Agrifoods producers met with the provincial government today to discuss skilled labor initiatives and human resource planning as part of a series of roundtables being held over the coming months with sectors highlighted in the BC Jobs Plan.

British Columbia’s agrifoods sector is one of the most diverse in Canada. It provides the province with a competitive advantage and a wide range of opportunities for growth and innovation in agriculture, commercial fishing, aquaculture and food and beverage.

The roundtables, co-hosted with industry associations and employers, aim to stimulate discussion and create awareness about how sectors can access skilled labour and satisfy human resource requirements, as a result of an aging population. B.C. has reached a tipping point with fewer young people entering the workforce than older workers leaving it. These demographic realities, together with economic growth, place significant pressure on key sectors to find innovative solutions to address skills shortages. Through BC’s Skills for Jobs Blueprint, the Province is helping British Columbians get the skills they need to be first in line for these job openings.

Roundtable participants were invited to share information and discuss the unique challenges faced by processors in the agrifoods sector, specifically related to recruiting and training a qualified workforce, the promotion of B.C. export-ready products internationally and identifying opportunities for growth.

The sector-specific roundtables are another way government is working to provide employers and industry the opportunity to ask and respond to questions and inform the provincial government of key labour issues.

Quotes:

Norm Letnick, Minister of Agriculture –

“B.C. food producers help keep our families healthy, our communities vibrant and our economy strong. The B.C. government is committed to working with B.C.’s agriculture industry to best meet their labour market needs and ensure local food production continues to grow in British Columbia.”

Rhonda Driediger, director and former chair, B.C. Agriculture Council –

“The economic survival of many B.C. farms and supporting agrifood businesses depends upon farmers’ access to labour. We need to understand the diverse employment opportunities that exist within agriculture. The B.C. Agriculture Council appreciates government assisting farmers to find, develop and train the workers we need to help produce all our agricultural products and continue the growth of our industry.”

Quick Facts:

• B.C. has more than 1,800 food and beverage manufacturing operations around the province.
• In 2014, the agrifoods sector generated almost $12.3 billion in total revenue.
• British Columbia has some of the most diverse agrifoods industries in Canada, producing more than 200 agriculture commodities and 100 seafood species.
• More than 75% of B.C. seafood is destined for export.

Creating High-Value Telecommunications R&D Jobs in Ontario

Ontario is partnering with Huawei Canada on a major research and development (R&D) expansion project called 5G Ontario. Huawei Canada will invest $212 million to create hundreds of R&D jobs for Ontario’s highly skilled workers and further solidify the province as a global hub of the knowledge economy.

Premier Kathleen Wynne was at Huawei’s Canadian headquarters in Markham today to announce that Ontario is investing up to $16 million through the Jobs and Prosperity Fund to support Huawei Canada’s 5G Ontario R&D expansion plan. 5G Ontario will focus on advanced communications research initiatives including faster Internet speeds and related technologies such as cloud computing, data analytics and mobile security. Huawei will create 250 new R&D jobs in the province as it establishes new research laboratories in Markham and Waterloo and expands its existing research facility in Ottawa.

This agreement builds on Premier Wynne’s first trade mission to China in 2014, where it was announced in Beijing that Huawei would invest $210 million to expand in Ontario and create 250 highly skilled R&D jobs. Today’s announcement supports those 250 new jobs and retains an additional 250 R&D jobs. In total, Huawei intends to invest up to $303 million in 5G and related research initiatives in Ontario over the next five years, $212 million of which is supported by the province’s Jobs and Prosperity Fund investment.

The Huawei expansion project illustrates how Ontario’s Going Global Strategy is strengthening the province’s information and communications sector. International trade missions and strategic partnerships with business are both critical ways the government is attracting new investment, facilitating innovation and bolstering global exports.

Attracting new investments and helping the province’s businesses compete globally are part of the government’s economic plan to build Ontario up and deliver on its number-one priority to grow the economy and create jobs. The four-part plan includes investing in talent and skills, including helping more people get and create the jobs of the future by expanding access to high-quality college and university education. The plan is making the largest investment in public infrastructure in Ontario’s history and investing in a low-carbon economy driven by innovative, high-growth, export-oriented businesses. The plan is also helping working Ontarians achieve a more secure retirement.

QUICK FACTS

• The Jobs and Prosperity Fund is investing $2.7 billion over 10 years to enhance productivity, bolster innovation and grow Ontario’s exports — it will help create and retain more than 16,000 jobs and attract more than $1 billion in investments.
• The Premier’s trade missions to China in November 2015 and to India earlier this year are expected to create approximately 1,850 jobs in Ontario through more than 100 agreements and memoranda of understanding. The total estimated value of the agreements is approximately $2.8 billion.
• Premier Wynne has led two trade missions to China. Her mission in 2014 attracted nearly $1 billion in new investments and her trip in November 2015 generated $2.5 billion in agreements.
• China-based Huawei Technologies is the largest telecommunications equipment maker in the world.