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Her Darlene Malcolm of Workforce WindsorEssex brainstorms on workforce priorities and solutions as she unveils her 2022-2023 Regional Employment Plan for Workforce WindsorEssex on Wednesday, February 22, 2023. participate in Photo by Dax Melmer/Windsor Starr
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An aging and underskilled workforce combined with a shortage of new hires are hampering economic growth in Essex County, according to a new report, even though the region is at the apex of massive new investment and opportunities. .
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Workforce WindsorEssex released its 2022-2023 Regional Labor Market Plan on Wednesday, outlining challenges and opportunities in the region.
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“Windsor has a really systemic problem with graduating. Years ago when our parents were in school, they dropped out of high school and went straight to Ford or Chrysler and quickly got a job. , because I could probably work for the rest of my life,” the CEO told Justin Falconer. “They were well paid. Many of them didn’t feel the need to go to college or technical school. After a few years, people lived longer and became older workers. They They are all undereducated in some way.”
Workforce WindsorEssex released the report Wednesday at an in-person event and community discussion. The plan is based in part on research and consultation with representatives from various sectors and identifies challenges facing employers in terms of sustainability, recruitment, retention and work-based learning and growth. .
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Funded in part by federal and state governments, the project also provides an analysis of labor market statistics and recommendations on how to expand the local workforce.
“Basically, there is still demand in the manufacturing sector, but we’ve found a serious shortage of skilled apprentices,” said author Safa Younes. “Therefore, the promotion of apprenticeship training in skilled professions is highly recommended. We have several exciting projects ahead of us, so electric vehicle battery factories will be able to develop a variety of positions, from manufacturing jobs to senior senior engineering positions. It will create great jobs.”
College Boreal’s Elora Beaton presents her 2022 Local Hiring Plan for 2023 at the launch of Workforce WindsorEssex on Wednesday, February 22, 2023 to brainstorm on workforce priorities and solutions participate in Photo by Dax Melmer/Windsor Starr
Workforce WindsorEssex, Invest WindsorEssex, WEtech Alliance, Windsor University and St Clair College are working on a new website called EV Careers, according to Falconer. The website, which has not yet been launched, aims to help people understand what opportunities are available in the electric vehicle sector and how they can improve their skills and enter these professions. purpose.
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NextStar will need a skilled workforce long before construction of his $5 billion electric vehicle battery factory is complete.
Windsor has posted “well over 6,000 job postings per month for him” in the past seven months, Falconer said, with near-record job postings. . One reason is that employees are leaving and companies are having trouble finding replacements. Falconer said that while more and more young people are getting higher education, there is still a “huge gap”.
In Windsor, he said, he has 10 percent more people with a high school diploma than the Ontario average, and about 10 percent fewer people with a college degree.
“So as the kids graduate and the population ages and changes, we have to keep up,” he said.
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To do this, youness said, you need a program that “reflects the demand for local industry.”
“There are more people retiring and leaving important industries such as handicrafts and health care than are currently in training,” she said. “It is very important to meet this need now.”
Collaboration is key to most of our findings. This summary suggests that companies are working with local educational institutions to offer hard skills development, soft skills development, onsite training, and online training. According to the report, this helps retain employees, promote career growth, and recruit future employees.
The report also advocates for cooperation between employers and service organizations to place newcomers into high-demand sectors and careers through the development of job-specific training.
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Youness said such efforts would not only help break down language barriers, but fight cultural biases.
“We do have a large newcomer population that is coming with skills from their home country,” she said. “Removing restrictions and access to barriers in terms of language-specific occupation training would be a huge bonus to our local economy, taking advantage of the talent that`s already here.”
Another recommendation calls for the support of education initiatives to create career pathways by integrating “experiential learning” into teaching and program requirements.
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This will ensure post-secondary students receive real workplace experience while still in school, providing them “meaningful engagement with their field of study and possible careers,” according to the report.
The study also states it is important to support late career changes through programs like Better Jobs Ontario and Service Canada`s EI program, which provide long-time employees with financial support while taking full-time training. “There’s a lot of potential out there,” Falconer said. “We need to see what we can do to help people transition into these careers, and all other positions in the economy continue to fill and these employers continue to thrive and We need to be able to make good use of our workforce.”
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