Voices for Fair Apprenticeship Ratios

The statements below are drawn from the many people and organizations that have voiced opinions on Ontario’s unfair electrical apprenticeship ratios. This is a small selection that is representative of many other voices among apprenticeship candidates, electrical contractors and others.

Electrical Contractors

"Ontario is facing a trade shortage and labour crunch. … It's a ridiculous ratio.”

- Tony Telford, owner, Orser Technical Services, Orillia

"The apprenticeship ratios are totally tying our hands. We can't hire. … It's affecting our capacity to do business.”

- Diane Gabel, owner of Gabel Electric, Plumbing and Heating Ltd., Listowel

“Our members would begin hiring Ontario’s youth tomorrow if the unfair government restrictions on hiring apprentices were removed. My own firm, Dial One Wolfedale Electric, which is based in Mississauga, would hire 10-15 new apprentices within the first six months. And there are many other electrical contractors across the province that would do the same.”

- Richard Cullis, President, Dial One Wolfedale Electric

Apprenticeship Candidates

“I cannot understand why the same rationale that is acceptable in the majority of the rest of the country is not acceptable in Ontario. … No reasonable and sensible person could deny the current standards need reform.”

- Matt Prout, electrical apprenticeship candidate, Chatham, Ont.

“The government says we're in desperate need of apprentices, but then you get into school and find out you can't even get a job. It's more than a little frustrating."

- Adam Merkley, 23, electrical technician apprenticeship student, Co-operative Education Program, Conestoga College

Provincial Legislators

“We will certainly take a very close look at it because our intention is to fill in the skills gap. … Obviously what the leader of the official opposition is talking about would, if it were workable, help us resolve this skills gap.”

- Premier Dalton McGuinty (March 26, 2008, in response to a question on electrical apprentice ratios from the Leader of the Official Opposition in the Ontario Legislature)

“Our future direction (will focus on) removing obstacles that stand between them and obtaining the skills they need to get meaningful employment.”

- John Milloy, Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities (March 4, 2008, at an Ontario’s Workforce Shortage Coalition conference)

“Yes.”

- Finance Minister Dwight Duncan (at OEL’s Annual Electricity Industry Conference, 2007, where Minister Duncan stated an unambiguous “Yes” in response to a question on whether he would help convince the Minister of Training, Colleges and Universities to change the ratios.

“This government speaks of jobs and the need to retrain, but their actions do everything to prevent jobs and to prevent retraining. … What does the government do? It spends significant amounts of money to train people and then slams the door on them when they want to become productive, responsible members of this province and our society.”

- Randy Hillier, MPP, Lanark-Frontenac-Lennox and Addington (April 1, 2008, Debate on Ontario’s 2008 Budget in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario)

“Changing the apprenticeship ratios won't cost this government a dime. It will help move almost 200,000 people who've lost their jobs under your watch in those sectors that have labour shortages.”

- Robert Runciman, MPP, Leeds-Grenville (May 7, 2008, Question Period, Legislative Assembly of Ontario)

“We on this side of the House believe that the ratios are outdated and should be changed so that young men and women will have more apprenticeship opportunities and our businesses can play on a more even playing field with all of the other provinces. I have to remind you that Ontario is the only province in Canada that does not have one-to-one ratios.”

- Garfield Dunlop, MPP, Simcoe North (May 27, 2008, Question Period, Legislative Assembly of Ontario)

More Voices Supporting Ontario Youth

“It's time to bring Ontario into the 21st century. The government pays lip service to cutting red tape and encouraging apprenticeships. Here's the perfect way to kill two birds.”

- Christina Blizzard, Queen’s Park Columnist, in the Toronto Sun (April 4, 2008)

“Ideally, we need to get journeyperson-apprentice ratios to 1:1. If British Columbia and Alberta can, why can’t we? There has to be a way to fix this problem — we are handcuffing ourselves.”

- Satinder Chera, Ontario Director, Canadian Federation of Independent Business (March 13/08, in Daily Commercial News)

“The Ontario Chamber of Commerce urges the Government of Ontario to: Re-align ratios in restricted trades to allow for one-on-one ratios between apprentices and journey persons.”

- Ontario Chamber of Commerce policy resolution approved at May 2-4, 2008 Annual General Meeting (full resolution below)

Ontario Chamber of Commerce
Annual General Meeting
Approved Policy Resolutions
Oshawa, Ontario
May 2-4, 2008

Increasing Skilled Trades

(Submitted by the Greater Kingston Chamber of Commerce & Prince Edward County Chamber of Commerce)

Issue:
Many independent contractors across the province report a constant stream of inquiries from young Ontarians wanting to become electricians.

A high number of journeypersons have or will retire and there aren't enough apprentices to take their place, creating skilled trade shortages. Certain skilled trades have restrictive ratios on the number of apprentices to journeypersons that can be taken on by businesses. The ratios are determined by the Trades Qualification and Apprenticeship Act. Since these are now mandatory and, since they are part of the legislation, they can only be changed by an Act of Parliament in Ontario. Journeyperson ratios refer to the number of journeypersons required by regulation to supervise and train each apprentice. These ratios exacerbate Ontario’s current and increasing skilled trades-shortage and directly contradict Ontario government policy to encourage Ontarians to enter the skilled trades. The ratios are also in direct contrast to the policies of most other Canadian provinces who have corrected ratios in restricted trades to encourage more apprentices to enter the workforce and train directly with skilled journeypersons.

Background:
Placing an artificial quota on the number of people entering the skilled labour force can have disastrous consequences, as exemplified by Ontario’s current physician shortage, which was caused by restrictions on medical school placements in the 1990s. Apprentices, like physicians, become experts in their fields over several business cycles: therefore, it is shortsighted to artificially restrict entry into the workforce, even when there is currently no critical demand for them.

Outdated ratios in some trades directly undo the work of Ontario government programs, such as OYAP. The Ontario Youth Apprenticeship Program encourages high school students to enter the skilled trades. They get temporary apprenticeship status and get school credits for their training with qualified trades people. They are exempt from the apprenticeship ratio rules. But when they graduate, they lose their exemption and need to be terminated from their work if there are insufficient numbers of journeypersons in the workplace.

How do Ontario’s ratios compare to other jurisdictions in Canada? Ontario stands at a variance with rest of the country where overall 1:1 ratios are the norm. …

As far as safety concerns, we have uncovered no supporting evidence one way or another that would say a proposed 1:1 ratio is less or more safe than a 3 to 1 ratio. According to the WSIB, the electrical trade is the lowest skill trade with claim ratios across the board.

Restrictions in ratios also have a negative effect on the economies of Ontario rural communities, which are less likely than large cities to have large unionized companies able to take on new apprentices. The lack of opportunity for young people to learn skilled trades in their home communities contributes to the ‘out-migration’ of rural Ontario youth. It must be stressed that the impact on small businesses is greatest, thereby compounding the challenge in many rural communities where small business (under 20 employees) can represent the highest number of companies, reaching as high as 80 to 90 percent. Ontario workers who wish to learn their trade in small businesses are therefore unfairly restricted from entering the workforce in their chosen trades.

One of the unintended consequences of restriction to access to trade certification may be increased activity in the underground economy by uncertified trades people. This is certainly a safety issue, both for the worker and the client.

A one-to-one ratio between apprentice and journeyperson provides direct training and supervision for the apprentice. Lowering the ratio in no way decreases the safety conditions for apprentices on job sites, or reduces the employers’ responsibilities for employee safety, which are dictated by the Occupational Health and Safety Act. The Occupational Health and Safety Act further binds employers to assign duties to employees according to skills and level experience.

The Conference board of Canada predicts that Canada could experience a shortage of one million workers within the next decade. Without the ability to hire new apprentices due to the ratio requirements, the overall effect on our future economic health could be serious.

RECOMMENDATIONS:

The Ontario Chamber of Commerce urges the Government of Ontario to:

1. Re-align ratios in restricted trades to allow for one-to-one ratios between apprentices and journeypersons.