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Omar Yaqub

The awful truth: education won't stop the west getting poorer | Peter Wilby | Comment i... - 0 views

www.guardian.co.uk/...tion-jobs-middle-class-decline

education trends competitiveness work

shared by Omar Yaqub on 02 Mar 11 - No Cached
  • Skilled jobs will go to the lowest bidder worldwide. A decline in middle class pay and job satisfaction is only just beginning
  • Americans are about to suffer a profound shock. For the past 30 years governments have explained that, while they can no longer protect jobs through traditional forms of state intervention such as subsidies and tariffs, they can expand and reform education to maximise opportunity. If enough people buckle down to acquiring higher-level skills and qualifications, Europeans and Americans will continue to enjoy rising living standards. If they work hard enough, each generation can still do better than its parents. All that is required is to bring schools up to scratch and persuade universities to teach "marketable" skills. That is the thinking behind Michael Gove's policies and those of all his recent predecessors as education secretary.
  • "Knowledge work", supposedly the west's salvation, is now being exported like manual work. A global mass market in unskilled labour is being quickly succeeded by a market in middle-class work, particularly for industries, such as electronics, in which so much hope of employment opportunities and high wages was invested. As supply increases, employers inevitably go to the cheapest source. A chip designer in India costs 10 times less than a US one.
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  • Alan Blinder, a former vice-chairman of the US Federal Reserve, has estimated that a quarter of all American service sector jobs could go overseas.
  • Western neoliberal "flat earthers" (after Thomas Friedman's book) believed jobs would migrate overseas in an orderly fashion. Some skilled work might eventually leave but, they argued, it would make space for new industries, requiring yet higher skills and paying better wages. Only highly educated westerners would be capable of the necessary originality and adaptability. Developing countries would obligingly wait for us to innovate in new areas before trying to compete.
  • But why shouldn't developing countries leapfrog the west? Asia now produces more scientists and engineers than the EU and the US put together. By 2012, on current trends, the Chinese will patent more inventions than any other nation.
  • t suggests neoliberals made a second, perhaps more important error. They assumed "knowledge work" would always entail the personal autonomy, creativity and job satisfaction to which the middle classes were accustomed. They did not understand that, as the industrial revolution allowed manual work to be routinised, so in the electronic revolution the same fate would overtake many professional jobs. Many "knowledge skills" will go the way of craft skills. They are being chopped up, codified and digitised. Every high street once had bank managers who used their discretion and local knowledge to decide which customers should receive loans. Now software does the job. Human judgment is reduced to a minimum, which explains why loan applicants are often denied because of some tiny, long-forgotten overdue payment
  • Digital Taylorism makes jobs easier to export but, crucially, changes the nature of much professional work. Aspirant graduates face the prospect not only of lower wages, smaller pensions and less job security than their parents enjoyed but also of less satisfying careers. True, every profession and company will retain a cadre of thinkers and decision-makers at the top – perhaps 10% or 15% of the total – but the mass of employees, whether or not they hold high qualifications, will perform routine functions for modest wages. Only for those with elite qualifications from elite universities (not all in Europe or America) will education deliver the promised rewards.
  • The effects of the financial squeeze and deficit reduction programme will threaten much more than this government's survival. We shall see, in all probability, a permanent reduction in British living standards that can't be arrested by educational reform. Neoliberalism, already badly dented by the financial meltdown, will be almost entirely discredited. Governments will then need to rethink their attitudes to education, inequality and the state's economic role.
  • Omar Yaqub on 02 Mar 11
     
    Skilled jobs will go to the lowest bidder worldwide. A decline in middle class pay and job satisfaction is only just beginning
Omar Yaqub

In-migration key to Alberta's inflation fight | Troy Media Corporation - 0 views

www.troymedia.com/...ey-to-albertas-inflation-fight

alberta work trends competitiveness

shared by Omar Yaqub on 25 Mar 11 - No Cached
  • Labour costs can’t be avoided Why are local labour markets key to containing inflation? When demand picks up in Alberta, imported goods can simply be ramped up as well. The cost of a Toyota didn’t change significantly in ’08, for instance. Conversely, the cost of a haircut, building a high-rise or an up-grader all increased substantially. High labour costs for non-tradable goods and services simply can’t be avoided.
  • We’re not yet at the point where the Alberta labour market is strained because  natural gas is still down and governments have cut back so the added activity can likely be accommodated without causing wages to spike. Unfortunately, that can change quickly. Thankfully, while confederacy doesn’t always lead to an optimal interest rate for western Canada, it does provide a pressure release valve through inter-provincial migration.
  • People relocate for a variety of reasons (family, education, etc.), but, typically, there are three main economic drivers: wages, cost of living and the unemployment rate, which are all linked to one another. For instance, what’s the point of having a higher average wage if it is entirely eaten up by higher living expenses, and wages might be higher in another province, but if they’re not hiring there’s not much point relocating.
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  • There really hasn’t been a whole lot of migration over the past couple years but, going forward, this might change as the above-mentioned factors are starting to turn in Alberta’s favour. Relative to Ontario, over the past year the wage premium has been consistently over 10 per cent, the unemployment rate has been on average 2.5 percentage points lower, and housing affordability indices show that relative affordability has significantly improved in Alberta as well.
  • The average wage in Alberta was four per cent higher than in Ontario in 2006 but is 11 per cent higher now.
  • Idle Americans could help labour shortage
  • Currently idled American trades people will likely fit that bill quite nicely if enough Canadians don’t relocate.
  • Lastly, Alberta is certainly in a better position to accommodate any influx now than it was in the 2006-08 period, given higher rental vacancy rates and lower residential construction activity. Who knows? Maybe, for a brief period anyway, Alberta will actually find that elusive sweet spot between growth and inflation.
Omar Yaqub

Multicultural meritocracy - 0 views

www.financialpost.com/...story.html

immigrants work canada

shared by Omar Yaqub on 09 May 11 - Cached
  • Yezdi Pavri, vice-chairman of professional services firm Deloitte in Canada. "There is a competitive business advantage to having a diverse workforce and drawing from the widest talent pool possible. At Deloitte we have created an inclusive meritocracy. We have proven just as other organizations have that diversity leads to innovation. When you capitalize on the different experiences people bring you come up with better solutions. Now, many of our clients push us to have diverse teams. The worst thing you can do these days is go to a client with a team of five white men because that does not represent what the market or what our clients look like.
  • Here then are some strategies small businesses can use to attract and retain skilled immigrant workers:
  • "Make it known that as a small employer you are interested in hiring skilled immigrants,"
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  • ALLIES [Assisting Local Leaders with Immigrant Employment Strategies] is an umbrella organization that reaches across the country. It's a good place to start
  • Conduct interviews in the applicant's first language. "From a recruiting perspective, we are out looking for people with the right skills and often we will find individuals who have tremendous technical capabilities but English may be a struggle and so they have trouble representing themselves in an interview situation,"
  • "If we bring someone on board, we go through an extensive orientation process and part of that includes offering them the opportunity to take English language courses or other types of assimilation courses. We also fund continuing learning across our teams. That is a value for us and it helps us retain our talent." Thales Canada's Toronto location has a 95% reten-tion rate among new immigrants.
  • Create a buddy system. "We partner every new employee with a buddy who is not their coach or manager and who helps them navigate Deloitte,"
  • "What is the right way to dress? What are the right cultural protocols? People coming from other parts of the world don't have the common protocols we take for granted. This buddy system has been tremendously effective. A couple of years after a skilled immigrant has joined us and assimilated into the culture, they are often the most keen to act as buddies to new people coming in.
  • Start small. "We piloted our strategy, nurturing our leaders and instituted cultural awareness training,"
  • "Organizations like TRIEC can help you with cultural training, often at no cost. This will help you identify cultural differences and then figure out ways to address them tactfully."
Omar Yaqub

http://premier.alberta.ca/PlansInitiatives/economic/RPCES_ShapingABFuture_Report_web2.pdf - 0 views

premier.alberta.ca/...hapingABFuture_Report_web2.pdf

alberta trends work immigrants government

shared by Omar Yaqub on 09 May 11 - No Cached
    • Omar Yaqub
      Omar Yaqub on 09 May 11
       
      work with the federal government to change the immigration system - to help address critical shortages of workers at all skill levelsIt is in the interests of all Canadians that the Alberta economy remains strong. To realize the full potential of the oil sands and broaden the economic base, the province will need people from outside the country as well as migrants from other parts of Canada. The provincial government and industry must collaborate in demonstrating to the federal government the critical need to at least double the caps on the provincial immigrant nominee program. Advocate for immediate changes that allow temporary foreign workers with solid records to apply for permanent resident status while they are still in the country. Continue to work with the federal government to institute longer-term changes to better align the national immigration program with strategies for economic growth, making it more responsive to changing economic conditions and industry's workforce needs.Determine what is getting in the way of swift assessment of foreign trades and professional credentials related to these scarce skills, and remove barriers to full recognition of qualifications that meet Alberta standards. Pre-certify credentials from selected offshore institutions, and create a mechanism that allows all immigrants to determine their credential status before moving here. Expand initiatives such as the Immigrant Access Fund to help immigrants achieve credential recognition.
  • Omar Yaqub on 09 May 11
     
    Give a new alberta water authority the mandate to innovate in water stewardship, and realize the full benefit of our precious water assets Alberta needs all its citizens to develop the mindset and skills to thrive in today's world and drive economic growth - to be resilient, lifelong learners, healthy and productive, eager to achieve and perform, globally connected and informed seeking talent around the globe Like other countries with aging populations, Alberta in 2040 will be competing to attract the brightest and the best talent to the province's workforce to fill critical gaps. As early as 2030, demographers predict that domestic workforce growth in Alberta and Canada will have stalled, although higher birth rates in our Aboriginal population could indicate potential for some domestic population growth. Encouraging seniors who wish to stay in the workforce longer to do so could mitigate (but not solve) the problem. Employers could abolish their mandatory retirement age and other policies that discriminate on the basis of age.Employers in this province are already concerned about shortages of people to fill jobs at all skill levels, well aware that energy booms create huge demands for workers in service sectors as well as in construction and labour-intensive oil sands production. The very specialized skills and knowledge essential to success in broadening the economic base are in short supply in the province now because there have not historically been good opportunities in these areas. One key requirement is more people experienced in founding and growing technologybased businesses. While productivity improvements and the application of innovative business models may slow growth in the labour supply gap or change the mix of skills required over the  next three decades, we still expect to see an increasing  need to attract immigrants to the province to fill key gaps  at all skill levels.The number of immigrants to Alberta fr
Omar Yaqub

Losing on long-term skilled migration | The Australian - 0 views

www.theaustralian.com.au/...story-e6frgcko-1226034255670

education immigrants

shared by Omar Yaqub on 07 Apr 11 - No Cached
  • CITING a backlog of more than 140,000 applications for skilled migration, the Department of Immigration and Citizenship released amendments to the system of awarding points for applications last year.
  • Most futurists, who spend decades modelling scenarios, agree that 70 per cent of jobs in 2050 don't even exist yet
  • Permanent migration is no longer particularly permanent in a fluid, globalised labour market where international graduates strategically select destinations where they will study, live and work for the medium term before moving on or home, in a pattern referred to increasingly as return or triangular migration.
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  • supply will outstrip demand by 2025 in the local labour market if the present skilled migrant ratio is achieved long term.
Omar Yaqub

ICCI: Eligible Activities and Expenses - 0 views

www.international.gc.ca/...support-appui.aspx

government funding

shared by Omar Yaqub on 28 Jun 11 - No Cached
  • ICCI supports initiatives that promote and sustain foreign direct investment in Canadian communities.
  • program assists communities in developing the tools needed to attract and retain investment.
  • Typically, a community begins by undertaking basic research to determine its strengths, identify key sectors, and determine the level of investment already located in its territory
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  • Investment training for economic development staff
  • Conducting business retention and expansion research
  • Identifying investment strengths and local assets
  • Developing a community profile to show potential investor
  • Developing and implementing a targeted strategy for encouraging foreign investment
  • Developing and implementing a targeted strategy for retaining and expanding existing foreign investments
  • Developing or substantially upgrading websites for foreign direct investment purposes
  • Implementing strategies to retain or expand the investment of foreign affiliates already located in Canada
  • Eligible Expenses
  • Research and studies: identification of target corporations, comparative competitive analyses, development of business cases, business retention and expansion studies, etc.
  • Economic data: collection of community and economic data for investment profiles, etc.
  • Strategic FDI planning: facilitators, consultant costs, community consultations, development of strategic plans.
  • Website development: development and/or major redesign, addition of significant architecture and functionality.
  • Translation: translation of documents or website content into either one of Canada’s official languages or foreign languages;
  • Promotional materials (print or electronic): design and layout only (printing costs and the pressing of CDs and DVDs are not eligible).
  • Advertising: design and layout.
  • Investment Training including EDAC annual conference: courses as part of the community’s investment attraction and retention strategy for employees of the Community.
  • Consultants/contractors.
  • Ineligible ExpensesResearch activities not associated with investment attraction, retention and expansion. Collection or purchase of statistical data not associated with investment attraction, retention or expansion activities. Development of training courses/modules. Consultants hired to facilitate a training session. Costs associated with hiring consultants to develop ICCI applications. Regular website maintenance and updating web content, site hosting, software licensing, Corporate logo design, costs of printing, pressing CDs, or DVDs, and recording videocassettes. All give-aways: gifts, events/shows/concerts tickets, logo items, cups, mugs, pens, etc. Design and layout of non-investment ads (promoting tourism, for example), cost of ad placement in any media.
  • Travel costs incurred by applicants, partners or consultants not related to training; travel costs incurred by potential investors. Taxes: GST, PST, HST, VAT or taxes applied by foreign governments. Hospitality: Cost of meals or alcohol; lodging; clothing and uniforms; and all give-aways. Trade show/conference participation:  registration fees at international trade shows or conferences  (in Canada and abroad), booth design / purchase / assembly and shipping, design of promotional material specifically for a trade show, overhead costs such as pre-show mailing, stationery and long distance phone calls, research to target companies at a trade show, consultant costs for organizing outgoing missions (including training participants); consultant costs to develop target business cases for follow up with potential investors after show; cost of developing an advertisement (design and layout) for show specific publications. Activities or projects  related to attracting infrastructure for tourism and motion picture industries, e.g: to develop ski resorts, theme parks and film production facilities.
  • Capital costs: infrastructure development, capital expenditures to acquire or enhance assets, software licenses, electronics (computers, fax, machines, digital cameras, etc.), demonstration aids. Capital costs include the direct costs of acquisition, construction, expansion, modification, conversion, transportation, installation and insurance (during construction) of fixed assets, as well as the cost of licensing and franchising fees. Overhead costs: Postage, including postage for direct mail campaigns; phone; office space rental; photocopying. Salaries and benefits of personnel. Miscellaneous: activities to attract investment from inside Canada; costs incurred before the application’s approval date; activities for which one or more partners expect to receive compensation in the form of a commission, finder’s fee, or other form of remuneration; promotion activities related to properties or business investment in which one or more partners receive a personal or corporation financial gain.
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