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killed temporary foreign workers certified in Alberta’s optional trades can now apply directly to the government for permanent residency instead of having to apply with their employers, the province announced

Alberta is allowed to nominate 5,000 people. With limited numbers, Alberta’s focus will be on nominating people who currently work in permanent jobs

“We have to make sure we are ready for the coming labour shortages as economies around the world are competing for the same skills and the same people. This change will allow Alberta to nominate the most qualified and experienced tradespeople working in occupations that are needed in Alberta.”

Canada's oil patch is scrambling to bring back foreign workers, desperate to avoid a repeat of the labour crunch that clobbered the industry three years ago.

In 2008, oil sands capital spending hit about $18-billion (Canadian). Projections by Calgary-based investment dealer Peters & Co. suggest industry will surpass that level by next year. By 2014, the firm forecasts capital spending will exceed 2008 levels by nearly 25 per cent.

The Alberta government says the province will be short 77,000 workers in the next 10 years. The Petroleum Human Resources Council has predicted up to 130,000 new workers will be needed in the coming decade, both to staff new jobs and replace retirements.

With another boom just around the corner, it’s time to shift away from reliance on temporary foreign workers and concentrate on immigration, says Thomas Lukaszuk

280,000 new immigrants this year

360,000 temporary workers in the country.”

Job seekers are flooding back to Alberta after a two-year lull, lured by a resurgence in the oil patch and growing hiring demands. Alberta saw a net inflow of 5,300 people from other provinces in the first quarter of 2011 -- its highest rate of interprovincial migration since the first quarter of 2006, according to Statistics Canada preliminary population data reported Wednesday.

The province saw steady inflows of workers from other parts of Canada between 1995 and 2009, but saw outflows in 2010 for the first time in 15 years.

Alberta’s gain appears to have come from Atlantic Canada and other Prairie provinces. Newfoundland recorded a net outflow of 500 people and Nova Scotia lost 1,000 to interprovincial migration in the first quarter.

a three-day course organized by Alberta Oilfield Employment Solutions. Based in Red Deer, Alta., the two-man company provides basic training for workers wanting to enter the job-rich oilpatch.

The company provides a crash course in oilpatch safety and basic knowledge. For instance, the course covers standard first aid and mandatory training on working around hydrogen sulfide gas. Students also learn what coil tubing is, and the difference between a drilling rig and a service rig.

$995 the course isn't cheap

The Alberta employers who are unable to fill occupations with Canadian citizens or permanent residents may decide to attract and retain foreign workers by applying for the AINP. Currently, the AINP has several streams and categories: Skilled workers  International graduates   Semi-skilled workers Food and beverage processing industry Hotel and lodging industry Manufacturing industry Trucking industry Foodservices industry (pilot) Self-employed farmers  Strategic Recruitment Stream

Canada’s skilled trades labour unions train 80 per cent of construction apprentices, including 40,000 trained annually in concert with the oilsands industry and our employer partners,

We need to work jointly to attract more Canadians into the skilled trades, provide more classroom and employment-based training opportunities, improve incentives to move within Canada for work, and as needed, increase both permanent and temporary immigration. More skilled people who are mobile, certified and ready to work is a win-win,” said Collyer.

Alberta’s new Minister of Enterprise and Advanced Education, Stephen Khan, will announce a partnership with SAIT Polytechnic on Monday to help address the looming worker shortage. By 2014, the Alberta government estimates that approximately 16 per cent of its construction workforce will need to be replaced.

Many immigrants educated overseas can face a complex and lengthy process when trying to get their foreign-earned qualifications recognized. Progress means a shorter and simpler path," said Thomas Lukaszuk, Minister of Alberta Employment and Immigration

Industry officials in Alberta are questioning the federal government's plan to cut back on visas for skilled workers, saying the province's expanding economy needs more employees.

Ed Stelmach. "I know that they are reflecting some of the issues in Ontario. But we are in a completely different position."

Overseas visa targets 2010 2011 % change Federal skilled worker visas 69,915 55,900 - 20.0 Provincial nominees visas 36,650 40,300 + 9.0 Total economic class visa 161,630 151,000 - 6.6

How many international students attend post-secondary education in Alberta? International students make up about 5% of enrolment at Alberta’s publicly funded post-secondary institutions – about 11,800 students in 2008-09. International students also make up a significant proportion of the graduate student population.  In 2008-09, almost 19% of Master’s Degree and almost 30% of PhD students were international students

Despite a country-wide boost in high school graduation rates over the past 20 years, the dropout rate in Alberta remains the third highest in the country at 10.4 per cent, ahead of Manitoba at 11.4 per cent and Quebec at 11.7 per cent.

Like Ontario and most provinces across the country, Alberta has also expanded their work experience programs to try and keep high school students interested in working in manufacturing or trades from dropping out. Recognizing that education isn’t one-size-fits all is definitely a step in the right direction towards getting students to value their education. However, thinking that requiring students by law will simply make everything fall into place when it comes to raising the high school graduation rate is simply foolish.

As spokeswoman for Alberta Education, Carolyn Stuparyk, told the Globe and Mail, a large part of the challenge in keeping Alberta students in school is combating the notion that taking a high paying physical labour job in a still relatively strong economy is more exciting than sitting in a classroom.

return of scarce labour and rising construction costs will be the downside of renewed economic growth in Alberta

Alberta's 5.7-per-cent unemployment rate in February was tied with Saskatchewan for second-lowest in the country behind Manitoba. Private-sector job growth in the province leads the nation at five per cent year-over-year.

But 62 per cent of business leaders also reported that finding workers was a problem, he said.

A new tool will help employers and human resources professionals better understand academic credentials earned abroad. The online tool will improve the attraction and retention of newcomers which is an important part of addressing the province’s future labour shortage

Education Overview Guides are an online resource that explains how international education credentials compare to Alberta education credentials and standards. Employers, Human Resource professionals, potential immigrants, and recent newcomers can all benefit from understanding how foreign education credentials compare to Alberta standards.

For more information on the Guides, please visit the Education Overview Guides. For more information on Foreign Qualification Recognition and to see other resources, please visit Foreign Qualification Recognition or call 780–427-2655 (toll-free by calling 310–0000).

According to all PNP agreements signed to date, provincial governments hold exclusive authority to establish program criteria, nomination quotas, and administrative schemes, leaving the federal government with a limited role to monitor basic admissibility requirements under the IRPA and to negotiate evaluation processes for each provincial program. The language of the framework agreements indicates unequivocally that these programs are designed for the provinces to occupy maximum jurisdictional space.

At the level of program design, current PNP agreements enable the provinces to establish their own criteria for making nominations and to set target numbers for nominees from year to year.

Most provinces have created distinct sub-categories or streams in their PNPs based on skill level, family statues, or planned business development, and sometimes restrict these to specific industries and occupations.

In 2010, over 36,000 people entered Canada under the PNP. And in 2012, Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) intends to welcome up to 45,000 people under the PNP. These totals include nominees, spouses and dependents. This is seven times more people than came to Canada under the PNP in 2004.

In the fall of 2010, the Council of Atlantic Premiers expressed concern that current federal immigration policies do not serve the present and future needs of the Atlantic provinces and they called on the federal government to remove the caps on PNP nomination certificates.

Nova Scotia wants to double immigration, and hopes to issue 1,500 certificates per year by 2020.

Between 2005 and 2009, Manitoba received 13,089 immigrants through the provincial nominee program, nearly 40 per cent of the 33,722 nominee immigrants who landed in Canada in those years. Alberta, with 14 per cent, was a distant second.

Although immigration falls under federal jurisdiction, Ottawa has signed agreements to let provinces and territories establish criteria for, and seek out, immigrants to fill a province's specific economic needs. Manitoba was the first to sign such an agreement in 1996 and has been the most successful at using the program.

In Manitoba, where the provincial government has touted the nominee program as one of the saviours of the provincial economy, nominees are far more likely to be poor and working below their skill level than in other western provinces.

Alido, Editha Market Research Team Leader, All Markets Strategic Marketing Employment and Immigration 4th fl Commerce Place 10155 - 102 Street Edmonton, AB T5J 4L6 Phone: 780 644-3133 Fax: 780 644-3329

E-mail: editha.alido@gov.ab.ca

Labour Force Development Organizational Unit Name Phone Title Main Number 780 644-4306 Boehm, Marilynn Executive Director Labour Force Development Employment and Immigration 6th fl Centre West Building 10035 - 108 Street Edmonton, AB T5J 3E1 Phone: 780 422-1851 Fax: 780 422-6400 E-mail: marilynn.boehm@gov.ab.ca .blockML{display:block; padding: 19px; width: 400px; position: absolute; background-color:White; height:45px; } .blockML{display:block; width: 400px; background-color:White; height:125px; } .none{display:none;} .subscribe{font:27em;} .spc{padding: 0 0 0 8px; } .hideML {display:none} .printML {display:block; font-style: normal; font-weight: normal; line-height: 1em; } Mail Label