New effort to get students working

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This article was published 17/01/2020 (2082 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The provincial government, business leaders and the heads of all the universities, colleges and polytechnical institutes in Manitoba have promised to work much closer together to ensure the province has the kind of employees it needs for the changing workplace.

At the instigation of the Business Council of Manitoba, whose members represent 45,000 employees, a 23-page study called Horizon Manitoba was produced last year. It details the crucial need to re-examine and re-emphasize collaborative relationships.

It outlines six initiatives to focus on, such as examining current industry-education partnerships, significantly enhancing work-integrated programs — paid co-ops and internships, research projects, and mentorship programs — and tracking and analyzing student movement from graduation into the workforce.

Presidents of nine provincial institutions were on hand at the launch of the initiative Friday. Only Brandon University president David Docherty was unable to attend. The high turnout was an illustration that the leadership of the post-secondary institutions take this initiative seriously.

Although all of the initiatives that were promised already take place to one degree or another, the players agreed a heightened level of engagement is required and they are willing to do more.

Annette Trimbee, president of the University of Winnipeg, chairs an ad hoc group of institution presidents. She said it’s important the university demonstrate its relevance to the provincial economy amid growing discussion about skill-development strategies, which everyone agrees is required to address all job gaps in the province and across the country.

“It was important that post-secondary institutions be at the table,” she said. “Yes. We have been collaborating for a long time. But the difference that excited me more is the ongoing dialogue about where Manitoba’s economy is headed.

“When people talk about good jobs for our young people… what is a good job in 2025 or 2030? How is our economy going to change.”

She is keen on one of the major commitments in Horizon Manitoba — to scale up work-integrated learning.

About 50 per cent of students who graduate from the U of W experience some of that, but there is the need for much more. The aspirational goal as stated in the report is for every student to have the chance to experience that.

Certain sectors in the province have a significant number of unfilled positions, especially in the information technology and engineering and sciences fields. Technology is causing a massive disruption in traditional careers.

Ralph Eichler, minister of economic development and training, said the proposed intensified collaboration is exactly what the province needs to meet its stated goal to create 40,000 new jobs in the next four years.

“We know it is a changing world and we need to change with it,” he said. “Government needs to move at the pace of business. Governments are typically slow. We are going to up our game. This sets the stage for that.”

The report calls for data analysis and other undertakings that require more resources than are currently being deployed. Other than an initial commitment from the federal department of Western Economic Diversification for just over $1 million last year, there is no definitive budget to get some of these things done.

Don Leitch, the president and CEO of the Business Council of Manitoba, said a materials testing lab at Magellan Aerospace, which Red River College aerospace technician students use, is a good example of collaboration between business and schools.

“We have been having ongoing discussions on how we can drive and grow the economy and train and educate more Manitobans to fill the jobs we have now and the jobs emerging in the future,” he said. “

That is what started it and what has led to this report.”

While more specialized skills are required in the digital era, there is a consensus that if students had the chance to experience the workplace sooner, and understand soft skills — such as communication, analysis, team building and problem solving — it would lead to better career outcomes.

“We want our students to think and prepare about life after university a little earlier (than they currently do),” Trimbee said.

Leitch also cited the Youth CEO program sponsored by the business council.

It pairs Indigenous and immigrant high school students in a summer camp setting, which includes short stints at some of the largest employers in the city: True North Sports & Entertainment, Payworks Payroll Services, North West Company, Price Industries, Bison Transport and the Winnipeg Free Press.

“ A lot of young folks don’t get exposure to big businesses because of where their parents work,” Leitch said. “It can open their eyes to the huge variety of jobs that exist here.”

martin.cash@freepress.mb.ca