HUMA Committee Meeting

The Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities met in camera at 3:38 p.m. this day, in Room 253-D, Centre Block, the Chair, Ed Komarnicki, presiding.

It was agreed, — That the draft report, as amended, be adopted.

It was agreed, — That the report be entitled: “Federal Support Measures to Adoptive Parents”.

It was agreed, — That the Chair, Clerk and analyst be authorized to make such grammatical and editorial changes as may be necessary without changing the substance of the report.

It was agreed, — That the Chair present the report to the House.

It was agreed, — That the Committee append to its report dissenting opinions, provided that the English version be no more than two (2) pages in length, and that they be submitted electronically to the Clerk of the Committee, no later than Friday, February 24, 2012, in both official languages.

It was agreed, — That the Committee undertake a study entitled: “Fixing the Skills Gap: Addressing Existing Labour Shortages in High Demand Occupations”, which will identify and report on the skills shortages that are currently being experienced in the Canadian labour market, as well as those that will be in future demand; that the study be divided in four major components (i) science, technology, engineering and mathematics skills shortages, (ii) digital skills shortages, (iii) medical skills shortages, and (iv) skilled trades skills shortages; and that the study focus on two specific areas: why the private sector is finding it difficult to find individuals with these skills in the Canadian labour force, and what are the private sector, public sector and other stakeholders doing to overcome these skills shortages.

It was agreed, — That on Wednesday, March 7 and Monday, March 12, 2012, the Committee hear from government witnesses from Human Resources and Skills Development Canada and Industry Canada in relation to its study “Fixing the Skills Gap: Addressing Existing Labour Shortages in High Demand Occupations”.

It was agreed, — That on Wednesday, March 14, Monday, March 26, Wednesday, March 28 and Monday, April 23, 2012, the Committee hear from witnesses from national organizations experiencing science, technology, engineering and mathematics skills shortages in relation to its study “Fixing the Skills Gap: Addressing Existing Labour Shortages in High Demand Occupations”.

It was agreed, — That the Committee travel to Halifax, St. John’s and Montréal during the week of Monday, April 2 to Friday, April 6, 2012 in relation to its study “Fixing the Skills Gap: Addressing Existing Labour Shortages in High Demand Occupations” and; that the sites visits for the Committee include (i) the Irving Shipyard in Halifax, to discuss shipbuilding contracts and the need for skilled labour, (ii) St. John’s to discuss the oil and gas exploration, and (iii) Montréal to discuss digital skills and the cultural industry, with a focus on the growing animation and software industry.

It was agreed, — That on Wednesday, April 25, 2012, the Committee hear from witnesses from national organizations experiencing shortages in the digital skills field in relation to its study “Fixing the Skills Gap: Addressing Existing Labour Shortages in High Demand Occupations”.

It was agreed, — That on Monday, April 30 and Wednesday, May 2, 2012, the Committee hear from witnesses from national organizations experiencing medical skills shortages in relation to its study “Fixing the Skills Gap: Addressing Existing Labour Shortages in High Demand Occupations”.

It was agreed, — That on Monday, May 7, Wednesday, May 9 and Monday, May 28, 2012, the Committee hear from witnesses from national organizations experiencing skill trades shortages in relation to its study “Fixing the Skills Gap: Addressing Existing Labour Shortages in High Demand Occupations”.

It was agreed, — That the Committee travel to Yellowknife, Calgary and Vancouver, during the week of Monday, May 14 to Friday, May 18, 2012, in relation to its study “Fixing the Skills Gap: Addressing Existing Labour Shortages in High Demand Occupations” and; that while visiting (i) Yellowknife the focus be on mining and other natural resource extraction, (ii) Calgary the focus be on technical innovation and engineering solutions for the oil and gas sector, and (iii) Vancouver the focus be on digital skills and touring leading research as well as software development facilities.

It was agreed, — That on Wednesday, May 30, 2012, the Committee hear from additional witnesses from organizations experiencing skill shortages in the noted areas of interest, in relation to its study “Fixing the Skills Gap: Addressing Existing Labour Shortages in High Demand Occupations”.

It was agreed, — That the Committee undertake a study entitled, “Understanding Labour Shortages: Addressing Barriers to Filling Low-Skilled Jobs”; that this study focus on the challenges that Canadian businesses in the service, agriculture and aquaculture industries, among others, face in finding low-skilled workers at a time when local unemployment remains higher than normal and, paradoxically, dependence on low skilled temporary foreign workers is increasing; and that this study be carried out in tandem with the "Fixing the Skills Gap: Addressing Existing Labour Shortages in High-Demand Occupations" study, particularly during the travel portions of the study.

It was agreed, — That between Wednesday, March 7 and Wednesday, March 28, 2012; Monday, April 23 and Wednesday, May 9, 2012; and Monday, May 28 and Wednesday, May 30, 2012, Committee members may ask questions relating to the “Understanding Labour Shortages: Addressing Barriers to Filling Low-Skilled Jobs” study to witnesses invited to testify on the “Fixing the Skills Gap: Addressing Existing Labour Shortages in High-Demand Occupations” study.

It was agreed, — That during the Committee travel to Yellowknife, Calgary and Vancouver, between Monday, May 14 and Friday, May 18, 2012, a roundtable be held in the visited areas to specifically invite witnesses concerned with the “Understanding Labour Shortages: Addressing Barriers to Filling Low-Skilled Jobs” study.

It was agreed, — That, with regards to the studies “Fixing the Skills Gap: Addressing Existing Labour Shortages in High-Demand Occupations” and “Understanding Labour Shortages: Addressing Barriers to Filling Low-Skilled Jobs”, Committee members submit their list of witnesses, for all meetings to be held in March 2012, to the Clerk no later than Wednesday, February 29, 2012.

It was agreed, — That the Committee not undertake consideration of any substantive motion during any Committee travel.

At 4:34 p.m., the Committee adjourned to the call of the Chair.