Education/training
OPG enlightens students about trades careersAn innovative new educational kit developed by Ontario Power Generation (OPG) to be introduced this fall, is designed to pave the way to help Ontario high school students pursue rewarding trades-based careers in the electricity sector. SHARON ASCHAIEK |
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 [ 2005-09-28 ] |
The new web-based printable kit will highlight the breadth of trades-related jobs available in the electricity sector; the required high school math and science credits to enter trades-based post-secondary programs; and different post-secondary education options for trades careers. It will be made available to provincial high school students, their parents and educational stakeholders.
The kit comes on the heels of a recent province-wide web and phone survey that OPG and its partners, Hydro One, Bruce Power and the Power Workers Union conducted to gain a clearer idea of the awareness of trades employment opportunities among both high school students and their parents -- the key influencers of their children's career decision making.
A total of 3,023 students and parents from urban, suburban and rural school systems in Ontario completed the Building 4 Success surveys. They revealed many insights, including the following:
- Children and their parents begin thinking about their future career plans in grades 9 and 10.
- Grades 9 and 10 math and science classes are perceived by parents and their high school children as important tools in career planning.
- Information about post-secondary education and career planning comes from many sources, including parents, guidance counsellors, teachers and the Internet.
- Parents and children agree that more education is needed about trades-based careers.
OPG's efforts to research and address the lack of information about the trades at the high school level come at a time when Canada faces an acute lack of skilled tradespeople.
In 2003, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business found that 50% of trades businesses reported that the shortage of skilled trades workers is a pressing issue. It also found that 56% of firms were forced to hire people who weren't qualified.
If immediate action isn't taken, then Canada could be short about one million workers by 2020 due to an aging population and declining birth rates.
The electricity sector faces its own similar challenges maintaining and growing its workforce. The Canadian Electricity Association reports that across the country, about 29% of employees from this sector will retire in the next 10 years; in Ontario that number sits at 26%.
Compounding matters is the fact that the average age of retirement for electricity sector employees is earlier than the average of the rest of the population -- 56 as opposed to 61.
These statistics hold true for OPG in particular, whose workforce is aging and set to retire. As the largest electricity generation company in the province -- with three nuclear stations, five fossil-fueled stations, 64 hydro electric stations, and three wind-powered stations in its portfolio -- and employing thousands of tradespeople, OPG has a major stake in countering this disconcerting trend.
With this educational kit, OPG is aiming to create a pool of labour talent from which it may recruit the most qualified candidates. It recognizes the importance of improving both the awareness and attitudes of students before they begin making decisions about potential career choices.
OPG has also been employing other traditional recruitment strategies to meet this objective, including advertising, job fairs and web-based job boards.
The educational kit will be sent to all parents and students who participated in the survey via e-mail, school boards, high schools, guidance counsellors, parent-teacher associations, home-school associations, ethno-cultural organizations and First Nation organizations.
To find out more about the careers at OPG, visit www.mypowercareer.com.
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