loizides is a senior research associate at the Conference Board of Canada. He can be reached at (613) 526-3090, ext. 346 or [email protected].
