Canadian HR Reporter Weekly

3 Canadian HR Reporter, a Thomson Reuters business 2018 June 27, 2018 ere's a perception that truck drivers won't be needed in 10 years or so, she said, but the organization doesn't see that happening. "I don't know of a trucking company that's placed an order for a driverless truck, for example. We want to manage some of that perception to certainly get the message out that this is an occupation that is still required." e worker shortage is not well-known among the general public, according to the head of the Atlantic Provinces Trucking Association (APTA). "ere's certainly a huge need to make sure that we educate the right people about the industry because I think, today, we're not necessarily part of the conversation when it comes to students and career counselors," said Jean-Marc Picard, executive director of APTA in Dieppe, N.B. "We want to be in the forefront of those conversations in terms of good careers, because the industry has changed tremendously in the last 10, 15 years." It is becoming increasingly hard for the trucking industry to bring in a fresh crop of workers, he said. "Obviously, (the need for) drivers takes precedence, but the average age is up there, people are retiring. And we're not necessarily seeing an influx of young people coming into our industry to drive a truck." For Ray Trenholm, manager at the School of Trades and Technology at ompson Rivers University in Kamloops, B.C., the federal funds are sorely needed and should help employers gain more insights. "e trucking companies definitely have to make it attractive to work for them," he said. "You only have so many people wanting to become a truck driver. We don't have a great population (and) when you start breaking it down — and if we use males between 25 and 45 as our demographic — you figure out how many of those individuals are in Canada... And then if only one per cent of those choose trucking as a career, because they may to become a cook or a doctor or a lawyer, yeah, there's not many." Training standards needed Training and standards are another big issue for the in- dustry, according to the driving school trainer. "e big challenge in Canada is we need to harmonize the training standards across Canada, we need to get the industry recognized as a skilled trade," said Trenholm. "e biggest thing that we all need is to get a standardized funding program that helps pay for the tuition across Canada, or especially in British Columbia, because right now we don't have a traditional student-loan program like our university has." "By changing the official standard, we can probably become a skilled trade — that's where it all starts," said Picard. "erefore, training becomes mandatory and you're starting to see some structure within the industry in terms of how we train our drivers consistently across Canada." If you look at any other trade, the training is very structured and consistent, he said. "We need to follow that same trend. It's a very high- profile occupation with lots of responsibilities when you're on the road with thousands and thousands of people, and you don't know how they're going to react because the roads are different from one province to the next." ere is a great appetite among employers to have such a designation, said Splinter. "Oh, absolutely. Everybody in the industry would like to see that the occupations have a higher-skilled recognition," she said. "As it exists right now, as an example, there's no formal documentation of training that's required." "We would have to have consistency across the board. And it's more than just entry-level training, it's that on-the-job training and on-the-job learning that would need to be documented and recognized," she said. Industry roundtables Reaching out to all the industry associations will be- come part of the effort funded by the government, said Simard.e sector review will include seven roundtables across the country with the participation of the different provincial trucking associations, and an online survey will be created for those unable to attend. Once the labour market information (LMI) is available, "there will be innovative tools and resources developed, such as career profiles, to help balance the supply and demand gaps for the trucking and logistics industry," she said. "e study will produce valuable information that will help identify skill gaps in the industry and recommend hiring Canadians from untapped labour pools, such as women, Indigenous People, people with disabilities, visible minorities, veterans/transitioning military personnel and youth," said Simard. "e sectoral LMI will increase the ability of trucking and logistics employers to recruit and retain qualified employees." Credit: Carolyn Franks (Shutterstock) The trucking industry is not necessarily part of the conversation when it comes to students and career counsellors, says the executive director of the Atlantic Provinces Trucking Association. Everybody in the industry would like to see that the occupations have a higher- skilled recognition."

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