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Canada’s skilled worker shortage continues to plague the Canadian economy. By 2028, some 700,000 skilled workers will enter retirement, and according to Statistics Canada, 56 per cent of Canadian businesses are already seeing the skills gaps in their work force. This attrition may uniquely impact Canada’s goal to reach net-zero emissions by 2050, as ‘green skills’ become increasingly important in the effort to keep Canadian industries poised to reach this target.
When it comes to the general public’s idea of what green skills are, Geoff McCarney, senior director of research at the Smart Prosperity Institute, points out that many people “immediately think about people who are working on things that directly relate to reducing emissions, like installing a solar panel, or coming up with a new innovation to help conserve wildlife.”
However, Mr. McCarney says this definition is limited. “We like to frame it as skills that are going to be important in a low carbon economy, not necessarily just attached to direct improvements in environmental outcomes. Even in accounting there are green skills needed to do certain kinds of reporting, for example.”
“We often say that building skills requires an entire ecosystem,” Mr. McCarney continues. “You need learners, educators, policy-makers, and employers engaging together to upskill workers and attract new skills to a location. If you’re not aligning the ecosystem, you’re fighting with one arm behind your back.”
This year, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) reported that 20.6 per cent of the Canadian work force is employed in green-driven occupations, with the highest share found in Alberta, and the lowest in Nova Scotia. It defines ‘green-driven’ as jobs that do not directly contribute to emission reductions but are likely to be in demand because they support green activities.
“We’re investing in tons of projects about how we take people facing job loss in one sector, and we ask what kind of career support and training do they need to make these transitions,” says Alex Stephens, associate director of research and evaluation at Future Skills Centre, where investigations on innovative approaches to addressing labour market and skills challenges in Canada are under way.
“There are lots of opportunities and risks that we need to think about when considering what is likely to help us smooth that transition. We track what employers, government and other labour market actors are saying about the transition to a green economy, including the fact that there’s lots of downsides because there are communities that will see a decline in economic activities while others will see growth in clean tech. We need to deal with what that does to people’s jobs and their communities.”
Mr. McCarney outlined a list of first steps that those in the green-skills ecosystem could take to lay a stronger foundation for businesses and communities undergoing change.
“That requires being located in places where workers want to live, child care, flexible work schedules, ongoing access to training, and continual growth in housing and livable space. Transit is another one – a worker in a green sector probably wants transit so they’re not commuting in their car all the time.”
Anthony Ariganello, president and chief executive officer of Chartered Professionals in Human Resources BC & Yukon, and CPHR Canada, points out the consequences of company leadership failing to embrace green initiatives in a genuine way.
“Given today’s intergenerational make-ups of the workforces at most organizations, there is an expectation especially from younger employees as well as other key stakeholders that organizations embrace the green movement authentically and credibly,” Mr. Ariganello wrote in an e-mail. “Therefore, this requires leadership by example which starts at the top. A recent example of this gone awry, is the 1,000-mile super-commute for Starbucks’ new CEO, which is receiving mixed results especially for a company with a high degree of commitment to Environmental Social and Governing (ESG) principles.”
Starbucks CEO Brian Niccol is facing criticism after the company said he could commute from his home in California to the company head office in Seattle via private jet, instead of relocating.
“Undertaking an honest and candid review of where the organization is on the green journey shows employees that the organization is serious and committed to the pivot and transition to ESG. Securing talent that has the subject matter expertise, or bringing in expert outside consultants is critical. Thereafter organizations need to engage employees for their ideas and input on ESG and then launch and measure the efficacy of pilot programs on the organization’s green initiative. Additionally, everything from job postings, to onboarding, to the daily functioning and operation of the organization must be geared towards weaving in green principles into the very fabric of the entity,” Mr. Ariganello says.
Mr. McCarney points out an auspicious irony, which is that many workers with green-skills are currently working in high emission industries. He says overlooking this cross-section of talent would be a loss.
“You have green-skilled workers in high emitting sectors – some of them do engineering, or perhaps research. Just because you work in a high emission sector doesn’t mean you don’t have green skills. It’s important to think about supporting those transitions as well.”