Jobs and economy important election issues in Windsor-Essex

Recruiting, apprenticeship, and the discrepancy between the number of vacant jobs versus the number of people looking for work are just some of the issues that came up during a Windsor Morning panel discussion about local economic issues heading into the June 7 provincial election.

Panelists included Matt Marchand, CEO at Windsor-Essex Regional Chamber of Commerce; Michelle Suchiu, Executive Director at Workforce Windsor-Essex; andDiane Reko, president and CEO of RekoInternational.

Biggest issues facing Windsor-Essex economy?

• The cost of doing business, including rising electricity prices, cap and trade, and the "jobs without people, people without jobs"issue. Matt Marchand
• The unemployment rate is low right now, so why do we have askilled trades gap in our community? "We have about 6,000 people out there who are looking for work. Why is it they can't find it? Do they have the skills that our advanced manufacturers, our agriculture, our IT,they need." Michelle Suchiu
• The biggest issue is recruiting. "There are a lot of positions that we have open right now and we're struggling to get people to apply even, and in some cases show up for interviews." Diane Reko

Not enough people going into skilled trades

The demand for skilled trade workers in the area is high and many companies are busy, according to Reko.

"I also believe there's been a shortage of people entering some ofthose programs and so we're in a situation where nobody's prepared to take on some of these new types of jobs that are available," she said.

We're talking about minimum wage, and that's a good conversation to have, but try 20, 25, 35 dollars an hour. That's an even better conversation to have.- Matt Marchand, Windsor-Essex Regional Chamber of Commerce

According to Marchand, over the next 10 years, more than 40 per cent of local demand is going to be for skilled trades workers, but "only 20-25 per cent of folks are even entertaining that idea."

• Skilled trades shortage costing Windsor-Essex $600M every year, says report

This discussion is not new to the region and Marchand said "we all have to take some level of responsibility for that, and get the message to our young people."

"This is a great career," he added. "We're talking about minimum wage, and that's a good conversation to have, but try 20, 25, 35 dollars an hour. That's an even better conversation to have."

Apprenticeship needs to be higher priority

The average age of a new apprentice is 25 years, according to Suchiu, who said she wants to know why that age is so high.

There's about seven years of a workforce that's missing.- Michelle Suchiu, Workforce Windsor-Essex

"Why is it they're not 18 any more?" she asked. "There's about seven years of a workforce that's missing."

Rekosaid the responsibility for the gap doesn't rely solely on educators. Her company hasbeen opening their doors to students and teachers on Manufacturing Day in October "to see that it's not a dark, dingy place. That it's cool. People are using computers."

• Apprentice program earns high school students cash

Marchandpoints to the apprentice ratio as an issue.

"A lot of the problems we're seeing in the skilled trades is the fact that you need three journeymen to one apprentice," he said. "How do we change that?"

What would you askarea politicalcandidates?

How can the timeline to apprenticeshipbe accelerated? Michelle Suchiu

What role could you play in unifying all the different entities that have an interest in the economic success of the region? Diane Reko

What can be done about the high cost of electricity and how do we attract more people to the trades? Matt Marchand